The DHC Podcast
Ever wondered what it’s like to be truly involved in sports? Wonder no more!
On this podcast, I’ll sit down with players, GMs, owners, and passionate fans like you to uncover how they fell in love with sports. We’ll dive into their unique journeys, explore the business side of the game, and discuss the endless possibilities that the sport offers.
From behind-the-scenes stories to deep conversations about the sport, I’m here to explore it all—while having a ton of fun along the way!
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The DHC Podcast
Baseball Roots: Five Questions with Virgil Brooks
We launch a new series asking baseball fans five questions about their relationship with the game, featuring our first guest Virgil Brooks who shares his unique journey from casual observer to dedicated minor league enthusiast.
• Virgil's love for baseball began with a post-graduation 10-day MLB road trip visiting seven ballparks
• The 2006 Southern League All-Star Game changed his perception of minor league baseball when he saw Joey Votto playing for Chattanooga
• Baseball connected him to a supportive community of like-minded fans, especially through social media
• Memorable experiences include the 2017 solar eclipse game in Bowling Green and the Rocket City Trash Pandas inaugural home opener
• Virgil has kept score at games for 20 years, maintaining records of every player he's seen and tracking who makes it to the majors
• Baseball offers unique local experiences in each city, with minor league parks showcasing regional flavor you can't find in other sports
If you're interested in being interviewed for this series, send a message to Ed (The Dadhead) on social media to schedule your appearance.
Make sure to follow the Dad Hat Chronicles: https://linktr.ee/TheDadHatChronicles
What's up everybody and thank you for taking the time to watch the video. So this is the very first episode with my good friend, virgil Brooks that I am going to be doing. I'm going to be doing a series of some of these episodes, or maybe another podcast, who knows. But what I want to do is I want to ask you, the fan, five questions. Right, you know, when did you fall in love with baseball? Your traditions, why baseball, things like that. Five questions, and five questions only, just so that way we get to know more about you and why baseball is such a mainstay in your life, okay, just like it is in mine and many other friends. So that's the goal.
Speaker 1:On this episode. You'll see my good friend Virgil. We're talking about how he fell in love with the game of baseball, some of the traditions and, yeah, it's, it was a fun, enlightening episode, because I never really knew exactly how he fell in love with baseball. Like, for me it was different, right, right, than maybe you or somebody else. So I hope you guys enjoy it. If you're interested in coming on the podcast, let's call it podcast for right now. If you're interested on being part of this, slide into my dms and then let me know that you're interested in doing this, and then we'll go from there. All right, and uh, enjoy the episode, all right?
Speaker 1:Well, welcome everybody to another episode of dadhead chronicles. Or should I call this five questions to ask a baseball fan? I don't know, we'll find out. Uh, and with me. Well, actually, my name is ed, also known as the dadhead. I forget about my own intro sometimes, uh, but with me is my good friend. We broke the streak, guys, the streak has been broken. It's the producer, mr virgil brooks. Man, how are you doing, my friend?
Speaker 2:you have finally run out of guests.
Speaker 1:You have to call me to do this I had to go into the bullpen.
Speaker 2:You know, pull to bring you in oh man, it's so good to finally, finally, be here. It's all been missing it's.
Speaker 1:You know what it's, what it is. You know, this is what we do right now, you know. So, uh, we had to, we had to get you in, virgil. Yes, um, my friend, I'm gonna ask you five questions, okay, I want to know, uh, a couple things from you. This is going to be nothing but baseball related, so I want to ask you five questions, okay, and the very first question that I'm going to ask you is when did you personally, virgil, fall in love with baseball?
Speaker 2:So I'm not going to be one of these people that said oh, I fell in love with baseball when I was like three years old. That that's not my story. I fell in with baseball a lot later. Actually, I would say the time it happened for me was probably after high school. For a graduation trip, my uncle took me on a 10-day Major League Baseball road trip, but beforehand I've been to a few Orioles games because he lives in the DC area. Okay.
Speaker 2:But I got to go there and I enjoyed that and so he used to do major league road trips and so he said I'm going to take you on one of my big ones I've done so I went there Cardinals, brewers, white Sox, tigers, the Reds, indians and the Pirates.
Speaker 1:You got some good ballparks there, dude.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's not bad for somebody who's never really traveled beforehand. So just being part of that made me really fall in love with the game, because not only got to see a lot of great baseball, a lot of good players, I mean I got to see Randy Johnson pitch against the Pirates almost in a he had a complete game and it was a complete game loss actually.
Speaker 2:Oh, he gave up two back to back home runs but he still but see, watching that was still fun. And then, when I kind of got back home from that, you know I went to more stars games because of that and then, you know, that became um. That became its own thing. Um for minor league baseball, though. It started about in 2006 when I went to the southern league all-star game down in montgomery. Yes, they had the um, because at the time, like I was still watching when I was going to Stars against at the time, I still wasn't sure what minor league baseball was. I was still thinking it was, oh, players that will never make it Correct, instead of realizing that these are players trying to make it. And all it took was seeing Joey Votto play for Chattanooga and realize all the hype around him and it's like, okay, this, this is a big, this guy's a big deal, he's, he's being treated as like the next big thing. And once I realized that's what minor league baseball was I was hooked.
Speaker 1:That's cool, dude, I like that. That's pretty cool. To really get introduced, uh, to fan, to be a fan of baseball on a road trip like that, that's pretty cool, I like that.
Speaker 2:It's. Also, if you think about it, it's kind of risky because I could have gone.
Speaker 1:Man, I hate this Right, and then you would have been 10 days of just pure hatred of the baseball game and never like no, I don't want to do this ever again.
Speaker 2:Right, but no, that and the traveling aspect was I enjoyed a lot.
Speaker 1:And then you guys, it was an actual legit road trip Like you guys like in a car drove and everything. Oh, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Like I said there, there was only one travel day between Philadelphia and St Louis, but after that it was a new city every day.
Speaker 1:That's cool. I like that a lot. I like it. I like it. All right, um, how has baseball?
Speaker 2:changed your life. Well, I mean, every time I do the show on Thursday, tuesdays and Thursdays, right, um, I kind of look back and think about how I was before I found social media and it's kind of like I was just kind of like the guy who, you know, didn't really have anybody talk to about minor league baseball and just kind of I thought I was not the only one that did something like this, but it was very rare to find other people and really being introduced to that, meeting, the community meeting, all these great people, yourself included, I mean it's a whole nother set of friend groups. It's almost like a, almost like a secondary support group and it's really it's nice to see and meet other people with like it, with interest like that, with like the you know, the hat collecting and the mini helmet collecting I used to do it's defined people. Everyone's so nice and everyone's so just.
Speaker 1:Everyone's so great, everyone's so great, it's just nice to have a group like this I find it that, uh, when it comes to sports, and and I could be wrong, right, but like the the one sport that has been to me been the most supportive as far as fandom is concerned has been baseball. To me, um, because I don't think you can find something like this in football or basketball, uh, or heck, even even hockey, and I love hockey, you know what I mean. Uh, baseball, like specifically minor league baseball, and, and, um, the collectors that we have met, you know, along these all these years, like, has been one of those things where it's like, man, this is, yeah, this is cool yeah, and also, um, another thing that I feel like has changed for me is just the amount of traveling that I love to do, just going from certain towns, um, that I never thought I would end up.
Speaker 2:I'm gonna say like avoiding, but like times I would never think about going to.
Speaker 1:And just so you can like times I would never think about going to, just so you can go watch a baseball game.
Speaker 2:Go to a baseball game Because I remember talking with when I was first doing road trips by myself, talking to my coworkers, and they're saying, like asking where I'm going, and they're thinking like, oh, you're just going to say Chicago or Milwaukee or maybe it's going to say St Louis.
Speaker 2:I was like no, I'm going to Peoria, going to Cedar Rapids and like they're all great cities, but they're cities you would never really think about unless you had a reason to go. And even one of the favorite things that happens when I go to the hotel rooms and sometimes they ask why I'm here I says, well, I'm on a baseball trip.
Speaker 3:And they're like you stopped here yeah, it's like, yeah, that's a minor league team so they always it's always people always always amazed by that.
Speaker 2:So yeah, that's always a nice little thing to add yeah, that's cool, you're right.
Speaker 1:You're right because, even with our corporate media meetup, right, like I mean, we go to different parts of the us, like you know. Yeah, granted, this year we're going to chicago, but, like you know, minnesota, north carolina right, there's no major league team in North Carolina, but there's a bunch of minor league baseball teams here, right, so you know, and then people that meet across the United States, that you get to meet cool people all the time while watching minor league baseball. Right.
Speaker 1:So all right, Okay, Tell me what's a couple? Give me some, me some memories, like your favorite baseball memories to that like just has stuck with you all these years.
Speaker 2:Well, we already talked about the Southern League All-Star Game in 2006. Yep, so they had a home run derby with that, and then also just the game itself. And what made that game kind of special? Or two things. One, I immediately regretted scorekeeping it. I did that. I wish. I wish I could go back in time and say don't do this, you're going to regret it. But then also, that was when I first started meeting some of the characters you know. They used to have, like the san diego check and all that. And I think san diego came to huntsville once, but they had umron Noodleman. I don't know if you remember that name or not. He's called the Clown Prince of Baseball, I believe.
Speaker 1:Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yes, he was in Bull Durham.
Speaker 2:Yes, yeah, I remember seeing him down at the Southern League game in Montgomery. That's cool, dude, and I do not know if I have it anymore, but it's here somewhere in the house. There is a picture with me and him that I really. That's awesome. Yeah, that's, that's one of my earliest memories with meyer league baseball um, one of the greatest moments that I remembered. I've talked about this on uh baseball bucket list before the solar eclipse game in bowling green in 2017. So they had a game at 10 35 in the morning because they were in the 100 totality of the solar eclipse that year and so we got uh eclipse glasses and uh, the game was. The game actually finished before the whole thing was covered, but we got to go on the field and watch it and that was. That wasn't a memory I'll never forget.
Speaker 1:That's cool. Cool as shit dude yeah.
Speaker 2:Another one, really the first trash Panda game, the home opener, the, the, the first season opener, the stadium opening, all that it felt like I was in a movie almost Really. All that it felt like I was in a movie almost really. And none of it felt real. It's like you had. It's like when the stars left. I did a lot of traveling and the anticipation, the build-up of having having a local team again like I bought season tickets, like the first day they were available. I was there for the team naming. I was there for the logo reveal. I was there for the uniform reveal, like I was. I was locked in.
Speaker 1:So you're like you from the very get-go. You were it like.
Speaker 2:This is my team exactly I was locked in and then when you go through the game, it's like it the build-up, and then it somehow surpasses your expectations all right interesting, and it's like it's. I almost almost had sensory overload because it was just I just couldn't believe it was happening that's cool, man, that's that.
Speaker 1:That's pretty cool, right like you, you were there from the very beginning. You know buying tickets, you like. You like you said the local reveal. I mean I I've never done anything like that, like been there for, like the, the revealing of a of a brand new team. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:So that's cool that you're able to do that yeah, well, I said when the stars left, if the team ever came back, I was gonna go all in with it, and I was.
Speaker 1:I stuck to that I'm very happy that they do some huntsville star stuff, you know I do too.
Speaker 2:That was one of the things. I wasn't sure if they were going to lean into that or not, but they talked about. The first giveaway was they had a concession stand named All-Stars and it actually has the Stars like a little Stars logo motif to it.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And then, you know, then they have the throwback nights for the Stars nights, and this year they're doing the Milestone anniversary. Is it the 50th or the 40th? I can't remember. Off the top of my head I think it's the 50th or the 40th. I can't remember the top of my head I think it's a full stars, full stars.
Speaker 1:So they're getting a lot of uh, yeah, 40th and they're getting a lot of players to come back for that. So that's going to be nice to see. That's cool, dude. I like that a lot, all right. Question number four you ready? Yes, all right. What's a baseball tradition or ritual or rituals?
Speaker 2:So I actually had to change some of mine recently, really, because whenever I go to a new place, I usually kind of like, in lack of a better term, I speed ran the stadium. Okay, like in lack of a better term, I speed ran the stadium. Like I went to the theme store, I got the I, you know got, got my beer, got my food, get your merch yeah, got my merch because I wanted to sit down when they were doing the rosters to write them down.
Speaker 2:My scorebook and the more I'm thinking about it's like that's really not practical, like you're really missing out on a lot more things. You could really have a chance with that. So I decided to not really do that part and actually get a chance to walk around, something I will do at a new ballpark if possible. I do three laps around the concourse, specifically three laps. Why three? Because I feel like with three laps you can catch everything that you missed the first two laps. Okay, all right.
Speaker 1:Talk to me. Talk to me everything that you missed the first two laps. Okay, all right, talk to me. Talk to me. I like this. I like this.
Speaker 2:And also by by doing that it gives me a chance to kind of get my steps in and then apparently that's just the right amount of numbers, if you do like four or five for me. That that's when I start getting like it, almost like it's redundant, or I start like sweating.
Speaker 1:I'll wedding.
Speaker 2:Getting bored with it. I got you Do that, then I will seek out local beer. Really. I know people usually like to do food. I like the special food items. I'm kind of more finding the local brewery, especially ones I haven't heard of before, so I like to try their stuff out and maybe hopefully go there while I'm still there, before or after the game, probably after the game or the next day. Food I used to do ice cream helmet so I've stopped that because it's just I was collecting too many things.
Speaker 1:Dude you and me both, you and me both.
Speaker 2:I had to stop both. I had to stop, I had to stop. Yeah well, I mean, I'm, it's god. When I first went to games it was gotta get a program, gotta get a hat, gotta get an ice cream helmet uh, used to be souvenir cups, but that kind of died down so and programs, they don't really do anymore besides online yeah so it's like I'd just.
Speaker 2:I'd rather just stick with hats, go with quality over quantity. But no, usually when the game starts I'm just in the seat doing my books, so I try to get everything done beforehand.
Speaker 1:And that's a tradition all on its own your score keeping.
Speaker 2:Yeah, this is my 20th year doing it, so I'm surprised Honestly I'm surprised it stuck. I thought I'd be bored with it at some point, but it's never been boring for me.
Speaker 1:No, no. Why do you like it?
Speaker 2:The answer I always give is it makes me see the game differently. Okay, and what I mean by that is usually there are certain things that you'll kind of pick up on while scorekeeping, and also you get to see the progression of the game. While it's going on right like um, you'll see, this player will always swing on the third pitch, regardless if it's two strikes or two balls, whatever are. Hey are, hey. This guy's getting close to a cycle. This guy is getting close to four strikeouts, a 4K strikeout game. Just kind of just watch the progressions of when you know a pitcher is fatiguing, you can kind of tell with how much more pitches he has to go through. Pitch counts is one thing I started keeping track of recently too, and so this is kind of nice.
Speaker 1:And always there will be people, regardless of a scoreboard being there, not that will ask you questions interesting. So it's a, it's a good talking point. You know, piece, that, like you know, you're able to meet people at that point because you're you're a scorekeeper and they, they want to ask you questions about it right now.
Speaker 2:The thing that I do not understand personally and I get this this quite a bit I am asked if I'm a scout.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'll be honest, I can see that. Yeah, you don't see a lot of fans. I mean, I know of two for sure people that score keep you and Kelly. Yeah Right, I know for a fact that that both of you like score keep the whole game.
Speaker 2:I almost feel like it's uh, I'm not gonna say a dying art, but I do feel like a lot of people don't do it as much anymore I have my.
Speaker 1:My wife tells me like I kind of have like a small amount of add on this one adhd, I get distracted too fast and I, you know, because I pay attention to other things other than the, you know I couldn't do it. Yeah, that's, I just couldn't do it. You got to have something about it. Has to be something that that gravitates you, because I just couldn't do it. I tried, I really did. I even downloaded an app just so I can start doing it on the app. And I failed.
Speaker 2:Some people have asked me about the doing it on the app and I failed. Some people have asked me about the doing it on apps and for us it's not the same, but the biggest question I get about it is are the most? The biggest reaction is I do it in pen.
Speaker 1:That's. You're a brave man.
Speaker 2:I, that's how I was taught. I was taught in pen, so I tried pencil before and it fades pretty quick on those books. So I've just I've stuck to using pens. So if I make mistakes, I um which which is very rare and never, never, ever happens but if it does happen I have to, uh, I do creative, uh, creative markings, we'll just say with it.
Speaker 1:I got you. I can see that. I can see that. That's pretty cool man, I like that. And then you keep all of the score sheets right.
Speaker 2:Yes, I keep all the books and I do a spreadsheet, basically a player database, of all the players I have recorded in my books. Just kind of I like to track and see which ones actually make it. Yeah, so that's kind of a nice thing. I update that every year after the season.
Speaker 1:Good for you, man. That's awesome.
Speaker 2:That's some next-level fandom right there. It's definitely a commitment. There's always new things I want to add to it, and then I realize I don't have enough time for that.
Speaker 1:And I noticed that when you know, because obviously you're the producer of that, when you know, because obviously you're the producer of our, you know that Chronicle Sports Show every Tuesday and Thursdays, 9pm Eastern Time, just you know, make sure it's on YouTube. You like the how I just yeah, that's pretty good, but like for you it fits because you're the data person, right, you'd like that, doing that. And then when we throw things at you, you, I can hear the keyboard to do work and I'm like this dude is searching it right away. He we don't even have to ask anymore. You know where we're going with this and you're just like there.
Speaker 2:Yet the moment a topic comes up, even if just one time, I already have at least data on it.
Speaker 1:Two things open.
Speaker 2:That can hopefully answer the question. That's awesome. I love that you're. You have been an amazing addition to the show. It has been absolutely wonderful. I'm just glad I'm able to contribute to it honestly the way I have. I've really enjoyed.
Speaker 1:I feel like I found my, my place on it, for sure yeah, oh god, yeah, yeah, like the show would not be the show without you at this point. Like you know, you can't leave it. You're stuck forever you know, I mean yeah, you said you're done, you know, I mean, we're all of it's like it's. We all contribute something different, uh, to this, and it's just you gotta have it, you know. So I love it, uh, all right. Last question are you ready for this, my friend?
Speaker 1:yes, I am all right. Why baseball? All right. Last question Are you ready for this, my friend? Yes, I am All right. Why baseball? Why baseball? Yeah, why baseball, and now other sports, but it had to be baseball.
Speaker 2:So why baseball, baseball for me, I cannot think of another sport where you can travel to relatively close to a different city and then see something completely different than what you've just seen before playing the same sport. Like you know, we go to one thing about we go to. I have Rocket City here I can go down to Birmingham, go down to Montgomery next day and Montgomery I'm watching some guy with a biscuit launcher Yep.
Speaker 1:That sounds delicious too, definitely.
Speaker 2:I go down to Pensacola later on and see the Blue Angels flying over a game, over by a beach site. I can just go to these smaller towns that I feel like you don't really think about going to, like I said earlier, and catch their experiences, because I feel like each game, each place you go to, there's going to be something different that you're going to see, because they're always going to have a little bit of local flavor involved in there, like even on the road trip I'm about to do over in Michigan, going to Lansing, going to Kalamazoo, western Michigan. There's going to be so many different things I would never possibly even have seen before at a trash panda game Yep, yep, and I feel like there may be other sports.
Speaker 2:I don't know what other sport could probably produce that.
Speaker 1:You're right. You're right. I mean we go baseball, it's all over the United States, like, listen, everybody's like, oh, nfl is the American sport, it's not. Man, I still think that baseball is still American sports because it's played everywhere, exactly, you know, like minor league baseball Heck, even with me, you know what I mean. Like how excited I've been that I've been playing Sandlot baseball, right, and like I'm 43 years old and I'm having a ton of fun right, and you can't do that in football or anything like that, or even basketball. You got minor league, you got you know G League, but like you know, Well, I feel like maybe with hockey, with the AHL, ehl.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's close.
Speaker 2:That could be close. But I mean I look at, like you know, football, college football, in a way College football, if you have like the FCS schools, they're not going to play every day. It's usually like for me it has to be at that kind of level because I feel like with minor league baseball and yes, I know major league has kind of taken over a lot of the stuff with that I just hope it hasn't lost the, the, the flavor of what it is.
Speaker 1:It hasn't gone fully. Yeah, that essence is still there. Yeah, I'm I agree, I a hundred percent agree, like I mean I that's why, but I like, I like, I want to ask this question to everybody, right, I mean this specific five questions, but that last one, I want to end it with that one, because I believe and you and me were talking off offline is, you are also like me, you're intrigued at what people are going to answer when they ask that question.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, I'll be curious what, how, what people, which way people go with that.
Speaker 1:Right, because, oh yeah, I'll be curious what, how, what people, which way people go with that. Right, because there could be so many different ways. Heck, every single one of these questions are going to be something different, like because everybody's experiences are different than yours no, exactly like I said, I feel like I'm.
Speaker 2:I feel like I'm in a little unique situation because I don't really have any major league stories or major league team. The following is like people I know, like most people have, they were fans of major leagues and then they became minor league fans. I'm kind of like almost the opposite.
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, hell, you don't even technically have a major league team.
Speaker 2:No. Which annoys some people on the show.
Speaker 1:It doesn't bother me at all, I mean, but I think it's hilarious that you know some people we're not going to name those names. You know, make sure you turn in, you know, on tuesdays and thursdays, 9 pm eastern time, just saying, uh, because some people does like, no, you need a team, I think. And then also we have giving. I think we kind of pseudo, gave you a team just for the heck of it, you know I think it's a revolving door at this point, right.
Speaker 1:At this point, like you, you really don't have a set team. We'll see what next week's team is going to be that you're going to supposedly we gave you Cause.
Speaker 2:I said the Brewers because that's a lot of the former stars players, especially on the their playoff run. We're right, but then even you said he was like he didn't sound fully convinced on that, so I think it's going to change next week probably yeah, I'm not fully convinced that you are, like a, truly like you know, rooting for the brewers at this point. So we'll see. I haven't been to that ballpark so I can say that at least that's what's uh course field right no more miller park or whatever it's miller park.
Speaker 2:When I went I don't know what it is, yeah it's a different name.
Speaker 1:Now everyone you, you know the corporate. That's the corporate corporate translation of. You know the game. So, virgil, thank you so much for doing this. Dude, I appreciate that. You are the first person on this podcast or show or YouTube. I don't know where it's going to go, but it's going to go somewhere. But you're the first person that I'm asking these questions and thank you so much for this man.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me, and thank you for thanking me for about being the first person I really appreciate that, yeah, yeah, you're the first person I thought about when I wanted to ask these questions, and then we'll go from there. Where can people find you on socials?
Speaker 2:So I am on Twitter and Instagram as Lost Gumbel. I will usually post pictures of my hats that I wear at the games, along with my scorebook for that game. Going on, I do have some road trips coming up, so I'll be more active during those times. But yeah if you like, just hats and scorebooks, find me there.
Speaker 1:I love it and I'll put. Make sure to put those socials on the show notes so that way people can follow you. Make sure you follow me. I am the Data216. I am on Instagram, I am on threads, uh, facebook, almost on YouTube that had chronicles, so you have to do that, um, and then on Twitter as well. So, um, we'll see who the next person is. If you're interested, if you have listened to this episode and if you're interested in coming on, uh, send me a message and then, uh, we will find some time to get you on. Coming on, send me a message and then we will find some time to get you on Virgil.
Speaker 2:Thanks so much, my friend. Thank you very much.
