Media

I’m often asked to speak about all aspects of baseball — modern, historical, or statistical. If you’re a reporter working on a story, a student working on a paper, or a fan with a baseball question, please feel free to contact me. Here are a few recent interviews and clips:

The Athletic’s Media Circus: The Black Sox Scandal

the-athletic-logoBy Richard Deitsch
April 1, 2019
Like millions of others, the 1919 World Series has always fascinated Richard Deitsch as a sports fan. To get more insight into the new Eight Myths Out project, he reached out to  Jacob Pomrenke, the director of editorial content for SABR. Click here to read the full article at TheAthletic.com (subscription required).

Effectively Wild podcast: The Black Sox Scandal

effectively-wild-logoBy Ben Lindbergh
March 26, 2019
In a bonus episode of EW, Ben Lindbergh talks to SABR’s Jacob Pomrenke about the centennial of the notorious 1919 White Sox, SABR’s new “Eight Myths Out” project, the persistent misconceptions about why the Black Sox threw the 1919 World Series, whether the scandal could have stayed secret, the complicated legacy of Eight Men Out, what Jacob wishes he knew about the Black Sox, the future of gambling and baseball, and more. Click here to listen at FanGraphs.com.

Baseball by the Book podcast: Scandal on the South Side

Baseball-by-the-Book-logoBy Justin McGuire
March 25, 2019
Jacob Pomrenke joins us to discuss “Scandal on the South Side” and other Black Sox books as we approach the 100th anniversary of baseball’s greatest scandal. Click on a link to listen in iTunes, Google Play, Libsyn, or Stitcher.

Sox Machine podcast: Remembering the Black Sox

sox-machine-podcast-type1bBy Jim Margalus
February 4, 2019
With Comedy Central’s Drunk History featuring the 1919 Black Sox scandal, SABR’s resident expert Jacob Pomrenke joins the show to talk about the team, what actually happened, and new things that are discovered even a 100 years later. Listen to the full interview at AudioBoom.com (my interview begins at the 17:30 mark.)

Meghan Markle’s ancestor played on one of Negro Leagues’ greatest teams

DailyMailBy Hugo Daniel, Daily Mail
May 18, 2018
Bill “Happy” Evans, the great-great uncle of Meghan Markle, played in baseball’s segregated Negro Leagues between 1920 and 1937, a decade before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier for African-American players in Major League Baseball. He played alongside some of the most famous players in the Negro Leagues, including Hall of Famers Josh Gibson and Oscar Charleston with the Homestead Grays. Read the full story at DailyMail.co.uk.

My grandfather, World War II, and Minor League Baseball

SI-Narrative-podcast-logoBy Harry Swartout, Sports Illustrated
May 25, 2017
The author sets out to learn more about his paternal grandfather, Harry Alvin Swartout, and what life was like for a young man who had to choose between pursuing his dream of a professional baseball career and serving his country during World War II. Listen to “The Narrative” podcast at SI.com.

How Your World Works: A Crash Course in Baseball Sabermetrics

b56dc6823cf99a5e612aae8c2bee6bfe9d23af3eBy Cameron Johnson, Popular Mechanics
March 29, 2016
The advanced statistics known as sabermetrics are so much a part of baseball that they’re now a constant feature on SportsCenter. With the season starting April 3, we asked Jacob Pomrenke, director of editorial content at the Society for American Baseball Research, a nonprofit baseball analysis organization, to explain the math behind a few stats. Read the full story at Popular Mechanics.

Here are some other interviews I’ve done:

Television
“Arizona’s vintage baseball league opens new season.” Cronkite News, KAET/8, Phoenix, AZ (November 28, 2018)
“Jackie Robinson’s experience with racism in 1937.” Cronkite News, KAET/8, Phoenix, AZ (April 12, 2016)
“Scandal on the South Side: The 1919 Chicago White Sox.”Arizona Horizon, KAET/8, Phoenix, AZ (July 16, 2015)

Radio/Podcasts
“This Week in Baseball History podcast: The Black Sox Lose Their Appeal” re: on a century’s worth of Black Sox reinstatement efforts with Michael Bates and Bill Parker (January 16, 2019)
“The Infinite Inning: Shoeless Joe Didn’t Floss” re: a wide-ranging discussion on the Black Sox Scandal with Steven Goldman (April 13, 2018)
“This Week in Baseball History: The Black Sox Go To Trial”re: continuing developments in the Black Sox Scandal story with Michael Bates and Bill Parker (July 19, 2017)
“How Your World Works” re: an intro to sabermetrics with Cameron Johnson, Popular Mechanics (March 25, 2016)
“The Show” re: Pete Rose’s continued ban from MLB with Steve Goldstein, KJZZ/Phoenix (December 15, 2015)
“Game On” re: Rob Manfred’s announcement on Pete Rose ban with Katie B. Davis, WDUN/Gainesville, Ga. (December 15, 2015)
“All Things Considered” re: historical feat of all 15 MLB home teams winning on same day, NPR (August 12, 2015)
“C Dot Show” re: Pete Rose and the 1919 Reds with C. Trent Rosecrans, Cincinnati.com (June 22, 2015)
“Game On” re: new book on the Black Sox Scandal with Katie B. Davis, WDUN/Gainesville, Ga. (June 15, 2015)
“MLB Roundtrip” re: Pete Rose and the Black Sox Scandal with Jeff Joyce and Mel Antonen, MLB Network Radio/SiriusXM (March 18, 2015)
“Game On” re: John Smoltz’ Hall of Fame induction with Katie B. Davis, WDUN/Gainesville, Ga. (January 5, 2015)
“Game On” re: firing of Braves GM Frank Wren with Katie B. Davis, WDUN/Gainesville, Ga. (September 22, 2014)
“Game On” re: the Braves’ 2014 Hall of Fame induction class with Katie B. Davis, WDUN/Gainesville, Ga. (July 21, 2014)
“London in the Afternoon” re: new developments in the Black Sox story with Al Coombs, CJBK/Toronto (April 9, 2013)
“The Nick D Show” re: new developments in the Black Sox story with Nick Digilio, WGN Radio (September 5, 2011)

Online
“You know the story of the 1919 Black Sox? Think again.” NPR Illinois (March 27, 2019)
“2018 NL batting title chase: Advanced metrics and Scooter Gennett.” Cincinnati Enquirer (September 22, 2018)
“Diamondbacks’ Descalso deserves to be an MLB All-Star.” Arizona Republic (June 28, 2018)
“Bat Left, Throw Right: Baseball Stardom?” HealthDay (October 26, 2017)
“David Vincent, the Sultan of Swat Stats, dies.” New York Times (July 6, 2017)
“The Exorcist: How Theo Epstein can banish Cubs’ demons.” New York Daily News (October 6, 2016)
“The religious sect that became baseball’s answer to the Harlem Globetrotters.”The Guardian (September 21, 2016)
“Uphill climb for St. John’s underhand-throwing ace Thomas Hackimer.” New York Daily News (May 20, 2016)
Game with Phoenix College brought Jackie Robinson face-to-face with racism at a young age. Cronkite News (April 15, 2016)
“Opening Day, baseball’s best day of the season.” Scripps Howard Foundation Wire (April 8, 2016)
“Baseball writers face moral dilemma in Hall of Fame vote.” Columbia Journalism Review (January 7, 2016)
“Moneyball, anyone? How Cubs rank in advanced sabermetric stats.” Chicago Tribune (October 7, 2015)
“Will Shoeless Joe Jackson ever get into the Baseball Hall of Fame?” The Sporting News (September 8, 2015)
“MLB Commissioner denies latest appeal for Buck Weaver reinstatement.” Chicago Tribune (July 29, 2015)
“For the first time, sensors and a computer play umpire in a pro baseball game.” Ars Technica (July 29, 2015)
“Buck Weaver’s family pushes to get ‘Black Sox’ player reinstated.” Chicago Tribune (July 3, 2015)
“How Baseball Has Spent 96 Years Punishing An Innocent Man For The 1919 Black Sox Scandal.” VICE Sports (July 2, 2015)
“The Forgotten Story of … Joe DiMaggio and the San Francisco Seals talent factory.” The Guardian (May 21, 2015)
“The Johnny Bench Mystery is Solved.” The Oklahoman (May 19, 2015)
“That Was the Strangest MLB Game Ever.” Wired (April 29, 2015)
“Baseball Fans Locked Out as Riots Rock Baltimore.” Agence France-Presse (April 28, 2015)
“With our MLB teams, it’s often a long-distance love affair.” Albany Times-Union (April 4, 2015)
“Expert: Rose situation is unprecedented as far as Hall.” Cincinnati Enquirer (March 17, 2015)
“Is Mort Rogers The Granddaddy Of The American Baseball Card?” Hauls of Shame (January 20, 2015)
“Decades later, ‘Orioles Magic’ still resonates.” Baltimore Sun (October 13, 2014)
“Sure as day follows night …” Baseball Prospectus (October 7, 2014)
“.394: Numbers game is ever evolving.” San Diego Union-Tribune (August 13, 2014)
“Rare footage of infamous 1919 ‘Black Sox’ World Series found in Yukon permafrost.” National Post (May 4, 2014)
“For SABR, Data Just Part of the Equation.” Associations Now (March 31, 2014)
“Ruben Tejada could be Terry Collins’ guinea pig in batting a position player ninth.” Newsday (March 16, 2014)
“Sabermetrics: Past, Present and Future.” Mets360.com (December 16, 2013)
“Hunting Shoeless Joe’s Holy Grail.” Wall Street Journal (August 2, 2013)
“Miguel Cabrera, the Triple Crown and the MVP Issue” MarketWatch.com (October 3, 2012)
“Cubs at Fenway should be worth the wait.” MLB.com (May 18, 2011)
“90 years later, experts still unraveling Black Sox mysteries.” USA Today (July 28, 2009)