Episode 48 -- Dave Stewart

Dave Stewart never won a Cy Young award, but between 1987-1990, he was the best pitcher in baseball: four straight 20-plus win seasons; the ace of his hometown Oakland A's team that went to three straight World Series (and who started Game 1 of every series); the starter of the 1989 All-Star Game; a no-hitter in 1990; and the guy who always beat Roger Clemens.

Stewart's rise to the top didn't come easy. We discussed how close he was to leaving baseball after the Phillies released him in 1986. "Smoke" shared why he pulled his cap so low when pitching, which teams didn't want him to throw the forkball that made him a star, what compelled him to visit the hardest hit areas of his hometown during the 1989 earthquake, and yes, the 9-0 record in nine starts vs Clemens.

On the weekend Stewart was inducted into the Albuquerque Professional Baseball Hall of Fame, we reflected on his two years with the Albuquerque Dukes, how pitching in extreme altitude toughed him, how the PCL playoffs prepared him for the MLB playoffs, and what the Hall of Fame honor means to him.