Louisville Bats: Franchise at Forty

On this special episode, the former mayor of Louisville, Jerry Abramson, discusses all that went in to making Louisville Slugger Field a reality. From the goal of a downtown ballpark to all that happened to make it a reality, Abramson shares several great stories from the time frame.

During the 2024 season, Louisville Bats manager Pat Kelly became the 7th ever manager, and 3rd active manager, to reach 2,000 MiLB wins. In this episode, we look back at PK's career and life in baseball. He recounts many stories and things he's learned over the years.

Rick Sweet, the winningest manager in franchise history, joins the podcast. Sweet discusses his fondness for his time in Louisville and shares memories of many players from his days of managing the Bats. He also remembers his team's run of three straight International League West titles from 2008-2010.

This week, our first guest from outside the organization as the voice of the Indianapolis Indians, Howard Kellman joins the podcast. Howard gives his perspective on the Louisville franchise from the outside and has tons of stories from on the field and off.

The legendary Corky Miller joins the podcast this week. Corky spent parts of 10 different seasons in Louisville and has plenty of memories and stories to share. Corky discusses memories from his time in Louisville as well as memories of managers and teammates from over the years. Currently the Reds' Minor League Catching Coordinator, Miller is the only Bats player to have his number retired at Louisville Slugger Field.

Jim Kelch joins the podcast. As the longest tenured broadcaster in franchise history, he has plenty of stories to share about players, coaches, managers, front office and more. Hear Jim's persepective on changing Major League affiliations, moving to a new ballpark and first impressions of old Cardinal Stadium.

In this episode, former Voice of the Bats, Matt Andrews, joins the show to recount his time in Louisville.. He was with the Bats 2003-2016 and shares a lot of memories about his time with the team. He also shares a lot of stories about various people around the organization on the field and off the field.

In episode two, longtime team president Gary Ulmer joins the podcast. With his association with the franchise going all the way back to the beginning in 1982, Gary shares some great insight about the team's origins. He also presided over the process of building a new ballpark and shares all that went in to the building of Louisville Slugger Field as well as what it has meant to the community.

In the kickoff episode to the podcast, we talk to the man who has worked for the organization longer than anyone, Bats President Greg Galiette. Greg shares his memories going back to the mid-1980s right through today. Hear great stories about the Redbirds, Bats, Cardinal Stadium, concerts and more!

In this "Episode 0," host Nick Curran lays out some history of baseball in the city of Louisville and takes a look back at the beginnings of this franchise. And, you'll hear the vision for this podcast as well as get an idea for the types of conversations you'll hear throughout the season as we celebrate 40 years of this franchise.

As promised, part 2 of a Redbirds/Bats broadcasters reunion. This time, Jim Kelch again joins along with Mark Neely (Redbirds broadcaster 1992-1994), David Wilson (Redbirds broadcaster 1995-1997) and Matt Andrews (Bats broadcaster 2003-2016). The guys tell stories from their days behind the Louisville baseball microphone as well as working with Jim Kelch. Just like part 1, this is can't-miss stuff if you're a Redbirds/Bats fan or if you enjoy baseball stories!

In part one of a 2-part series, former Redbirds/Bats broadcasters Jim Kelch (1989-2009, 2019), Joe Buck (1989-1990) and Todd Kalas (1991) as well as Louisville Executive Vice President Greg Galiette (1984-present) get together to share memories and stories from the past. The guys remember specific players, various league destinations and having their careers bring them through Louisville. Look for part 2 featuring Jim Kelch, Mark Neely, Dave Wilson and Matt Andrews soon!

Two-time Major League All-Star and 2007 NL Comeback Player of the Year Dmitri Young joins the podcast. He discusses being part of the 1995 American Association Champion Louisville Redbirds as well as his spectacular 1996 season in Louisville for which he won the Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year Award. Also, Young discusses some of his best memories as a player, what he's doing now, pitchers that owned him and pitchers he owned.

2019 Louisville Bats co-MVP Brian O'Grady joins the podcast. O'Grady, who was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays during the offseason, talks about joining a new organization for the first time in his pro career. He also discusses hitting, his 2019 season in Louisville, his first Major League call-up (and being late for the game) and more.

2020 Louisville Bats pitching coach James Baldwin joins the podcast. He discusses helping to keep guys ready for the season, the competitive mentality that kept him in the Big Leagues for over a decade and his interactions with Michael Jordan.

2019 Bats starter Tejay Antone joins the podcast this week. He discusses how he's staying ready during the COVID-19 pandemic and how he uses technology in his preparation. Also, the interview covers changes in the organization's pitching philosophy, how Tejay improved over the course of last season and where he was when he learned he'd been added to Cincinnati's 40-man roster.

It's a special watch-along editing of the Bat Chat podcast as we take you back to April 12, 2000...the first ever game at Louisville Slugger Field. The longtime voice of the Louisville franchise, Jim Kelch, joins the podcast to relive that game. Watch it along with us or just listen to the podcast separately. Watch the game at this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIkN900Aajw and join us for a trip down memory lane!

Third-year Bats hitting coach Bull Durham joins us this week. We talk about why Bull enjoys coaching, what he's doing during social distancing, his days as a Louisville Redbird (we need your help finding a rib spot from back then!) and much more.

We catch up and introduce you to first-year Bats Bench Coach and IU product Kevin Mahar. He talks about dealing with social distancing, getting a chance to work so close to where he lives, how he uses technology to help work with players, spring training and much more.

In the debut edition of the Bat Chat Podcast, 2020 Louisville skipper Pat Kelly joins the show to discuss how he's handling social distancing, what is was like to be in Spring Training as everything shut down, what he saw from various players in games and more.