WEBVTT
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Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of the Earned Fun Average Podcast.
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I'm your host Eric Profit, coming to you from Wichita, Kansas, and with me as always, I have Johnny Bold, late Charles Gumbo Gator super fan of course, coming tonight, most of the time for the Bayou Broadcast Center.
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Well, Johnny, it's, uh, we talked about this recently, but it's starting to warm up.
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It's still, March, but it's getting pretty warm out, so we're getting close to summer collegiate baseball, MLB started a few nights ago, so, uh, we're gonna talk a little summer collegiate ball.
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We have Roger Ward with us.
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How are you, Roger?
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Hey, I'm doing great tonight.
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Thank you.
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Thanks for having me.
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Yeah, glad you can join us here.
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So, uh, as we've mentioned, talking a little summer ball here and actually talking a little, uh, Kansas Summer Ball.
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Would you mind sharing with everybody, who the team is and what you do with the team?
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Yeah, so we're the great Ben Bat Cats right in the middle of the state of Kansas.
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we're away from the core of our league, which is the Wichita area.
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but so we do a little more traveling and things like that, but.
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the Jay Hawk League has been around for years and years, and then, when I first started the program in 2017, I got into the original Jay Hawk League, uh, which was a thrill.
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And after two years, you know, the economy and some other things and travel for teams and just a lot of teams having trouble raising funds to be able to travel.
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As much for three, three day road trips and, things of that nature.
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there was a Sunflower Collegiate League that was formed in Wichita, and then of course the teams from the Wichita area that were in the Jayhawk League kind of went towards that.
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And understandably so now I was caught in the middle, in the middle of everybody after our second season still broke, you know, not sure how we would do it, and I had to.
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Weigh my options, um, as an organization.
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'cause I didn't start this, to do this for a couple years.
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I wanna do it for 40, 50, 60 years, keep it going after me and had to make the best decision I could.
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we were given an invite to the Sunflower Collegiate League.
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We took it.
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and then after three or four years of that, I can't remember how many years exactly, We formed back into, we took the old Title J Hawk Collegiate League, and that's where we're at now.
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it's as strong as it has been.
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I mean, we've had the Hutch Monarchs in the title game the last three years.
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Before that, Cheney was making those long, deep runs, which they're not around anymore.
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And maybe they'll come back with Pat the gang.
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But, Competition's there.
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You know, we have nine teams in the league.
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and there's always those fir the top four or five kind of fighting it out.
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Uh, we're in that group, but we've come up short as far as NBC World Series, the last two years by one game.
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we're going in year number 10 here in my little community, which I grew up in.
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we're trying to do things bigger and better every year.
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Bringing in the right kids and being competitive, and hopefully we can do that again.
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Yeah, that makes it even better if it's a, town or community you grew up in and then like you said, starting up the league and not just for something for a couple years, but something, and you've heard of some of these teams that have been around for 80, 90 years, and that'd be, you know, tremendous if that's something.
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And that sounds exactly like what you're wanting to do.
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So, uh, it's great hearing about that.
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Roger, one of the first things we like doing though is talk about a favorite hat and you have a.
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Tremendous hat there, Johnny, if you can see it on there.
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But would you mind sharing with all of our listeners what hat you have today?
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Yeah, so, I've had this idea long before it came to fruition and we were always gonna be called the Bat Cats.
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I'm a Kentucky alumni, played baseball there and I thought I just had a nice little ring, great Ben back hats.
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And, a couple of guys that I coached in, in junior college were in the business now of, uh.
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creating logos and things like that.
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And I said, give it to me man, and this is what we came up with.
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And, I love it.
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You know, and a lot of people love it.
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I see it around town all the time now.
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I get calls and emails about sending them out.
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We were actually, uh, what was it, baseball American 2018.
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Named us the ninth best mascot in summer collegiate baseball.
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Wow.
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So we haven't heard from'em since, but at least we got that one little, quick hit on it.
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But, uh, we've got a couple alternate hats now too, but this is our main one.
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This is our identity.
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Uh, when people see it, they pretty much know who we are now.
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We've been around long enough, but, I'm very proud of it and I'm proud to see people that wear it around my town.
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It almost reminds me a little bit of like the Bo Jackson with the bat on his shoulders type of, but yeah, no really cool logo.
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I really like that there.
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So, awesome design and appreciate you sharing that hat.
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Mr.
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Boen, what do you have today, sir?
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I, Tonight representing, those Cape Catfish, your 2025 Prospect League champions.
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This is an alternative hat.
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They had parrot head night, and, uh, they printed off some of the hats.
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This is a trucker hat with their C logo, uh, and a really bright orange.
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I absolutely love it.
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always a big fan of Jimmy Buffett's music, so, oh yeah.
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this was a birthday present, from the CEO this year.
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shout out to the Rhinestone Cowboy, Glen Campbell, uh, and those Kate Catfish.
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I'm just gonna throw this question.
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Favorite Buffet song, Roger.
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Cheeseburger in Paradise.
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I'm, I'm with you.
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Or come Monday.
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That's my, that's a good one too.
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I've got a fond memory of the cheeseburger in Paradise, and so that's always the one that comes out first.
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Uh, when I was at, we had this guy that could do nothing but hit at Kentucky when I played there.
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we were playing Minnesota over spring break and it seemed like all he could do was hit the ball outta the park.
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And we saw that he had rappers like from his locker to almost coming out of the clubhouse cheeseburger wrappers, because he just mowed down cheeseburgers and hit bombs and they, they started playing that song every time he came up.
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So I, when I hear Jimmy Buffet, I, I think of that, I've eaten at his sister's restaurant in coastal Alabama.
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It's, it is a tourist pure.
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Tourist place called Lulu's.
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You ever been to that park?
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South Alabama.
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Okay.
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Uh, Lulu's is, uh, owned or was owned, at least founded by his sister.
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So I, that's the closest I ever got to Mr.
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Buffet.
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was dinner at Lulu's, but always been a big fan of his, of his music.
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And when I saw this online, online store, my wife needs her birthday ideas, I said, oh man, I love that parent head.
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That bright orange with the funky kinda ingredients, almost teal version of their logo.
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Yeah, that's sweet.
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And for myself, I'm also staying in Summer Collegiate with my hat.
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So it is out of the Coastal Plain League.
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It's the Wilmington Sharks.
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I had them on the show probably.
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What year, year and a half ago now, Johnny, it seems like it's been quite a while, but it's got the W logo for Wilmington with the shark, and then got a bat inside of its mouth inside of its teeth there.
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So I got the Wilmington Sharks is what I'm wearing today.
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both of'em are really, really sharp.
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For sure.
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I think we need to do an upgrade for sure.
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Well, Roger talked a little bit there about having the, bat cats that you, formed then obviously had some playing time in Kentucky.
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kind of in between your collegiate playing days and your, you know, forming this team.
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Did you do anything else in baseball or did you kind of jump right into the bat?
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Cats.
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So I, I, I jumped right into junior college baseball here at Barton Community College.
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you know, I wanted to figure out after I was done playing, which I, I love the game.
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It's really all I think about.
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But was I, was I good enough to be a coach?
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And, you know, I really respected my head coach and he gave me an opportunity.
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I did it for a few years and then I was like, you know, I gotta make some money.
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And so I got a real job.
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You know, at a, at a factory, I hadn't finished my degree quite yet, and that's something I needed to, to hone in on.
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And so when I was away from baseball, I just, life wasn't the same.
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And so I've coached American Legion Baseball in three separate decades here in Great Bend.
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For two or three years stints at a time, kind of took a group and took'em on up.
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And overall, I think I got 10 or 11 years at Barton Community College, which I was actually living in Wichita.
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I was married and I had a, I had a nice job at Wichita State in Century two, and I was there for eight or nine years and something was calling me back to baseball.
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I didn't wanna do it anywhere but here.
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And my old head coach was about to retire, so I came back and coached with him for two years.
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And when he retired, some of the younger guys who I'd actually coached in JUCO took the program over and that's when we looked at each other and said, I think it's time for me to do my own thing and let's keep some of these guys here over the summer and and help develop.
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And so that was 10 years ago.
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And here we are.
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And Barton's had a pretty solid, program under those two guys, Brent Biggs and Brent McBride.
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coach Mike Warren went to Wichita, coached for a few more years at Goddard.
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Eisenhower, and now he's officially, he retired, which I'm sure is tough on him, but, yeah, that's the gist of it.
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It's, it's been kind of hit and miss.
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I never did it full, full time.
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It is usually three or four year stints.
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but it's always called me back and it called me back to Great Ben.
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And so I haven't looked back.
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It's, it's something you work on every single day and it's been, it's been quite a journey and, uh, like I said, going into year 10, you know, we're gonna try to celebrate, doing bigger and better things and, keep on putting good people on the field, bringing them to town, good kids and having good experiences and keep building.
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For sure.
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Yeah.
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I love that story.
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As you, you know, you'd mentioned how you were like, well, you know, I'm from Great Bend, and I wanna, you know, bring a team there.
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And so of course you can have, you know, as many teams kind of like in a big city or kind of surrounding area, but to have a little bit further out, but you know, from the community that you, you know, have always called home is, I really love that.
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but did want to get then a little bit into.
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You know, great Bend itself.
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So, you know, if anybody does get a chance to get out to see you guys see the Bat Cats play, can you tell us just a little bit about the stadium and the experience when they come out?
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Yeah.
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So, and this one, this one hits home a lot because when I moved back, this field, it's called.
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It's now named Al Burns Memorial Field.
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Okay.
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At, at Veterans Memorial Park.
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And it's a beautiful Park Lake.
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Everybody walks there, jogs there, drives around, has picnics.
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there's a lot of playgrounds there.
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But when I came back, the field was, was deserted because four or five, maybe a little bit longer, years ago, before that, they had built a brand new sports complex and.
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The field that everybody grew up on and seven or eight different teams were on it every, you know, almost every single day was now just standing there as it was built 50 some years ago.
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you know, Al Burns was a friend of my grandpa's and I was like, well, we gotta do something about this.
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And so I came on board and I immediately, first I had to get the trust of even friends to gimme money to.
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Support the Bat Cats.
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But after we did that and had huge success in our first season going three in one in the NBC, we, they started paying attention and then we started putting our own money into the field.
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giving it a little character, you know, bringing fencing in high up to where we can put signs that I could sell.
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and then it took four, we got brand new lights.
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The first two years we couldn't see the baseball.
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I don't know how it wasn't kicked outta the league.
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but we got brand new lights.
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The city pulled through on that.
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And then eventually I, I bought one concession stand, that we could serve out of on the third base side.
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And when I got the city to buy in to giving us new dugouts and backstop and netting, and take all the chain link out, that was about.
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A hundred feet away from home plate and move everything up.
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Now we had a walkway through to the other side and we put bought another concession stand on the first base side.
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Now we have flow, but one thing that happened that I didn't think was gonna happen.
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Is, people did start giving money.
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We put up a green monster now, and we have signs on that, a brand new scoreboard.
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We got rid of the 50-year-old Pepsi sign, you know, scoreboard.
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You can see it.
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It's beautiful.
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Al's name is on it.
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I'm getting ready to do a couple more things to finish out the fence this year.
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But along the way we've also got brand new, uh, infield and sprinkler system and, and the dugouts are expanded out with railing.
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And one thing that we didn't do, one, one thing to even have happened was there became a group of left field fans.
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There are nights where there's 40 trucks out there in left field and it's just an amazing atmosphere out there.
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They're out there grilling, cooking, having a good time.
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We probably need to do a better job of getting some speakers where they can hear the 50 50 Graffel winner.
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Mm-hmm.
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Out there.
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A little bit better, but,'cause we hit'em hard out there, so we have free admission.
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Whether you're in the stands or not.
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so that's one way that people give back is through that 50 50.
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And we, I tell my players, you better hit that left field hard now because they got the money and they're drinking their own beer.
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So it's been fun.
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I've got one more, two more little projects and I'm wanting to get done on that field, including press box and a couple of sweeps.
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but we're getting there.
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Yeah, my brother and I try to get around and see, obviously go around the country to see games, but also I've been trying to get to see some other, teams in the area.
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So between him and my boys, we need to for sure get out to a Bat Cat's game.
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'cause it sounds like a, a fun place to catch a ball game.
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Yeah.
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Well, I'll, I'll give you the same offer I gave Terry.
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If you guys come up with a time, you let me know.
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We'll take good care of you and just experience one game.
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Hopefully it's a night where.
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We do have the four to 500 people in the stands and couple hundred in left field.
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There's always those down nights with all of the youth players and, they're doing their own thing.
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And I try not to schedule'em that when I know they're playing.
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But, um, that's hard with the league, but yeah.
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Offer stands, just gimme a buzz.
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For sure.
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Well, I appreciate that.
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Roger, you talked earlier kinda when we got started, a little bit about the league, but I just want to hear a little bit more, obviously you said it's kind of started one way, took a d, had a different name, and then kind of went back to the original name.
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But just tell us a few more things about the league itself and what you kind of enjoy about playing in the league.
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I mean, the main thing is, is we're in it to give, give kids an opportunity.
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Mm-hmm.
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A platform.
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And, there are so many leagues and teams now around the country, you know, that more, more kids get to play.
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And I don't want to say it's watered down because you know what everybody can develop, but it is a little bit.
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Our job is just, Hey, we want to give the kids a platform.
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Here in Kansas, I know it's not as nice as a lot of other places.
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Maybe a little bit warmer, but we all individually, all of our, all nine of our teams do the best that we can to provide a good opportunity and experience for those guys to come in and do what they're trying to do.
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They're chasing dreams now.
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It's not about us anymore, Now there's some that are more serious than others.
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Some, some are doing it through college, really don't have aspirations beyond it.
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But there's a lot that do.
00:15:05.096 --> 00:15:11.155
And so there have been a lot of professional baseball players come out of our league even in the last four or five years.
00:15:11.155 --> 00:15:17.162
I mean, we've got one knocking on the door of the big leagues right now at the Mets and, uh, a couple others in the minors.
00:15:17.322 --> 00:15:22.131
if they don't have the opportunity, maybe they're not quite as good enough for other leagues.
00:15:22.581 --> 00:15:34.341
Even though I feel like we're as good as any league around, and I wish there was a way that we could prove it because we're solid, especially the first five, six teams and I'd put'em up against anybody on any night.
00:15:34.341 --> 00:15:35.859
But, you know, so we do.
00:15:35.979 --> 00:15:38.739
myself, I give some of the underdog players.
00:15:39.129 --> 00:15:40.928
More opportunities and bring'em in here.
00:15:40.928 --> 00:15:49.448
And you know what, some of them might have had nine at bats their first year at juco, and by the time they were done, ju uh, d ones were calling me about'em.
00:15:49.869 --> 00:15:53.019
And there we opened up some doors and that's what it's all about.
00:15:53.496 --> 00:15:58.528
Well, you know, uh, if you've ever listened to this podcast, I, I'll go off on these.
00:15:58.682 --> 00:15:59.731
I don't wanna say tangent.
00:15:59.731 --> 00:16:01.442
So what they say, chasing rabbits.
00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:03.168
Kind of an oddball question.
00:16:03.259 --> 00:16:05.418
You said you had played baseball at Kentucky.
00:16:05.705 --> 00:16:07.534
Eric and I love logos.
00:16:07.813 --> 00:16:25.969
Do you like the single K on the baseball cap or the u uk that they wear now on the baseball cap that's a good question because, you know, I played there in the early nineties and we were the one Big K there's always, you know, there's always people who resist when there's change.
00:16:26.129 --> 00:16:27.104
me being one of them.
00:16:27.446 --> 00:16:30.385
When they did that UK I was like, what are we doing?
00:16:31.225 --> 00:16:39.849
You know, they did it on football helmets and then, but you know, the UK is nice and that's who we are, and it's really grown on me.
00:16:40.208 --> 00:16:47.025
They changed their logo from the old, cat to that new, I don't even know what you call it, but it's, it's grown on me.
00:16:47.261 --> 00:16:53.139
And of course I was able to go back in 2018 for alumni when we closed down our old stadium.
00:16:53.350 --> 00:17:02.326
And the new one was being built and ready to go that next, uh, spring and seeing the changes and just understanding, hey, I forget.
00:17:02.326 --> 00:17:09.403
I'm getting pretty darn old and I know how old people were when I was young and they always thought everything was great back then, which it was.
00:17:09.596 --> 00:17:13.527
But I'm more open now to seeing change and I love the UK now.
00:17:13.730 --> 00:17:14.750
I absolutely love it.
00:17:15.088 --> 00:17:15.479
Yeah.
00:17:15.929 --> 00:17:20.602
Much to my wife chagrin last night, you know, Roger, I didn't go a play shift.
00:17:20.602 --> 00:17:27.165
I just watched a lot of college baseball and I know she was probably shaking her head and I, and I came out with this statement.
00:17:27.316 --> 00:17:38.138
I think especially for big time SEC programs, I love it when the baseball program has their own logo that no other sport, maybe softball.
00:17:38.294 --> 00:17:39.763
They could share a logo.
00:17:40.153 --> 00:17:40.273
Mm-hmm.
00:17:40.784 --> 00:17:48.693
I think it, it's cool when baseball, college baseball has a distinct logo that's not used by other teams.
00:17:48.693 --> 00:17:52.471
Like I said, maybe besides softball, for example, I went to UAB.
00:17:52.471 --> 00:17:53.881
They have the, just the B.
00:17:54.348 --> 00:17:55.548
The cap like that.
00:17:55.769 --> 00:17:56.788
Wichita State.
00:17:56.788 --> 00:18:00.659
I like the w that's kind of their logo mark.
00:18:01.078 --> 00:18:01.199
Mm-hmm.
00:18:01.642 --> 00:18:07.521
we were watching Alabama and Auburn last night, and I thought, because my wife loves Alabama, catch a huge Alabama fan.
00:18:07.836 --> 00:18:10.776
Of course, everything's script day, which I get it.
00:18:11.021 --> 00:18:18.885
But I said, you know, Auburn, I wish Auburn would go back to just the single, blue cap, orange block, a like Bo Jackson era.
00:18:19.471 --> 00:18:20.971
That's our baseball logo.
00:18:21.092 --> 00:18:25.548
You know, like that's our unique to this sport kind of kind of logo.
00:18:25.548 --> 00:18:30.425
And so when you mentioned Kentucky, I thought okay, probably, I imagine, yeah.
00:18:30.425 --> 00:18:34.061
I thought he's probably a single k, from back in the nineties.
00:18:34.061 --> 00:18:40.288
Uh, so yeah, I was, I was, I appreciate your thoughts on that because I was curious about your thoughts on kind of the.
00:18:40.490 --> 00:18:45.621
Rebrand, but you know, you're right that classic wildcat where it's kind of coming at you.
00:18:45.740 --> 00:18:46.131
Yeah.
00:18:47.570 --> 00:18:48.891
It's kinda like Alabama.
00:18:48.891 --> 00:18:51.411
The the elephant going through the A Yeah.
00:18:51.544 --> 00:18:52.384
Is classic.
00:18:52.384 --> 00:18:56.384
That should have never I'm still, I'm still very fond of all the classic SEC stuff.
00:18:56.384 --> 00:19:01.483
I mean, all of those hats that you're talking about are what they were wearing when I was playing against them.
00:19:01.769 --> 00:19:11.142
and I think they do still bring back the single K and they bring back our retro jerseys, you know, and haven't totally forgot it, seems like they got 10 or 12 hats now.
00:19:11.142 --> 00:19:12.882
So we only had one back in the day.
00:19:13.239 --> 00:19:23.696
We, we were in Oxford a couple weeks ago, went in an old miss store shopping for our, our son-in-law, and they had all their on field caps, and I, I think they have, you're right, like four to five.
00:19:23.696 --> 00:19:24.116
Mm-hmm.
00:19:24.571 --> 00:19:29.221
And I said to her last night, I like Ole Miss with the u and m interlock.
00:19:29.281 --> 00:19:30.991
That's a baseball only logo.
00:19:31.321 --> 00:19:31.682
Yeah.
00:19:31.892 --> 00:19:33.842
That block m looks like Michigan.
00:19:34.046 --> 00:19:37.195
it, it's, we need your own, you need your your own thing.
00:19:37.358 --> 00:19:39.759
toughest opponent you played in college.
00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:47.614
Your toughest team that you guys at Kentucky played we had some pretty good runs there in the early nineties 91.
00:19:47.936 --> 00:19:55.023
we won 41 games and swept LSU and didn't even get a bid to the tournament, and LSU won the World Series.
00:19:55.144 --> 00:19:55.203
Wow.
00:19:55.431 --> 00:19:57.050
I'm still trying to figure that one out.
00:19:57.324 --> 00:19:57.503
Wow.
00:19:57.534 --> 00:20:00.941
Um, In those days, it, and not many things have changed.
00:20:00.941 --> 00:20:13.537
There's still a lot of years, four or five SEC teams going, but we, I went, I got there right when they expanded with South Carolina on the east side, and I forget who it was on the west, Arkansas, on the west side.
00:20:13.733 --> 00:20:15.324
you know, there's never a weekend off.
00:20:15.324 --> 00:20:17.513
You know, you hear that everywhere, every league.
00:20:17.513 --> 00:20:19.413
But, Florida was tough.
00:20:19.496 --> 00:20:20.726
Their pitching lineup.
00:20:20.726 --> 00:20:29.068
I mean, I, I was fortunate to get a couple of hits that when they came to our place, but I don't know how they, and every, every weekend you're facing a future big leaguer.
00:20:29.068 --> 00:20:31.731
But LSU was, they were extremely tough.
00:20:31.922 --> 00:20:36.855
Florida to name, a team out of our league that was tough that we played every year.
00:20:37.112 --> 00:20:37.471
Right.
00:20:37.471 --> 00:20:38.731
State of Ohio.
00:20:38.923 --> 00:20:39.733
Oh wow.
00:20:40.034 --> 00:20:46.876
And they had a left-hander that was on team USA and was in the big leagues for 12 years that he threw against us each year.
00:20:46.876 --> 00:20:52.616
And I'm just, I'm lead off going O for four with two Ks and a drib to third, you know, just wondering.
00:20:52.851 --> 00:20:56.366
I was hoping to pad my stats in the midweek and that didn't happen.
00:20:56.641 --> 00:20:57.961
What was it like playing at the Hoover?
00:20:57.961 --> 00:20:59.790
Met an SEC attorney.
00:20:59.820 --> 00:21:00.240
What was that?
00:21:00.888 --> 00:21:02.838
So we didn't, we didn't play there.
00:21:02.838 --> 00:21:04.128
Then we missed it out.
00:21:04.128 --> 00:21:04.848
My junior year.
00:21:05.239 --> 00:21:09.328
We missed it, and then the next year we moved it to the Superdome.
00:21:09.586 --> 00:21:11.806
Oh, that's, oh, I forgot about that.
00:21:11.806 --> 00:21:12.165
That's right.
00:21:12.165 --> 00:21:13.066
We moved to the Superdome.
00:21:13.066 --> 00:21:15.269
So I, I haven't been to, the who?
00:21:15.419 --> 00:21:17.491
The Met Hoover, Alabama.
00:21:17.818 --> 00:21:19.288
I didn't get to experience that.
00:21:19.288 --> 00:21:19.409
So.
00:21:19.821 --> 00:21:22.132
That ballpark looks ginormous.
00:21:23.241 --> 00:21:23.342
It does.
00:21:23.342 --> 00:21:32.905
And I, I can't tell you Roger, but Baron's games and years ago going to SEC tournament there, it looks like you really gotta hit that ball to get it out.
00:21:32.905 --> 00:21:36.162
I mean, it just looks, you know, when you see it in person.
00:21:36.162 --> 00:21:36.172
Oh.
00:21:36.384 --> 00:21:42.171
You know, and it was, built with the hopes of attracting AAA baseball back in the eighties.
00:21:42.171 --> 00:21:43.536
That was the mm-hmm.
00:21:43.788 --> 00:21:44.493
The hope.
00:21:44.493 --> 00:21:48.003
And, and it just, it just seems like a giant field.
00:21:48.307 --> 00:21:53.406
you had mentioned at the beginning about when you, you see people wearing the bat cat hats.
00:21:53.576 --> 00:21:54.866
how does that make you feel?
00:21:54.896 --> 00:21:55.826
Is somebody that.
00:21:56.193 --> 00:22:00.034
Created it and running this team, how does that make you feel?
00:22:00.253 --> 00:22:05.294
when you're in Great Bend and you see people wearing the merchandise, it makes me feel very proud.
00:22:05.294 --> 00:22:16.777
You know, and it's something that actually I've had a tough time of, taking a deep breath and then, and thinking about what's happened here, to where about two years ago, my friend started saying, Hey, you need to.
00:22:16.977 --> 00:22:25.431
You need to relax and take a look at what's been going on here and enjoy it more because I don't know, I, I'm a little bit probably too into it.
00:22:25.431 --> 00:22:39.314
I, I don't know why I always have to try to fill, have that edge or whatever, not lose my edge, not lose my edge on recruiting players, creating more stuff at the ballpark, at raising the money to make sure we take good care of our, players and stuff.
00:22:39.703 --> 00:22:40.759
And I said, you, you know.
00:22:41.211 --> 00:22:46.028
I think that probably correlates with the number of, uh, doctor's visits I've had to take lately.
00:22:46.028 --> 00:22:47.138
So maybe I ought to listen.
00:22:47.429 --> 00:22:56.011
And so I have, and in the last two years I've been, a little more coherent about, Hey, people actually love this and they're looking forward to it.
00:22:56.249 --> 00:22:57.449
And it's okay.
00:22:57.868 --> 00:23:03.352
You know, if you don't make it to the NBC one year, you don't have to dwell on it for three months, as a competitor.
00:23:03.469 --> 00:23:05.989
I probably take that over overboard.
00:23:06.048 --> 00:23:10.729
And so it is what it is and that's the approach I'm trying to take now.
00:23:10.729 --> 00:23:13.256
And, and that's also coming from my doctors.
00:23:15.269 --> 00:23:17.699
You need to calm down, bud, about the same age.
00:23:17.699 --> 00:23:20.689
So I feel, uh, to quote Bill Clinton, I feel your pain.
00:23:20.719 --> 00:23:21.048
Okay.
00:23:22.209 --> 00:23:26.858
I'm 54, so I, I, I feel your pain, uh, with, with doctor's visits.
00:23:27.249 --> 00:23:31.675
And then my last question, this is my go-to Eric knows what's coming.
00:23:31.736 --> 00:23:38.846
As I, I've said before, I believe in recycling, but I love the answers that we've received with this question.
00:23:39.086 --> 00:23:44.501
And the question is this, I've asked this to general managers, team owners, team president, you know.
00:23:44.750 --> 00:23:50.621
Just all through, uh, through the line of, of doing this podcast, what would be your dream promotion?
00:23:50.861 --> 00:23:54.334
Money's no option and you can do for one night.
00:23:54.394 --> 00:23:56.733
What would be your dream promotion?
00:23:56.933 --> 00:23:58.193
No expenses spare?
00:23:58.461 --> 00:24:02.336
what I've tried to do here in Great Bend, and I do all the promotions and everything.
00:24:03.096 --> 00:24:11.038
I wanna add that I do have a wonderful board put together now and a lot more volunteers, and it's becoming a well-oiled machine, so to speak.
00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:14.249
You know, the events can go off without many hiccups.
00:24:14.511 --> 00:24:20.231
but what I've tried to do here in Great Bend is, is incorporate the things that are near and dear to me.
00:24:20.396 --> 00:24:25.221
Okay, so I'm gonna go, I'm gonna give you one there because I feel like, uh.
00:24:25.366 --> 00:24:33.213
there's a couple of organizations here, the Family Crisis Center that deals with battered women, shelter, things of that nature.
00:24:33.243 --> 00:24:41.116
There's Center for counseling that is there for people's mental health, which sometimes you don't even know you need it and you do.
00:24:41.310 --> 00:24:45.426
and then the other one is a cur of course to raise money, for cancer.
00:24:45.584 --> 00:24:48.830
Research and I'm gonna, uh, this is probably off the wall.
00:24:48.830 --> 00:24:49.550
You've never heard it.
00:24:49.550 --> 00:24:50.780
I hope I'm not screwing it up.
00:24:50.780 --> 00:25:04.300
But if I could do just a little bit more for the family crisis center than we do and promote it and everybody showed up and, could give what they could give on that night because it's, it's a problem, you know?
00:25:04.361 --> 00:25:05.621
domestic violence.
00:25:05.858 --> 00:25:15.217
even the kids involved with this stuff and it's a cycle that if there's some magic potion that we could put together and stop the cycle, then I would, I would walk away.
00:25:15.747 --> 00:25:16.916
Save my job's done.
00:25:17.203 --> 00:25:21.733
probably a little bit different than what you're hear used to hearing, but that's a wonderful answer.
00:25:21.733 --> 00:25:24.797
I heard years ago I took some criminal justice classes.
00:25:24.797 --> 00:25:33.364
I'm sure you know, you and Eric have heard of the staff that more officers were killed in the line of duty at domestic violence in the home.
00:25:33.586 --> 00:25:33.856
Yep.
00:25:34.121 --> 00:25:51.696
You know, and I could not believe that when I was taking that CJ class, 30 something years ago, like you would think it's bank robbery, some kind of dramatic cop show kind, but it's going to a home where there's a, domestic abuse situation and, and that's it, number, number one.
00:25:52.017 --> 00:25:52.346
Yep.
00:25:52.618 --> 00:25:52.838
it.
00:25:52.844 --> 00:25:55.493
It blew me away that that was, you know, how.
00:25:55.836 --> 00:25:59.497
How a serious a problem that that is.
00:25:59.760 --> 00:26:01.201
And that's a wonderful answer.
00:26:01.201 --> 00:26:05.451
And it really shows your heart and compassion and care for the people in your community.
00:26:05.713 --> 00:26:09.134
Roger, one of the segments we do is the profit and the loss and the profit's.
00:26:09.134 --> 00:26:10.334
Something you've gained or earn.
00:26:10.334 --> 00:26:19.797
You know, you've talked about the community, you know, coming out to support the bat cats and obviously you guys have, uh, had a little bit of run here or there where you've gotten to make the NBC World Series.
00:26:19.797 --> 00:26:22.047
Any specific profit or gain you can think of?
00:26:22.401 --> 00:26:25.671
I don't know if this is the right answer, but obviously.
00:26:25.810 --> 00:26:32.304
What it's brought to the town and, and the town has grasped it and made it theirs, took some ownership of it.
00:26:32.621 --> 00:26:33.881
that makes me very proud.
00:26:33.881 --> 00:26:44.294
But I go back to our very first year when we were three and oh in the World Series up against Cheney extra innings, and we lost, on a pass ball.
00:26:44.588 --> 00:26:54.675
and it seemed like a crushing deal, but what I didn't know is that this really pulled the people in from the beginning as far as wanting to be a part of it in some way, some fashion.
00:26:54.878 --> 00:27:07.240
seeing the numbers, talking about already seeing things around town, seeing the things that they want us to be a part of and, and, Even, uh, what do they you call when you're going down Main Street in a parade?
00:27:07.527 --> 00:27:13.957
being asked to, to donate to events and help others, raise money for what they're trying to do.
00:27:14.223 --> 00:27:20.757
to me, that's a profit because now we're a big part of the town and our community to where, we're helping others out.
00:27:20.757 --> 00:27:20.997
When.
00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:25.267
It used to be we were begging for for help and we're here for the long haul.
00:27:25.267 --> 00:27:27.070
I mean, we talked about it earlier.
00:27:27.101 --> 00:27:41.686
We're actually part of the Golden Belt Community Foundation now to make sure that there's something in place and we had to invest in that to where if I wasn't here or when I get old and retire, whatever, that there's a plan in place to keep it.
00:27:41.957 --> 00:27:44.537
And to me, if I came back in my next life.
00:27:45.086 --> 00:27:48.284
Was able to see the back cat still up and running.
00:27:48.473 --> 00:27:50.564
That's profit to me for sure.
00:27:50.564 --> 00:27:52.124
Yeah, that's a tremendous answer.
00:27:52.124 --> 00:27:53.263
Appreciate you sharing that.
00:27:53.534 --> 00:28:02.933
How about the flip side, the loss, obviously you already talked about, uh, your, Kentucky team should have been in the, playoffs there, the re you know, regionals and everything.
00:28:02.933 --> 00:28:05.574
But, uh, maybe anything else that you can think of?
00:28:05.574 --> 00:28:08.743
One particular loss, maybe Well, last year.
00:28:08.848 --> 00:28:13.061
We had a tough one, three years ago, Hutch got in that large bid.
00:28:13.261 --> 00:28:19.862
we won the league, we had Santa Barbara beat and we walked some guys and made a crucial air and we got beat.
00:28:20.102 --> 00:28:20.342
Mm-hmm.
00:28:20.582 --> 00:28:23.426
Well, Hutch and I told Mark Blackham and his wife.
00:28:23.840 --> 00:28:27.866
Kim, even during the year when they were scuffling a little bit, I said, you got a good ball club.
00:28:27.866 --> 00:28:29.740
Like you could probably win this thing.
00:28:29.740 --> 00:28:30.820
Oh, you gotta be kidding me.
00:28:31.057 --> 00:28:33.727
Well, they were in it and that team stuck together.
00:28:33.997 --> 00:28:38.310
ended up beating Santa Barbara, maybe even the Hays Larks, and they won it all.
00:28:38.310 --> 00:28:39.691
But that lost to Santa Barbara.
00:28:40.288 --> 00:28:45.271
That was a tough one because that was the one that would've got us there and we had the team to win it that year.
00:28:45.301 --> 00:28:45.392
Mm-hmm.
00:28:45.932 --> 00:28:51.692
So, you know, a lot of those guys are still playing major division one baseball and pro baseball off of that club.
00:28:52.011 --> 00:28:53.692
I want to go back on that a little bit.
00:28:53.692 --> 00:29:03.102
The reason why we didn't have the club that I put together, we were playing in derby one night and a huge storm rolled through and it totally annihilated.
00:29:03.382 --> 00:29:06.261
Our field and every, all the players' cars.
00:29:06.951 --> 00:29:07.011
Mm.
00:29:07.521 --> 00:29:15.398
And so parents from all over the country are coming here with trailers and trucks and taking'em home and I'm wondering who's coming back.
00:29:15.443 --> 00:29:15.864
Mm-hmm.
00:29:16.246 --> 00:29:18.195
I lost some really good players there.
00:29:18.871 --> 00:29:22.861
That was Mother Nature speaking, but it was still in our hands at the NBC.
00:29:22.861 --> 00:29:26.324
But that was a, losing those players was tough and losing that game was tough.
00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:28.480
We wanna get back and we wanna see what we can do.
00:29:28.666 --> 00:29:38.386
like I said, my family and I usually try to go to the NBC every year and, uh, they brought back two years ago, baseball round the clock, and we didn't get to do it the first year.
00:29:38.386 --> 00:29:41.086
Two years ago when they brought it back, we were out of town.
00:29:41.446 --> 00:29:43.156
Uh, but did do it last year.
00:29:43.156 --> 00:29:47.183
And Terry, that we had mentioned earlier that you were on his show a while back.
00:29:47.183 --> 00:29:50.903
He came up from Texas and he did baseball around the clock.
00:29:50.903 --> 00:29:52.614
And we're planning on do it again this year.
00:29:52.614 --> 00:29:57.564
So hopefully you guys will be there and maybe we'll get to see you at the 3:00 AM or 6:00 AM game.
00:29:57.564 --> 00:29:58.163
Who knows?
00:29:58.163 --> 00:30:03.614
But you know, it, it'd be an honor to be at that game'cause we want to be back and, and see what we can do.
00:30:03.614 --> 00:30:04.814
But those are tough.
00:30:05.219 --> 00:30:08.699
Yeah, the older you get their, I don't know if they're gonna be able to wake me up.
00:30:09.628 --> 00:30:14.551
Well, at least it'll be a little bit cooler, that late or early in the morning, however you wanna look at it.
00:30:14.551 --> 00:30:21.692
So, uh, last year the wasn't too bad, obviously it was in the nineties, as you know, here in Kansas, but overall, it wasn't too bad.
00:30:21.692 --> 00:30:23.311
Couple years ago, they had to delay.
00:30:24.092 --> 00:30:24.811
Round the clock.
00:30:24.842 --> 00:30:25.981
'cause some, some storms.
00:30:25.981 --> 00:30:29.221
Luckily we didn't run into that last year, so you never know what's gonna happen.
00:30:29.459 --> 00:30:32.759
but yeah, I would love to see you guys here, uh, this year.
00:30:32.759 --> 00:30:36.298
And then obviously not only with Round the Clock, it was just a weekend event.
00:30:36.298 --> 00:30:39.858
But, overall two week event, we usually try to get out to the games.
00:30:39.858 --> 00:30:44.125
We went to, they moved the championship game last year over to Riverfront Stadium.
00:30:44.125 --> 00:30:44.945
Got to see yeah.
00:30:45.076 --> 00:30:48.556
Hutch and the Lone Star Kraken play for the championship.
00:30:48.556 --> 00:30:53.986
So we go to not only the around the clock and see all those games, but see some others as well.
00:30:53.986 --> 00:30:58.365
So yeah, hope for the best, and looking forward to hopefully having you guys back again.
00:30:58.365 --> 00:31:04.695
But if anybody wanted to follow along with you guys online, do you have your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, anything like that?
00:31:04.695 --> 00:31:06.766
Your social media handles, and then your website.
00:31:06.976 --> 00:31:15.332
Yeah, so I don't think I have the actual handles, but we'd be real easy to find on, on Facebook, the Gray Bend Bat Katz Baseball Club.
00:31:15.721 --> 00:31:19.201
Same thing with Twitter or X, however you call it now.
00:31:19.491 --> 00:31:28.741
we do have a website, gray Bend bat katz.com and about a month ago I created an Instagram at the urging of several of my players coming in.
00:31:29.162 --> 00:31:33.439
So there's about four or five posts of me goofing around with AI and stuff.
00:31:33.439 --> 00:31:33.739
So.
00:31:34.203 --> 00:31:38.376
Gbca and, uh, we're on Instagram now.
00:31:38.517 --> 00:31:39.027
There you go.
00:31:39.027 --> 00:31:40.317
So that one's been fun.
00:31:40.826 --> 00:31:41.936
Here I am 54.
00:31:41.936 --> 00:31:46.257
Trying to figure that out because they wanna do all these videos and fun stuff in the summer.
00:31:46.446 --> 00:31:49.267
Uh, we're gonna have to get an intern for this stuff'cause I'm not doing that.
00:31:51.247 --> 00:31:51.666
For sure.
00:31:51.666 --> 00:31:51.846
Yeah.
00:31:51.846 --> 00:31:53.257
We'll make sure you guys go out there.
00:31:53.257 --> 00:32:00.517
Like I said, looking forward to seeing you guys this year if I can, and hopefully anybody else that's around can get up to see you a game.
00:32:00.932 --> 00:32:09.481
Great band or if you guys make it to the NBC World Series, come to Wichita as we have some other friends that'll be coming to the tournament this year, this summer as well.
00:32:09.481 --> 00:32:13.442
So, and then not only follow the Bat Cats, but make sure you guys follow us as well.
00:32:13.442 --> 00:32:14.102
We're earned fun.
00:32:14.102 --> 00:32:14.612
Average.
00:32:14.791 --> 00:32:15.842
Average is a VG.
00:32:15.842 --> 00:32:18.511
We're on Instagram, Twitter, blue sky, and threads.
00:32:18.721 --> 00:32:19.531
One more time, Roger.
00:32:19.531 --> 00:32:20.352
Really do appreciate it.
00:32:20.416 --> 00:32:22.531
Thank you so much for your time today, Eric.
00:32:22.531 --> 00:32:23.402
Johnny, thank you.
00:32:23.402 --> 00:32:24.541
I love what you guys are doing.
00:32:24.541 --> 00:32:25.771
Keep up the good work, man.
00:32:26.201 --> 00:32:29.922
America, lower your standards Average is what they do best.
00:00:17.762 --> 00:00:21.062
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another episode of the Earned Fun Average Podcast.
00:00:21.062 --> 00:00:31.766
I'm your host Eric Profit, coming to you from Wichita, Kansas, and with me as always, I have Johnny Bold, late Charles Gumbo Gator super fan of course, coming tonight, most of the time for the Bayou Broadcast Center.
00:00:32.374 --> 00:00:36.154
Well, Johnny, it's, uh, we talked about this recently, but it's starting to warm up.
00:00:36.154 --> 00:00:45.521
It's still, March, but it's getting pretty warm out, so we're getting close to summer collegiate baseball, MLB started a few nights ago, so, uh, we're gonna talk a little summer collegiate ball.
00:00:45.521 --> 00:00:46.756
We have Roger Ward with us.
00:00:46.756 --> 00:00:47.387
How are you, Roger?
00:00:47.811 --> 00:00:49.131
Hey, I'm doing great tonight.
00:00:49.462 --> 00:00:49.972
Thank you.
00:00:50.061 --> 00:00:50.841
Thanks for having me.
00:00:51.021 --> 00:00:52.582
Yeah, glad you can join us here.
00:00:52.582 --> 00:00:58.311
So, uh, as we've mentioned, talking a little summer ball here and actually talking a little, uh, Kansas Summer Ball.
00:00:58.311 --> 00:01:01.429
Would you mind sharing with everybody, who the team is and what you do with the team?
00:01:01.878 --> 00:01:05.748
Yeah, so we're the great Ben Bat Cats right in the middle of the state of Kansas.
00:01:05.808 --> 00:01:09.769
we're away from the core of our league, which is the Wichita area.
00:01:10.025 --> 00:01:12.936
but so we do a little more traveling and things like that, but.
00:01:13.087 --> 00:01:24.850
the Jay Hawk League has been around for years and years, and then, when I first started the program in 2017, I got into the original Jay Hawk League, uh, which was a thrill.
00:01:25.063 --> 00:01:35.364
And after two years, you know, the economy and some other things and travel for teams and just a lot of teams having trouble raising funds to be able to travel.
00:01:35.596 --> 00:01:39.618
As much for three, three day road trips and, things of that nature.
00:01:39.805 --> 00:01:49.036
there was a Sunflower Collegiate League that was formed in Wichita, and then of course the teams from the Wichita area that were in the Jayhawk League kind of went towards that.
00:01:49.036 --> 00:01:59.126
And understandably so now I was caught in the middle, in the middle of everybody after our second season still broke, you know, not sure how we would do it, and I had to.
00:01:59.236 --> 00:02:01.846
Weigh my options, um, as an organization.
00:02:01.876 --> 00:02:04.665
'cause I didn't start this, to do this for a couple years.
00:02:04.665 --> 00:02:10.852
I wanna do it for 40, 50, 60 years, keep it going after me and had to make the best decision I could.
00:02:11.109 --> 00:02:14.139
we were given an invite to the Sunflower Collegiate League.
00:02:14.331 --> 00:02:15.111
We took it.
00:02:15.329 --> 00:02:24.938
and then after three or four years of that, I can't remember how many years exactly, We formed back into, we took the old Title J Hawk Collegiate League, and that's where we're at now.
00:02:24.938 --> 00:02:26.618
it's as strong as it has been.
00:02:26.786 --> 00:02:30.538
I mean, we've had the Hutch Monarchs in the title game the last three years.
00:02:30.538 --> 00:02:34.725
Before that, Cheney was making those long, deep runs, which they're not around anymore.
00:02:34.725 --> 00:02:37.556
And maybe they'll come back with Pat the gang.
00:02:37.556 --> 00:02:39.197
But, Competition's there.
00:02:39.227 --> 00:02:41.266
You know, we have nine teams in the league.
00:02:41.450 --> 00:02:45.877
and there's always those fir the top four or five kind of fighting it out.
00:02:45.963 --> 00:02:53.260
Uh, we're in that group, but we've come up short as far as NBC World Series, the last two years by one game.
00:02:53.507 --> 00:02:57.076
we're going in year number 10 here in my little community, which I grew up in.
00:02:57.364 --> 00:02:59.824
we're trying to do things bigger and better every year.
00:03:00.169 --> 00:03:03.528
Bringing in the right kids and being competitive, and hopefully we can do that again.
00:03:04.161 --> 00:03:19.890
Yeah, that makes it even better if it's a, town or community you grew up in and then like you said, starting up the league and not just for something for a couple years, but something, and you've heard of some of these teams that have been around for 80, 90 years, and that'd be, you know, tremendous if that's something.
00:03:19.890 --> 00:03:22.050
And that sounds exactly like what you're wanting to do.
00:03:22.050 --> 00:03:24.330
So, uh, it's great hearing about that.
00:03:24.570 --> 00:03:28.140
Roger, one of the first things we like doing though is talk about a favorite hat and you have a.
00:03:28.406 --> 00:03:30.806
Tremendous hat there, Johnny, if you can see it on there.
00:03:30.806 --> 00:03:33.686
But would you mind sharing with all of our listeners what hat you have today?
00:03:33.955 --> 00:03:40.318
Yeah, so, I've had this idea long before it came to fruition and we were always gonna be called the Bat Cats.
00:03:40.318 --> 00:03:46.556
I'm a Kentucky alumni, played baseball there and I thought I just had a nice little ring, great Ben back hats.
00:03:46.556 --> 00:03:52.225
And, a couple of guys that I coached in, in junior college were in the business now of, uh.
00:03:52.359 --> 00:03:54.308
creating logos and things like that.
00:03:54.308 --> 00:03:57.855
And I said, give it to me man, and this is what we came up with.
00:03:57.855 --> 00:03:58.981
And, I love it.
00:03:59.222 --> 00:04:00.421
You know, and a lot of people love it.
00:04:00.421 --> 00:04:02.132
I see it around town all the time now.
00:04:02.299 --> 00:04:05.528
I get calls and emails about sending them out.
00:04:05.729 --> 00:04:09.818
We were actually, uh, what was it, baseball American 2018.
00:04:10.276 --> 00:04:13.455
Named us the ninth best mascot in summer collegiate baseball.
00:04:13.756 --> 00:04:14.205
Wow.
00:04:14.205 --> 00:04:18.565
So we haven't heard from'em since, but at least we got that one little, quick hit on it.
00:04:18.565 --> 00:04:22.776
But, uh, we've got a couple alternate hats now too, but this is our main one.
00:04:22.966 --> 00:04:24.255
This is our identity.
00:04:24.386 --> 00:04:27.499
Uh, when people see it, they pretty much know who we are now.
00:04:27.499 --> 00:04:32.588
We've been around long enough, but, I'm very proud of it and I'm proud to see people that wear it around my town.
00:04:32.821 --> 00:04:40.810
It almost reminds me a little bit of like the Bo Jackson with the bat on his shoulders type of, but yeah, no really cool logo.
00:04:40.810 --> 00:04:42.011
I really like that there.
00:04:42.011 --> 00:04:45.033
So, awesome design and appreciate you sharing that hat.
00:04:45.274 --> 00:04:45.543
Mr.
00:04:45.543 --> 00:04:46.863
Boen, what do you have today, sir?
00:04:46.863 --> 00:04:53.473
I, Tonight representing, those Cape Catfish, your 2025 Prospect League champions.
00:04:53.663 --> 00:04:55.793
This is an alternative hat.
00:04:56.036 --> 00:05:00.810
They had parrot head night, and, uh, they printed off some of the hats.
00:05:01.125 --> 00:05:06.625
This is a trucker hat with their C logo, uh, and a really bright orange.
00:05:06.956 --> 00:05:08.276
I absolutely love it.
00:05:08.541 --> 00:05:11.512
always a big fan of Jimmy Buffett's music, so, oh yeah.
00:05:11.725 --> 00:05:15.555
this was a birthday present, from the CEO this year.
00:05:15.732 --> 00:05:20.586
shout out to the Rhinestone Cowboy, Glen Campbell, uh, and those Kate Catfish.
00:05:20.795 --> 00:05:22.146
I'm just gonna throw this question.
00:05:22.146 --> 00:05:23.526
Favorite Buffet song, Roger.
00:05:23.891 --> 00:05:25.420
Cheeseburger in Paradise.
00:05:25.615 --> 00:05:26.440
I'm, I'm with you.
00:05:26.471 --> 00:05:27.550
Or come Monday.
00:05:27.610 --> 00:05:29.261
That's my, that's a good one too.
00:05:29.471 --> 00:05:34.947
I've got a fond memory of the cheeseburger in Paradise, and so that's always the one that comes out first.
00:05:34.947 --> 00:05:40.084
Uh, when I was at, we had this guy that could do nothing but hit at Kentucky when I played there.
00:05:40.427 --> 00:05:45.113
we were playing Minnesota over spring break and it seemed like all he could do was hit the ball outta the park.
00:05:45.351 --> 00:05:59.062
And we saw that he had rappers like from his locker to almost coming out of the clubhouse cheeseburger wrappers, because he just mowed down cheeseburgers and hit bombs and they, they started playing that song every time he came up.
00:05:59.062 --> 00:06:05.696
So I, when I hear Jimmy Buffet, I, I think of that, I've eaten at his sister's restaurant in coastal Alabama.
00:06:05.696 --> 00:06:07.495
It's, it is a tourist pure.
00:06:07.982 --> 00:06:09.841
Tourist place called Lulu's.
00:06:09.901 --> 00:06:10.922
You ever been to that park?
00:06:10.922 --> 00:06:11.971
South Alabama.
00:06:12.321 --> 00:06:12.610
Okay.
00:06:12.610 --> 00:06:17.528
Uh, Lulu's is, uh, owned or was owned, at least founded by his sister.
00:06:17.528 --> 00:06:19.569
So I, that's the closest I ever got to Mr.
00:06:19.569 --> 00:06:20.048
Buffet.
00:06:20.288 --> 00:06:24.879
was dinner at Lulu's, but always been a big fan of his, of his music.
00:06:24.999 --> 00:06:32.189
And when I saw this online, online store, my wife needs her birthday ideas, I said, oh man, I love that parent head.
00:06:32.422 --> 00:06:37.939
That bright orange with the funky kinda ingredients, almost teal version of their logo.
00:06:38.269 --> 00:06:39.048
Yeah, that's sweet.
00:06:39.401 --> 00:06:42.612
And for myself, I'm also staying in Summer Collegiate with my hat.
00:06:42.612 --> 00:06:44.562
So it is out of the Coastal Plain League.
00:06:44.562 --> 00:06:45.911
It's the Wilmington Sharks.
00:06:46.331 --> 00:06:48.552
I had them on the show probably.
00:06:48.793 --> 00:06:59.863
What year, year and a half ago now, Johnny, it seems like it's been quite a while, but it's got the W logo for Wilmington with the shark, and then got a bat inside of its mouth inside of its teeth there.
00:06:59.863 --> 00:07:02.144
So I got the Wilmington Sharks is what I'm wearing today.
00:07:02.581 --> 00:07:04.081
both of'em are really, really sharp.
00:07:04.442 --> 00:07:04.591
For sure.
00:07:04.591 --> 00:07:07.201
I think we need to do an upgrade for sure.
00:07:08.882 --> 00:07:16.026
Well, Roger talked a little bit there about having the, bat cats that you, formed then obviously had some playing time in Kentucky.
00:07:16.165 --> 00:07:20.485
kind of in between your collegiate playing days and your, you know, forming this team.
00:07:20.490 --> 00:07:23.636
Did you do anything else in baseball or did you kind of jump right into the bat?
00:07:23.636 --> 00:07:24.115
Cats.
00:07:24.505 --> 00:07:30.146
So I, I, I jumped right into junior college baseball here at Barton Community College.
00:07:30.295 --> 00:07:34.829
you know, I wanted to figure out after I was done playing, which I, I love the game.
00:07:34.829 --> 00:07:36.269
It's really all I think about.
00:07:36.411 --> 00:07:38.788
But was I, was I good enough to be a coach?
00:07:38.788 --> 00:07:42.769
And, you know, I really respected my head coach and he gave me an opportunity.
00:07:42.951 --> 00:07:45.951
I did it for a few years and then I was like, you know, I gotta make some money.
00:07:46.108 --> 00:07:47.939
And so I got a real job.
00:07:48.185 --> 00:07:54.781
You know, at a, at a factory, I hadn't finished my degree quite yet, and that's something I needed to, to hone in on.
00:07:54.925 --> 00:07:59.956
And so when I was away from baseball, I just, life wasn't the same.
00:08:00.182 --> 00:08:05.901
And so I've coached American Legion Baseball in three separate decades here in Great Bend.
00:08:06.456 --> 00:08:11.047
For two or three years stints at a time, kind of took a group and took'em on up.
00:08:11.266 --> 00:08:18.653
And overall, I think I got 10 or 11 years at Barton Community College, which I was actually living in Wichita.
00:08:18.653 --> 00:08:28.790
I was married and I had a, I had a nice job at Wichita State in Century two, and I was there for eight or nine years and something was calling me back to baseball.
00:08:29.038 --> 00:08:30.959
I didn't wanna do it anywhere but here.
00:08:31.086 --> 00:08:35.865
And my old head coach was about to retire, so I came back and coached with him for two years.
00:08:35.865 --> 00:08:50.466
And when he retired, some of the younger guys who I'd actually coached in JUCO took the program over and that's when we looked at each other and said, I think it's time for me to do my own thing and let's keep some of these guys here over the summer and and help develop.
00:08:50.673 --> 00:08:52.354
And so that was 10 years ago.
00:08:52.354 --> 00:08:53.193
And here we are.
00:08:53.193 --> 00:08:59.020
And Barton's had a pretty solid, program under those two guys, Brent Biggs and Brent McBride.
00:08:59.256 --> 00:09:02.994
coach Mike Warren went to Wichita, coached for a few more years at Goddard.
00:09:02.994 --> 00:09:08.780
Eisenhower, and now he's officially, he retired, which I'm sure is tough on him, but, yeah, that's the gist of it.
00:09:08.780 --> 00:09:10.671
It's, it's been kind of hit and miss.
00:09:10.671 --> 00:09:12.500
I never did it full, full time.
00:09:12.500 --> 00:09:14.331
It is usually three or four year stints.
00:09:14.586 --> 00:09:17.226
but it's always called me back and it called me back to Great Ben.
00:09:17.397 --> 00:09:19.017
And so I haven't looked back.
00:09:19.017 --> 00:09:34.663
It's, it's something you work on every single day and it's been, it's been quite a journey and, uh, like I said, going into year 10, you know, we're gonna try to celebrate, doing bigger and better things and, keep on putting good people on the field, bringing them to town, good kids and having good experiences and keep building.
00:09:35.188 --> 00:09:35.698
For sure.
00:09:35.698 --> 00:09:35.969
Yeah.
00:09:35.969 --> 00:09:37.078
I love that story.
00:09:37.438 --> 00:09:44.186
As you, you know, you'd mentioned how you were like, well, you know, I'm from Great Bend, and I wanna, you know, bring a team there.
00:09:44.186 --> 00:09:57.678
And so of course you can have, you know, as many teams kind of like in a big city or kind of surrounding area, but to have a little bit further out, but you know, from the community that you, you know, have always called home is, I really love that.
00:09:57.851 --> 00:09:59.797
but did want to get then a little bit into.
00:10:00.471 --> 00:10:02.511
You know, great Bend itself.
00:10:02.511 --> 00:10:11.272
So, you know, if anybody does get a chance to get out to see you guys see the Bat Cats play, can you tell us just a little bit about the stadium and the experience when they come out?
00:10:11.525 --> 00:10:11.855
Yeah.
00:10:11.855 --> 00:10:16.745
So, and this one, this one hits home a lot because when I moved back, this field, it's called.
00:10:16.917 --> 00:10:19.496
It's now named Al Burns Memorial Field.
00:10:20.277 --> 00:10:20.397
Okay.
00:10:20.397 --> 00:10:22.076
At, at Veterans Memorial Park.
00:10:22.167 --> 00:10:24.596
And it's a beautiful Park Lake.
00:10:24.956 --> 00:10:28.346
Everybody walks there, jogs there, drives around, has picnics.
00:10:28.527 --> 00:10:30.206
there's a lot of playgrounds there.
00:10:30.443 --> 00:10:40.933
But when I came back, the field was, was deserted because four or five, maybe a little bit longer, years ago, before that, they had built a brand new sports complex and.
00:10:41.035 --> 00:10:51.525
The field that everybody grew up on and seven or eight different teams were on it every, you know, almost every single day was now just standing there as it was built 50 some years ago.
00:10:51.759 --> 00:10:57.163
you know, Al Burns was a friend of my grandpa's and I was like, well, we gotta do something about this.
00:10:57.589 --> 00:11:04.605
And so I came on board and I immediately, first I had to get the trust of even friends to gimme money to.
00:11:05.010 --> 00:11:06.211
Support the Bat Cats.
00:11:06.211 --> 00:11:16.866
But after we did that and had huge success in our first season going three in one in the NBC, we, they started paying attention and then we started putting our own money into the field.
00:11:17.037 --> 00:11:23.006
giving it a little character, you know, bringing fencing in high up to where we can put signs that I could sell.
00:11:23.234 --> 00:11:25.634
and then it took four, we got brand new lights.
00:11:25.818 --> 00:11:27.798
The first two years we couldn't see the baseball.
00:11:28.086 --> 00:11:30.365
I don't know how it wasn't kicked outta the league.
00:11:30.556 --> 00:11:31.696
but we got brand new lights.
00:11:31.696 --> 00:11:33.346
The city pulled through on that.
00:11:33.519 --> 00:11:39.176
And then eventually I, I bought one concession stand, that we could serve out of on the third base side.
00:11:39.331 --> 00:11:46.229
And when I got the city to buy in to giving us new dugouts and backstop and netting, and take all the chain link out, that was about.
00:11:46.339 --> 00:11:49.349
A hundred feet away from home plate and move everything up.
00:11:49.542 --> 00:11:54.426
Now we had a walkway through to the other side and we put bought another concession stand on the first base side.
00:11:54.426 --> 00:11:57.918
Now we have flow, but one thing that happened that I didn't think was gonna happen.
00:11:58.376 --> 00:12:00.193
Is, people did start giving money.
00:12:00.193 --> 00:12:04.203
We put up a green monster now, and we have signs on that, a brand new scoreboard.
00:12:04.203 --> 00:12:08.104
We got rid of the 50-year-old Pepsi sign, you know, scoreboard.
00:12:08.433 --> 00:12:09.183
You can see it.
00:12:09.183 --> 00:12:10.114
It's beautiful.
00:12:10.474 --> 00:12:11.913
Al's name is on it.
00:12:12.224 --> 00:12:15.073
I'm getting ready to do a couple more things to finish out the fence this year.
00:12:15.073 --> 00:12:22.996
But along the way we've also got brand new, uh, infield and sprinkler system and, and the dugouts are expanded out with railing.
00:12:23.134 --> 00:12:30.246
And one thing that we didn't do, one, one thing to even have happened was there became a group of left field fans.
00:12:30.547 --> 00:12:35.803
There are nights where there's 40 trucks out there in left field and it's just an amazing atmosphere out there.
00:12:35.803 --> 00:12:38.860
They're out there grilling, cooking, having a good time.
00:12:38.986 --> 00:12:43.726
We probably need to do a better job of getting some speakers where they can hear the 50 50 Graffel winner.
00:12:43.937 --> 00:12:44.027
Mm-hmm.
00:12:44.267 --> 00:12:44.626
Out there.
00:12:44.626 --> 00:12:48.933
A little bit better, but,'cause we hit'em hard out there, so we have free admission.
00:12:49.048 --> 00:12:50.759
Whether you're in the stands or not.
00:12:51.046 --> 00:12:53.985
so that's one way that people give back is through that 50 50.
00:12:53.985 --> 00:12:59.912
And we, I tell my players, you better hit that left field hard now because they got the money and they're drinking their own beer.
00:13:01.381 --> 00:13:03.062
So it's been fun.
00:13:03.062 --> 00:13:09.989
I've got one more, two more little projects and I'm wanting to get done on that field, including press box and a couple of sweeps.
00:13:10.259 --> 00:13:11.129
but we're getting there.
00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:21.461
Yeah, my brother and I try to get around and see, obviously go around the country to see games, but also I've been trying to get to see some other, teams in the area.
00:13:21.461 --> 00:13:26.322
So between him and my boys, we need to for sure get out to a Bat Cat's game.
00:13:26.351 --> 00:13:29.052
'cause it sounds like a, a fun place to catch a ball game.
00:13:29.381 --> 00:13:29.591
Yeah.
00:13:29.591 --> 00:13:31.841
Well, I'll, I'll give you the same offer I gave Terry.
00:13:31.841 --> 00:13:34.871
If you guys come up with a time, you let me know.
00:13:34.871 --> 00:13:37.792
We'll take good care of you and just experience one game.
00:13:37.792 --> 00:13:38.812
Hopefully it's a night where.
00:13:39.741 --> 00:13:44.241
We do have the four to 500 people in the stands and couple hundred in left field.
00:13:44.692 --> 00:13:49.611
There's always those down nights with all of the youth players and, they're doing their own thing.
00:13:49.611 --> 00:13:52.642
And I try not to schedule'em that when I know they're playing.
00:13:52.642 --> 00:13:55.192
But, um, that's hard with the league, but yeah.
00:13:55.626 --> 00:13:57.667
Offer stands, just gimme a buzz.
00:13:57.876 --> 00:13:58.356
For sure.
00:13:58.356 --> 00:13:59.287
Well, I appreciate that.
00:13:59.510 --> 00:14:11.091
Roger, you talked earlier kinda when we got started, a little bit about the league, but I just want to hear a little bit more, obviously you said it's kind of started one way, took a d, had a different name, and then kind of went back to the original name.
00:14:11.091 --> 00:14:16.250
But just tell us a few more things about the league itself and what you kind of enjoy about playing in the league.
00:14:16.589 --> 00:14:20.938
I mean, the main thing is, is we're in it to give, give kids an opportunity.
00:14:21.119 --> 00:14:21.208
Mm-hmm.
00:14:21.578 --> 00:14:22.389
A platform.
00:14:22.389 --> 00:14:28.928
And, there are so many leagues and teams now around the country, you know, that more, more kids get to play.
00:14:29.091 --> 00:14:34.645
And I don't want to say it's watered down because you know what everybody can develop, but it is a little bit.
00:14:35.336 --> 00:14:38.666
Our job is just, Hey, we want to give the kids a platform.
00:14:38.666 --> 00:14:42.326
Here in Kansas, I know it's not as nice as a lot of other places.
00:14:42.326 --> 00:14:54.501
Maybe a little bit warmer, but we all individually, all of our, all nine of our teams do the best that we can to provide a good opportunity and experience for those guys to come in and do what they're trying to do.
00:14:54.501 --> 00:14:55.881
They're chasing dreams now.
00:14:55.881 --> 00:14:59.652
It's not about us anymore, Now there's some that are more serious than others.
00:14:59.657 --> 00:15:03.649
Some, some are doing it through college, really don't have aspirations beyond it.
00:15:03.649 --> 00:15:04.969
But there's a lot that do.
00:15:05.096 --> 00:15:11.155
And so there have been a lot of professional baseball players come out of our league even in the last four or five years.
00:15:11.155 --> 00:15:17.162
I mean, we've got one knocking on the door of the big leagues right now at the Mets and, uh, a couple others in the minors.
00:15:17.322 --> 00:15:22.131
if they don't have the opportunity, maybe they're not quite as good enough for other leagues.
00:15:22.581 --> 00:15:34.341
Even though I feel like we're as good as any league around, and I wish there was a way that we could prove it because we're solid, especially the first five, six teams and I'd put'em up against anybody on any night.
00:15:34.341 --> 00:15:35.859
But, you know, so we do.
00:15:35.979 --> 00:15:38.739
myself, I give some of the underdog players.
00:15:39.129 --> 00:15:40.928
More opportunities and bring'em in here.
00:15:40.928 --> 00:15:49.448
And you know what, some of them might have had nine at bats their first year at juco, and by the time they were done, ju uh, d ones were calling me about'em.
00:15:49.869 --> 00:15:53.019
And there we opened up some doors and that's what it's all about.
00:15:53.496 --> 00:15:58.528
Well, you know, uh, if you've ever listened to this podcast, I, I'll go off on these.
00:15:58.682 --> 00:15:59.731
I don't wanna say tangent.
00:15:59.731 --> 00:16:01.442
So what they say, chasing rabbits.
00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:03.168
Kind of an oddball question.
00:16:03.259 --> 00:16:05.418
You said you had played baseball at Kentucky.
00:16:05.705 --> 00:16:07.534
Eric and I love logos.
00:16:07.813 --> 00:16:25.969
Do you like the single K on the baseball cap or the u uk that they wear now on the baseball cap that's a good question because, you know, I played there in the early nineties and we were the one Big K there's always, you know, there's always people who resist when there's change.
00:16:26.129 --> 00:16:27.104
me being one of them.
00:16:27.446 --> 00:16:30.385
When they did that UK I was like, what are we doing?
00:16:31.225 --> 00:16:39.849
You know, they did it on football helmets and then, but you know, the UK is nice and that's who we are, and it's really grown on me.
00:16:40.208 --> 00:16:47.025
They changed their logo from the old, cat to that new, I don't even know what you call it, but it's, it's grown on me.
00:16:47.261 --> 00:16:53.139
And of course I was able to go back in 2018 for alumni when we closed down our old stadium.
00:16:53.350 --> 00:17:02.326
And the new one was being built and ready to go that next, uh, spring and seeing the changes and just understanding, hey, I forget.
00:17:02.326 --> 00:17:09.403
I'm getting pretty darn old and I know how old people were when I was young and they always thought everything was great back then, which it was.
00:17:09.596 --> 00:17:13.527
But I'm more open now to seeing change and I love the UK now.
00:17:13.730 --> 00:17:14.750
I absolutely love it.
00:17:15.088 --> 00:17:15.479
Yeah.
00:17:15.929 --> 00:17:20.602
Much to my wife chagrin last night, you know, Roger, I didn't go a play shift.
00:17:20.602 --> 00:17:27.165
I just watched a lot of college baseball and I know she was probably shaking her head and I, and I came out with this statement.
00:17:27.316 --> 00:17:38.138
I think especially for big time SEC programs, I love it when the baseball program has their own logo that no other sport, maybe softball.
00:17:38.294 --> 00:17:39.763
They could share a logo.
00:17:40.153 --> 00:17:40.273
Mm-hmm.
00:17:40.784 --> 00:17:48.693
I think it, it's cool when baseball, college baseball has a distinct logo that's not used by other teams.
00:17:48.693 --> 00:17:52.471
Like I said, maybe besides softball, for example, I went to UAB.
00:17:52.471 --> 00:17:53.881
They have the, just the B.
00:17:54.348 --> 00:17:55.548
The cap like that.
00:17:55.769 --> 00:17:56.788
Wichita State.
00:17:56.788 --> 00:18:00.659
I like the w that's kind of their logo mark.
00:18:01.078 --> 00:18:01.199
Mm-hmm.
00:18:01.642 --> 00:18:07.521
we were watching Alabama and Auburn last night, and I thought, because my wife loves Alabama, catch a huge Alabama fan.
00:18:07.836 --> 00:18:10.776
Of course, everything's script day, which I get it.
00:18:11.021 --> 00:18:18.885
But I said, you know, Auburn, I wish Auburn would go back to just the single, blue cap, orange block, a like Bo Jackson era.
00:18:19.471 --> 00:18:20.971
That's our baseball logo.
00:18:21.092 --> 00:18:25.548
You know, like that's our unique to this sport kind of kind of logo.
00:18:25.548 --> 00:18:30.425
And so when you mentioned Kentucky, I thought okay, probably, I imagine, yeah.
00:18:30.425 --> 00:18:34.061
I thought he's probably a single k, from back in the nineties.
00:18:34.061 --> 00:18:40.288
Uh, so yeah, I was, I was, I appreciate your thoughts on that because I was curious about your thoughts on kind of the.
00:18:40.490 --> 00:18:45.621
Rebrand, but you know, you're right that classic wildcat where it's kind of coming at you.
00:18:45.740 --> 00:18:46.131
Yeah.
00:18:47.570 --> 00:18:48.891
It's kinda like Alabama.
00:18:48.891 --> 00:18:51.411
The the elephant going through the A Yeah.
00:18:51.544 --> 00:18:52.384
Is classic.
00:18:52.384 --> 00:18:56.384
That should have never I'm still, I'm still very fond of all the classic SEC stuff.
00:18:56.384 --> 00:19:01.483
I mean, all of those hats that you're talking about are what they were wearing when I was playing against them.
00:19:01.769 --> 00:19:11.142
and I think they do still bring back the single K and they bring back our retro jerseys, you know, and haven't totally forgot it, seems like they got 10 or 12 hats now.
00:19:11.142 --> 00:19:12.882
So we only had one back in the day.
00:19:13.239 --> 00:19:23.696
We, we were in Oxford a couple weeks ago, went in an old miss store shopping for our, our son-in-law, and they had all their on field caps, and I, I think they have, you're right, like four to five.
00:19:23.696 --> 00:19:24.116
Mm-hmm.
00:19:24.571 --> 00:19:29.221
And I said to her last night, I like Ole Miss with the u and m interlock.
00:19:29.281 --> 00:19:30.991
That's a baseball only logo.
00:19:31.321 --> 00:19:31.682
Yeah.
00:19:31.892 --> 00:19:33.842
That block m looks like Michigan.
00:19:34.046 --> 00:19:37.195
it, it's, we need your own, you need your your own thing.
00:19:37.358 --> 00:19:39.759
toughest opponent you played in college.
00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:47.614
Your toughest team that you guys at Kentucky played we had some pretty good runs there in the early nineties 91.
00:19:47.936 --> 00:19:55.023
we won 41 games and swept LSU and didn't even get a bid to the tournament, and LSU won the World Series.
00:19:55.144 --> 00:19:55.203
Wow.
00:19:55.431 --> 00:19:57.050
I'm still trying to figure that one out.
00:19:57.324 --> 00:19:57.503
Wow.
00:19:57.534 --> 00:20:00.941
Um, In those days, it, and not many things have changed.
00:20:00.941 --> 00:20:13.537
There's still a lot of years, four or five SEC teams going, but we, I went, I got there right when they expanded with South Carolina on the east side, and I forget who it was on the west, Arkansas, on the west side.
00:20:13.733 --> 00:20:15.324
you know, there's never a weekend off.
00:20:15.324 --> 00:20:17.513
You know, you hear that everywhere, every league.
00:20:17.513 --> 00:20:19.413
But, Florida was tough.
00:20:19.496 --> 00:20:20.726
Their pitching lineup.
00:20:20.726 --> 00:20:29.068
I mean, I, I was fortunate to get a couple of hits that when they came to our place, but I don't know how they, and every, every weekend you're facing a future big leaguer.
00:20:29.068 --> 00:20:31.731
But LSU was, they were extremely tough.
00:20:31.922 --> 00:20:36.855
Florida to name, a team out of our league that was tough that we played every year.
00:20:37.112 --> 00:20:37.471
Right.
00:20:37.471 --> 00:20:38.731
State of Ohio.
00:20:38.923 --> 00:20:39.733
Oh wow.
00:20:40.034 --> 00:20:46.876
And they had a left-hander that was on team USA and was in the big leagues for 12 years that he threw against us each year.
00:20:46.876 --> 00:20:52.616
And I'm just, I'm lead off going O for four with two Ks and a drib to third, you know, just wondering.
00:20:52.851 --> 00:20:56.366
I was hoping to pad my stats in the midweek and that didn't happen.
00:20:56.641 --> 00:20:57.961
What was it like playing at the Hoover?
00:20:57.961 --> 00:20:59.790
Met an SEC attorney.
00:20:59.820 --> 00:21:00.240
What was that?
00:21:00.888 --> 00:21:02.838
So we didn't, we didn't play there.
00:21:02.838 --> 00:21:04.128
Then we missed it out.
00:21:04.128 --> 00:21:04.848
My junior year.
00:21:05.239 --> 00:21:09.328
We missed it, and then the next year we moved it to the Superdome.
00:21:09.586 --> 00:21:11.806
Oh, that's, oh, I forgot about that.
00:21:11.806 --> 00:21:12.165
That's right.
00:21:12.165 --> 00:21:13.066
We moved to the Superdome.
00:21:13.066 --> 00:21:15.269
So I, I haven't been to, the who?
00:21:15.419 --> 00:21:17.491
The Met Hoover, Alabama.
00:21:17.818 --> 00:21:19.288
I didn't get to experience that.
00:21:19.288 --> 00:21:19.409
So.
00:21:19.821 --> 00:21:22.132
That ballpark looks ginormous.
00:21:23.241 --> 00:21:23.342
It does.
00:21:23.342 --> 00:21:32.905
And I, I can't tell you Roger, but Baron's games and years ago going to SEC tournament there, it looks like you really gotta hit that ball to get it out.
00:21:32.905 --> 00:21:36.162
I mean, it just looks, you know, when you see it in person.
00:21:36.162 --> 00:21:36.172
Oh.
00:21:36.384 --> 00:21:42.171
You know, and it was, built with the hopes of attracting AAA baseball back in the eighties.
00:21:42.171 --> 00:21:43.536
That was the mm-hmm.
00:21:43.788 --> 00:21:44.493
The hope.
00:21:44.493 --> 00:21:48.003
And, and it just, it just seems like a giant field.
00:21:48.307 --> 00:21:53.406
you had mentioned at the beginning about when you, you see people wearing the bat cat hats.
00:21:53.576 --> 00:21:54.866
how does that make you feel?
00:21:54.896 --> 00:21:55.826
Is somebody that.
00:21:56.193 --> 00:22:00.034
Created it and running this team, how does that make you feel?
00:22:00.253 --> 00:22:05.294
when you're in Great Bend and you see people wearing the merchandise, it makes me feel very proud.
00:22:05.294 --> 00:22:16.777
You know, and it's something that actually I've had a tough time of, taking a deep breath and then, and thinking about what's happened here, to where about two years ago, my friend started saying, Hey, you need to.
00:22:16.977 --> 00:22:25.431
You need to relax and take a look at what's been going on here and enjoy it more because I don't know, I, I'm a little bit probably too into it.
00:22:25.431 --> 00:22:39.314
I, I don't know why I always have to try to fill, have that edge or whatever, not lose my edge, not lose my edge on recruiting players, creating more stuff at the ballpark, at raising the money to make sure we take good care of our, players and stuff.
00:22:39.703 --> 00:22:40.759
And I said, you, you know.
00:22:41.211 --> 00:22:46.028
I think that probably correlates with the number of, uh, doctor's visits I've had to take lately.
00:22:46.028 --> 00:22:47.138
So maybe I ought to listen.
00:22:47.429 --> 00:22:56.011
And so I have, and in the last two years I've been, a little more coherent about, Hey, people actually love this and they're looking forward to it.
00:22:56.249 --> 00:22:57.449
And it's okay.
00:22:57.868 --> 00:23:03.352
You know, if you don't make it to the NBC one year, you don't have to dwell on it for three months, as a competitor.
00:23:03.469 --> 00:23:05.989
I probably take that over overboard.
00:23:06.048 --> 00:23:10.729
And so it is what it is and that's the approach I'm trying to take now.
00:23:10.729 --> 00:23:13.256
And, and that's also coming from my doctors.
00:23:15.269 --> 00:23:17.699
You need to calm down, bud, about the same age.
00:23:17.699 --> 00:23:20.689
So I feel, uh, to quote Bill Clinton, I feel your pain.
00:23:20.719 --> 00:23:21.048
Okay.
00:23:22.209 --> 00:23:26.858
I'm 54, so I, I, I feel your pain, uh, with, with doctor's visits.
00:23:27.249 --> 00:23:31.675
And then my last question, this is my go-to Eric knows what's coming.
00:23:31.736 --> 00:23:38.846
As I, I've said before, I believe in recycling, but I love the answers that we've received with this question.
00:23:39.086 --> 00:23:44.501
And the question is this, I've asked this to general managers, team owners, team president, you know.
00:23:44.750 --> 00:23:50.621
Just all through, uh, through the line of, of doing this podcast, what would be your dream promotion?
00:23:50.861 --> 00:23:54.334
Money's no option and you can do for one night.
00:23:54.394 --> 00:23:56.733
What would be your dream promotion?
00:23:56.933 --> 00:23:58.193
No expenses spare?
00:23:58.461 --> 00:24:02.336
what I've tried to do here in Great Bend, and I do all the promotions and everything.
00:24:03.096 --> 00:24:11.038
I wanna add that I do have a wonderful board put together now and a lot more volunteers, and it's becoming a well-oiled machine, so to speak.
00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:14.249
You know, the events can go off without many hiccups.
00:24:14.511 --> 00:24:20.231
but what I've tried to do here in Great Bend is, is incorporate the things that are near and dear to me.
00:24:20.396 --> 00:24:25.221
Okay, so I'm gonna go, I'm gonna give you one there because I feel like, uh.
00:24:25.366 --> 00:24:33.213
there's a couple of organizations here, the Family Crisis Center that deals with battered women, shelter, things of that nature.
00:24:33.243 --> 00:24:41.116
There's Center for counseling that is there for people's mental health, which sometimes you don't even know you need it and you do.
00:24:41.310 --> 00:24:45.426
and then the other one is a cur of course to raise money, for cancer.
00:24:45.584 --> 00:24:48.830
Research and I'm gonna, uh, this is probably off the wall.
00:24:48.830 --> 00:24:49.550
You've never heard it.
00:24:49.550 --> 00:24:50.780
I hope I'm not screwing it up.
00:24:50.780 --> 00:25:04.300
But if I could do just a little bit more for the family crisis center than we do and promote it and everybody showed up and, could give what they could give on that night because it's, it's a problem, you know?
00:25:04.361 --> 00:25:05.621
domestic violence.
00:25:05.858 --> 00:25:15.217
even the kids involved with this stuff and it's a cycle that if there's some magic potion that we could put together and stop the cycle, then I would, I would walk away.
00:25:15.747 --> 00:25:16.916
Save my job's done.
00:25:17.203 --> 00:25:21.733
probably a little bit different than what you're hear used to hearing, but that's a wonderful answer.
00:25:21.733 --> 00:25:24.797
I heard years ago I took some criminal justice classes.
00:25:24.797 --> 00:25:33.364
I'm sure you know, you and Eric have heard of the staff that more officers were killed in the line of duty at domestic violence in the home.
00:25:33.586 --> 00:25:33.856
Yep.
00:25:34.121 --> 00:25:51.696
You know, and I could not believe that when I was taking that CJ class, 30 something years ago, like you would think it's bank robbery, some kind of dramatic cop show kind, but it's going to a home where there's a, domestic abuse situation and, and that's it, number, number one.
00:25:52.017 --> 00:25:52.346
Yep.
00:25:52.618 --> 00:25:52.838
it.
00:25:52.844 --> 00:25:55.493
It blew me away that that was, you know, how.
00:25:55.836 --> 00:25:59.497
How a serious a problem that that is.
00:25:59.760 --> 00:26:01.201
And that's a wonderful answer.
00:26:01.201 --> 00:26:05.451
And it really shows your heart and compassion and care for the people in your community.
00:26:05.713 --> 00:26:09.134
Roger, one of the segments we do is the profit and the loss and the profit's.
00:26:09.134 --> 00:26:10.334
Something you've gained or earn.
00:26:10.334 --> 00:26:19.797
You know, you've talked about the community, you know, coming out to support the bat cats and obviously you guys have, uh, had a little bit of run here or there where you've gotten to make the NBC World Series.
00:26:19.797 --> 00:26:22.047
Any specific profit or gain you can think of?
00:26:22.401 --> 00:26:25.671
I don't know if this is the right answer, but obviously.
00:26:25.810 --> 00:26:32.304
What it's brought to the town and, and the town has grasped it and made it theirs, took some ownership of it.
00:26:32.621 --> 00:26:33.881
that makes me very proud.
00:26:33.881 --> 00:26:44.294
But I go back to our very first year when we were three and oh in the World Series up against Cheney extra innings, and we lost, on a pass ball.
00:26:44.588 --> 00:26:54.675
and it seemed like a crushing deal, but what I didn't know is that this really pulled the people in from the beginning as far as wanting to be a part of it in some way, some fashion.
00:26:54.878 --> 00:27:07.240
seeing the numbers, talking about already seeing things around town, seeing the things that they want us to be a part of and, and, Even, uh, what do they you call when you're going down Main Street in a parade?
00:27:07.527 --> 00:27:13.957
being asked to, to donate to events and help others, raise money for what they're trying to do.
00:27:14.223 --> 00:27:20.757
to me, that's a profit because now we're a big part of the town and our community to where, we're helping others out.
00:27:20.757 --> 00:27:20.997
When.
00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:25.267
It used to be we were begging for for help and we're here for the long haul.
00:27:25.267 --> 00:27:27.070
I mean, we talked about it earlier.
00:27:27.101 --> 00:27:41.686
We're actually part of the Golden Belt Community Foundation now to make sure that there's something in place and we had to invest in that to where if I wasn't here or when I get old and retire, whatever, that there's a plan in place to keep it.
00:27:41.957 --> 00:27:44.537
And to me, if I came back in my next life.
00:27:45.086 --> 00:27:48.284
Was able to see the back cat still up and running.
00:27:48.473 --> 00:27:50.564
That's profit to me for sure.
00:27:50.564 --> 00:27:52.124
Yeah, that's a tremendous answer.
00:27:52.124 --> 00:27:53.263
Appreciate you sharing that.
00:27:53.534 --> 00:28:02.933
How about the flip side, the loss, obviously you already talked about, uh, your, Kentucky team should have been in the, playoffs there, the re you know, regionals and everything.
00:28:02.933 --> 00:28:05.574
But, uh, maybe anything else that you can think of?
00:28:05.574 --> 00:28:08.743
One particular loss, maybe Well, last year.
00:28:08.848 --> 00:28:13.061
We had a tough one, three years ago, Hutch got in that large bid.
00:28:13.261 --> 00:28:19.862
we won the league, we had Santa Barbara beat and we walked some guys and made a crucial air and we got beat.
00:28:20.102 --> 00:28:20.342
Mm-hmm.
00:28:20.582 --> 00:28:23.426
Well, Hutch and I told Mark Blackham and his wife.
00:28:23.840 --> 00:28:27.866
Kim, even during the year when they were scuffling a little bit, I said, you got a good ball club.
00:28:27.866 --> 00:28:29.740
Like you could probably win this thing.
00:28:29.740 --> 00:28:30.820
Oh, you gotta be kidding me.
00:28:31.057 --> 00:28:33.727
Well, they were in it and that team stuck together.
00:28:33.997 --> 00:28:38.310
ended up beating Santa Barbara, maybe even the Hays Larks, and they won it all.
00:28:38.310 --> 00:28:39.691
But that lost to Santa Barbara.
00:28:40.288 --> 00:28:45.271
That was a tough one because that was the one that would've got us there and we had the team to win it that year.
00:28:45.301 --> 00:28:45.392
Mm-hmm.
00:28:45.932 --> 00:28:51.692
So, you know, a lot of those guys are still playing major division one baseball and pro baseball off of that club.
00:28:52.011 --> 00:28:53.692
I want to go back on that a little bit.
00:28:53.692 --> 00:29:03.102
The reason why we didn't have the club that I put together, we were playing in derby one night and a huge storm rolled through and it totally annihilated.
00:29:03.382 --> 00:29:06.261
Our field and every, all the players' cars.
00:29:06.951 --> 00:29:07.011
Mm.
00:29:07.521 --> 00:29:15.398
And so parents from all over the country are coming here with trailers and trucks and taking'em home and I'm wondering who's coming back.
00:29:15.443 --> 00:29:15.864
Mm-hmm.
00:29:16.246 --> 00:29:18.195
I lost some really good players there.
00:29:18.871 --> 00:29:22.861
That was Mother Nature speaking, but it was still in our hands at the NBC.
00:29:22.861 --> 00:29:26.324
But that was a, losing those players was tough and losing that game was tough.
00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:28.480
We wanna get back and we wanna see what we can do.
00:29:28.666 --> 00:29:38.386
like I said, my family and I usually try to go to the NBC every year and, uh, they brought back two years ago, baseball round the clock, and we didn't get to do it the first year.
00:29:38.386 --> 00:29:41.086
Two years ago when they brought it back, we were out of town.
00:29:41.446 --> 00:29:43.156
Uh, but did do it last year.
00:29:43.156 --> 00:29:47.183
And Terry, that we had mentioned earlier that you were on his show a while back.
00:29:47.183 --> 00:29:50.903
He came up from Texas and he did baseball around the clock.
00:29:50.903 --> 00:29:52.614
And we're planning on do it again this year.
00:29:52.614 --> 00:29:57.564
So hopefully you guys will be there and maybe we'll get to see you at the 3:00 AM or 6:00 AM game.
00:29:57.564 --> 00:29:58.163
Who knows?
00:29:58.163 --> 00:30:03.614
But you know, it, it'd be an honor to be at that game'cause we want to be back and, and see what we can do.
00:30:03.614 --> 00:30:04.814
But those are tough.
00:30:05.219 --> 00:30:08.699
Yeah, the older you get their, I don't know if they're gonna be able to wake me up.
00:30:09.628 --> 00:30:14.551
Well, at least it'll be a little bit cooler, that late or early in the morning, however you wanna look at it.
00:30:14.551 --> 00:30:21.692
So, uh, last year the wasn't too bad, obviously it was in the nineties, as you know, here in Kansas, but overall, it wasn't too bad.
00:30:21.692 --> 00:30:23.311
Couple years ago, they had to delay.
00:30:24.092 --> 00:30:24.811
Round the clock.
00:30:24.842 --> 00:30:25.981
'cause some, some storms.
00:30:25.981 --> 00:30:29.221
Luckily we didn't run into that last year, so you never know what's gonna happen.
00:30:29.459 --> 00:30:32.759
but yeah, I would love to see you guys here, uh, this year.
00:30:32.759 --> 00:30:36.298
And then obviously not only with Round the Clock, it was just a weekend event.
00:30:36.298 --> 00:30:39.858
But, overall two week event, we usually try to get out to the games.
00:30:39.858 --> 00:30:44.125
We went to, they moved the championship game last year over to Riverfront Stadium.
00:30:44.125 --> 00:30:44.945
Got to see yeah.
00:30:45.076 --> 00:30:48.556
Hutch and the Lone Star Kraken play for the championship.
00:30:48.556 --> 00:30:53.986
So we go to not only the around the clock and see all those games, but see some others as well.
00:30:53.986 --> 00:30:58.365
So yeah, hope for the best, and looking forward to hopefully having you guys back again.
00:30:58.365 --> 00:31:04.695
But if anybody wanted to follow along with you guys online, do you have your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, anything like that?
00:31:04.695 --> 00:31:06.766
Your social media handles, and then your website.
00:31:06.976 --> 00:31:15.332
Yeah, so I don't think I have the actual handles, but we'd be real easy to find on, on Facebook, the Gray Bend Bat Katz Baseball Club.
00:31:15.721 --> 00:31:19.201
Same thing with Twitter or X, however you call it now.
00:31:19.491 --> 00:31:28.741
we do have a website, gray Bend bat katz.com and about a month ago I created an Instagram at the urging of several of my players coming in.
00:31:29.162 --> 00:31:33.439
So there's about four or five posts of me goofing around with AI and stuff.
00:31:33.439 --> 00:31:33.739
So.
00:31:34.203 --> 00:31:38.376
Gbca and, uh, we're on Instagram now.
00:31:38.517 --> 00:31:39.027
There you go.
00:31:39.027 --> 00:31:40.317
So that one's been fun.
00:31:40.826 --> 00:31:41.936
Here I am 54.
00:31:41.936 --> 00:31:46.257
Trying to figure that out because they wanna do all these videos and fun stuff in the summer.
00:31:46.446 --> 00:31:49.267
Uh, we're gonna have to get an intern for this stuff'cause I'm not doing that.
00:31:51.247 --> 00:31:51.666
For sure.
00:31:51.666 --> 00:31:51.846
Yeah.
00:31:51.846 --> 00:31:53.257
We'll make sure you guys go out there.
00:31:53.257 --> 00:32:00.517
Like I said, looking forward to seeing you guys this year if I can, and hopefully anybody else that's around can get up to see you a game.
00:32:00.932 --> 00:32:09.481
Great band or if you guys make it to the NBC World Series, come to Wichita as we have some other friends that'll be coming to the tournament this year, this summer as well.
00:32:09.481 --> 00:32:13.442
So, and then not only follow the Bat Cats, but make sure you guys follow us as well.
00:32:13.442 --> 00:32:14.102
We're earned fun.
00:32:14.102 --> 00:32:14.612
Average.
00:32:14.791 --> 00:32:15.842
Average is a VG.
00:32:15.842 --> 00:32:18.511
We're on Instagram, Twitter, blue sky, and threads.
00:32:18.721 --> 00:32:19.531
One more time, Roger.
00:32:19.531 --> 00:32:20.352
Really do appreciate it.
00:32:20.416 --> 00:32:22.531
Thank you so much for your time today, Eric.
00:32:22.531 --> 00:32:23.402
Johnny, thank you.
00:32:23.402 --> 00:32:24.541
I love what you guys are doing.
00:32:24.541 --> 00:32:25.771
Keep up the good work, man.
00:32:26.201 --> 00:32:29.922
America, lower your standards Average is what they do best.
