JP Ricciardi recently stepped down from his job in the San Francisco Giants' front office, ending a panoramic 43-year career in professional baseball, but marking the beginning of a new career as a podcast host. ing.
“The Brushback with JP Ricciardi” debuted late last month, and the first two episodes, featuring interviews with ESPN's Buster Olney and former MLB player Frank Catalanotto, were entertaining, informative and insightful.
“I think we're going to have a really good time,” Ricciardi said.
Listeners can stream “The Brushback with JP Ricciardi” on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
Ricciardi, 64, who grew up in Worcester and starred at St. Peter Marian, will bring his professional and personal experience as a player, coach, scout, general manager, and administrator, as well as his passion for baseball, to the program. is bringing to the table. He has some great ideas, stories to tell, and upcoming guests who will be sharing their insider knowledge.
“We're going to mix it up,” Ricciardi said. “We're going to use people from the media, from Hall of Famers to big league losers, former major leaguers, player development personnel, scouting personnel, front office personnel, etc. I would like to show it to you.
“Everyone talks about baseball,” Ricciardi said. How are deals formed? All the little things that people hear about but don't really know. ”
Upcoming guests include ESPN's Howard Bryant and former Miami Marlins GM Kim Ng.
John Aretsch, who has known Ricciardi since the early 1980s when they played for the Mets' minor league affiliate in Shelby, North Carolina, approached Ricciardi about the podcast.
Aletsch, along with media consultant Marc Milliere, will be speaking with Ricciardi's minor league teammate John Gibbons, who was the manager of the Toronto Blue Jays when Ricciardi was the club's GM, and Gibbons' podcast, “The Gibby Show.” I was working at
Gibbons left the podcast earlier this year when the Mets hired him as a bench coach.
“I basically took over Gibby's position,” Ricciardi said. Aletsch is the co-host of “The Brushback with JP,” and Mirière also works on a podcast.
Ricciardi's podcast is national, but he also has a segment on baseball in Central Massachusetts.
“We want people to know about the great history of baseball in Central Massachusetts, and we want them to know about the people who came out of here and the good things that happened here,” Ricciardi said. said.
Social media, its platforms, followers and hashtags were all foreign to Ricciardi, who likes to read the print version of newspapers, before starting the podcast.
“I said to John (Aletschi), 'You're dealing with straight amateurs in this,'” Ricciardi said.
But when it comes to baseball, Ricciardi is a natural.
“That's the easy part,” Ricciardi said.
Ricciardi's wife, Diane, helped him launch X, formerly his Twitter and Instagram account (@RicciardiJP). She records podcast highlights and promos for him to post.
“She's my director and producer,” Ricciardi said.
Their sons, Dante, a scout for the Boston Red Sox, and Mariano, who recently retired after a three-year minor league career, are helping with questions and gathering feedback.
Ricciardi will record and release the podcast on Monday. The plan is for the programs to be 30-35 minutes long, but his first two went a little over that.
Ricciardi said he spends a significant amount of time preparing for each podcast, researching, preparing questions and, of course, following baseball. He plans each episode while taking his 3-year-old dog Bruno, his fifth yellow Lab in his family, for walks eight miles around his Boylston neighborhood in West West. I am.
“This is the same way I plan Holy Name practice,” said Ricciardi, who coached the Naps men's basketball team in the 1990s.
Ricciardi spent 16 years with the Oakland Athletics, most notably as Director of Player Personnel. He served as GM of the Blue Jays from 2001 to 2009. For eight years, he served as a special assistant to former Mets GM Sandy Alderson. Ricciardi has served as the Giants' senior baseball operations advisor since 2018.
Ricciardi hopes “The Brushback with JP” reaches listeners of all ages.
On last week's episode, Catalanotto spoke about being selected in the top 10 by the Detroit Tigers.th He graduated from Long Island's Smithtown East High School in the round of the 1992 MLB Draft, signed with the Tigers, passed up a chance to play college ball, and went through the minor leagues to the majors.
“It was a great episode,” Ricciardi said. “When I was in high school, I wanted young kids around me to talk about signing autographs and what it was like.”
Ricciardi is planning an episode about the college baseball recruiting process.
Giving “The Brushback with JP” a personal element is important to Ricciardi. Every episode, he opens the podcast with the same question: “What got you into baseball?”
For Ricciardi, the answer is simple – his father.
The late Johnny Ricciardi was a Worcester high school baseball player who spent time in the Red Sox farm system.
“I remember ever since I was 4 years old, I always had a ball in my hand,” Ricciardi said. “I tried to play catch with my dad until I could. My dad taught me that love. It took on a life of its own and became a complete addiction.”
— Contact Jennifer Toland at jennifer.toland@telegram.com. Follow her on her X, @JenTolandTG, formerly known as her Twitter.
