Hey, everyone. Welcome to the show. Great to
be here. So get this. What if I told you that
the real pulse of a whole community, you know,
its highs, its lows, its worries. Yeah. Could
actually be felt just by following a minor league
baseball team. Hmm. Sounds almost quaint, like
you said. Yeah. A bit old fashioned. Exactly.
Yeah. But that's kind of the surprising thing
you find in Will Barden Ripper's book, Homestand,
Small Town Baseball and the Fight for the Soul
of America. Right. That's the book we're diving
into today based on listener recommendation.
Oh, nice. And yeah, for anyone interested in,
you know, how small towns tick, what holds them
together. This book is it's a really fascinating
look. It is. It's nonfiction takes us right into
Batavia, New York. And it really zooms in on
their baseball team, the Muck Dogs. Yeah. Especially
during this really. Uh, uncertain time. Yeah,
that whole thing with Major League Baseball possibly
cutting ties. Exactly. That threat hanging over
them. It's the core conflict, really. And what
I thought was great, and maybe you did too, was
how the author, Barden Burper, he doesn't just
stick to the scores, right? No, not at all. He
gets into the lives of the fans, the people working
behind the scenes. Yeah. And how this team is
just like woven into Batavia's identity while
the town's dealing with all the usual modern
American stuff. Totally. And one of the real
strengths, I think, something that really stuck
with me, was how intimate that picture felt.
Yeah, intimate's a good word for it. You really
feel that connection, that history between the
town and the team, the muck dogs. And you meet
some really memorable people along the way, real
characters. Oh, yeah. Like who? Well, you've
got folks like... John Karuba, the guy who's
like this online champion for the team. Right.
The super fan. Yeah, exactly. And then these
lifelong supporters like Dr. Fanara. His dedication
just spans decades. It's incredible. That kind
of deep rooted passion. Precisely. If you appreciate
those kinds of human stories within the bigger
picture, this book really delivers on that. And
for me, another thing that really jumped out
was the way it looks at the bigger picture of
baseball itself. The industry changes. Yeah,
especially the minor leagues. It makes you think
about like the money side, the big decisions
made way up top. And how they trickle down. Right.
And how they hit these smaller towns, these communities
in ways that are, well, pretty profound, actually.
Definitely gave me pause thinking about how much
we value. these you know local spots these institutions
it did and what's really interesting especially
if you're thinking about the challenges you know
american towns are facing which many are right
is how losing the muck dogs or the threat of
losing them became kind of symbolic symbolic
of bigger things yeah bigger economic shifts
social changes the author really argues that
these seemingly small things like a local team
are actually way more vital to a community's
soul, I guess, than you might think from the
outside. That's a really good point. It's like
the connective tissue. Exactly. I really enjoyed
the book overall, Homestand, but it wasn't perfect.
Okay, fair enough. What stood out? For me, sometimes
all the anecdotes, you know, they were great
stories individually, really interesting people,
but occasionally it made the main story, the
main narrative thread feel a little um spread
out a bit diffuse uh i see what you mean like
a collection of snapshots rather than a continuous
film kinda like meeting loads of fascinating
people at a party but sometimes you forget why
the party started you know that's a fair point
and maybe uh keeping track of everyone there
are quite a few names dropped yeah the cast is
pretty large Which is fine, but sometimes maybe
a touch overwhelming. And I guess tied to that,
while the baseball industry context was useful,
there were moments it pulled focus maybe a bit
too much away from Batavia itself. Right. Just
when you're getting invested in the town story.
Yeah. Maybe slightly took away from that core
connection you were building with the place and
his people. Exactly. I kind of wanted to stick
with certain people or town issues just a little
longer sometimes before we zoomed out again.
Understandable. But honestly, those are pretty
minor things in what was for me a really worthwhile
read. Agreed. Despite those small points, Homestand
really does give you this valuable window into
a slice of America that maybe doesn't always
get the spotlight. True. It forces you to think
about the role shared passions play, like, you
know, rooting for the home team. That sense of
belonging. Yeah, that collective identity, especially
when facing pressures from the outside. Like,
what does it mean for a town spirit when something
like that, a pillar, is threatened? That's a
big question. So, okay, wrapping it all up. Rating
time. Okay. For someone looking to understand
that link between community, local identity,
sports. I think Homestand. Small town baseball
and the fight for the soul of America gets a
solid four out of five stars for me. Yeah, I'd
second that. A strong four. It's insightful.
It's got heart. If you like nonfiction that really
digs into the human side of these bigger trends,
Homestand is definitely worth picking up. It
really leaves you thinking, doesn't it, about
those local anchors. Makes you wonder about the
muck dogs in your own community, perhaps. Absolutely.
OK, well, I think that about wraps up our deep
dive into Homestand. Indeed. Thanks, everyone,
for joining us. Yeah. Thank you so much for tuning
in. And hey, if this chat got you interested,
if you want to read the story of Batavia and
the muck dogs yourself. Which we recommend. We
do. We've put a link to the book on Amazon right
there in the description below. Makes it easy
for you. And if you enjoyed this discussion,
found it useful, please do us a favor. Go on.
Hit that like button, subscribe to the show.
That way you won't miss out when we dive into
other fascinating topics from sources you guys
share. Absolutely. And we genuinely want to hear
from you, too. Yeah. Based on what we talked
about today, what kind of stuck with you? Yeah.
Any favorite moments or maybe something that
surprised you about what you heard regarding
Homestand? Drop your thoughts in the comments
below. Seriously, let's keep this conversation
going. I hope others find the show, too. Exactly.
Thanks again, everyone. See you next time.