Slap Hits: Week of May 19, 2026

The Ballpark Money Scramble

In the 1970s heyday of baseball promotional gimmicks, opportunistic teams like the Astros, Phillies, Indians, and Padres dumped money on the field and invited fans to have at it. Episode Highlights: - The Houston Astros make money by giving it away. - Bill Giles’ Philadelphia Phillies lean into boz woz. - Cleveland scrambles for a million fans in 1974. - Paul submits a dark-horse candidate for greatest moment in baseball history. - A surprise winner of a fake money contest in San Diego. - Giving away tiny amounts of money falls out of favor in cash-strapped America. - The end of the line—in Canada. Support Us You can support Clear the Field by following the show on your favorite platform: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/clear-the-field-podcast/id1840024595] Spotify [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/spotify/98c3bbbf-df93-48a0-9265-8c8411548ce1/2108553/s/273896.rss] RSS [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/2108553/s/273896.rss] Give a Rating, Like, or Restack If you enjoyed an episode on a platform like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, can you give it a quick rating and let folks know? A 5-Star rating helps our podcast appear as suggested and helps people find us. Here on Substack, restacking an episode is one click that really helps us, so if you had fun, please click that button up there on the far right of the episode that has two circling arrows on it. Email If you have comments or details that add to our stories or ideas for future installments, send us an email at clearthefieldpod@gmail.com [clearthefieldpod@gmail.com]. Gentle corrections are also welcome. Warning: If a comment is particularly enlightening and/or funny, we might read it during a future episode. Get full access to Project 3.18 at www.project-318.com/subscribe [https://www.project-318.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Slap Hits: Week of May 19, 2026

This Week’s Lineup: - Paul’s unplanned solo podcasting career (3 mins) - Ted “inadvertently” joins Emo Night in Seattle - Paul Skenes and the quiet mind of the modern ace - The joy of the family reaction shot - The Minnesota Twins’ war on nostalgia (prepare to be outraged) What’s This? Every few weeks in “Slap Hits,” Ted and I cover whatever has delighted us from present-day baseball (or sometimes things even further afield) in a lightning round. There will be news (of a kind), opinion, banter when we agree, and arguing when we don’t. We’re looking at items big and small, obscure or viral, we’re going quick, and we’re not stopping to fact-check. Got a Slap Hit? Send us an amusing, baseball adjacent item (interpretation is up to you) you’d like us to mention, bonus points for weird and obscure. Listen to a few episodes of “Slap Hits” and you’ll get the sense of what we like to cover, and it’s often things that don’t get covered elsewhere that delight us the most. If we use it, we’ll credit you for the submission during the show! Email tips and suggestions to clearthefieldpod@gmail.com [http://clearthefieldpod@gmail.com/] or leave a comment here on the episode. Get full access to Project 3.18 at www.project-318.com/subscribe [https://www.project-318.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

A Most Honorable Ejection

In 1961, a Detroit Tigers’ star went into the stands at Yankee Stadium to fight somebody and became the hero of the hour. Episode Highlights - The Colavito family reunion - The case of the odd, old-fashioned hat - Rip Collins, conscience for the Tigers - Thrown out for a most unexpected reason - The Yankee Killer strikes (it’s not who you think) - Baseball Ethics 101 - A father’s tough love Support Us You can support Clear the Field by following the show on your favorite platform: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/clear-the-field-podcast/id1840024595] Spotify [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/spotify/98c3bbbf-df93-48a0-9265-8c8411548ce1/2108553/s/273896.rss] RSS [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/2108553/s/273896.rss] Give a Rating, Like, or Restack If you enjoyed an episode on a platform like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, can you give it a quick rating and let folks know? A 5-Star rating helps our podcast appear as suggested and helps people find us. Here on Substack, restacking an episode is one click that really helps us, so if you had fun, please click that button up there on the far right of the episode that has two circling arrows on it. Email If you have comments or details that add to our stories or ideas for future installments, send us an email at clearthefieldpod@gmail.com [clearthefieldpod@gmail.com]. Gentle corrections are also welcome. Warning: If a comment is particularly enlightening and/or funny, we might read it during a future episode. Get full access to Project 3.18 at www.project-318.com/subscribe [https://www.project-318.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Slap Hits: Week of May 4, 2026

This week’s lineup: - A teaspoon of loose bodies - Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania is going to the Squonks: https://www.milb.com/lehigh-valley/team/theme-nights [https://www.milb.com/lehigh-valley/team/theme-nights] - Ted’s idea for saving baseball - A baseball Pokemon mystery - Pittsburgh hosts the world’s most famous marmot What’s This? Every few weeks in “Slap Hits,” Ted and I cover whatever has delighted us from present-day baseball (or sometimes things even further afield) in a lightning round. There will be news (of a kind), opinion, banter when we agree, and arguing when we don’t. We’re looking at items big and small, obscure or viral, we’re going quick, and we’re not stopping to fact-check. Got a Slap Hit? Send us an amusing, baseball adjacent item (interpretation is up to you) you’d like us to mention, bonus points for weird and obscure. Listen to a few episodes of “Slap Hits” and you’ll get the sense of what we like to cover, and it’s often things that don’t get covered elsewhere that delight us the most. If we use it, we’ll credit you for the submission during the show! Email tips and suggestions to clearthefieldpod@gmail.com [http://clearthefieldpod@gmail.com/] or leave a comment here on the episode. Get full access to Project 3.18 at www.project-318.com/subscribe [https://www.project-318.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]

Crowd on the Ropes

In 1925, one of the largest crowds in Comiskey Park’s history evaded some of the most sophisticated crowd control instruments then known to man. Highlights - An overflow crowd and the one rope to wrangle them all - The seat cushion falls into the wrong hands once again (”the boys from the stockyards”) - Joe Sewell singlehandedly finishes the baseball game - Translating 1920s baseball idioms - Ray Knode’s big moment in history - The fans on the field party their way into a forfeit Support Us You can support Clear the Field by following the show on your favorite platform: Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/clear-the-field-podcast/id1840024595] Spotify [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/spotify/98c3bbbf-df93-48a0-9265-8c8411548ce1/2108553/s/273896.rss] RSS [https://api.substack.com/feed/podcast/2108553/s/273896.rss] Give a Rating, Like, or Restack If you enjoyed an episode on a platform like Spotify or Apple Podcasts, can you give it a quick rating and let folks know? A 5-Star rating helps our podcast appear as suggested and helps people find us. Here on Substack, restacking an episode is one click that really helps us, so if you had fun, please click that button up there on the far right of the episode that has two circling arrows on it. Get full access to Project 3.18 at www.project-318.com/subscribe [https://www.project-318.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_4]