I was asked to provide commentary and perspective on the 2017 World Series on global news network i24. It was a great World Series and I had seen every inning of every game.
JON’S MARCH 2018 TOUR OF CALIFORNIA!
Jon celebrated Women’s History Month by touring his latest film and book from “The Sweet Spot” TV series from San Diego to San Francisco.
The film, “Shutout! The Battle American Women Wage to Play Baseball”, tells the story of over a hundred years of gender discrimination against American women, celebrates those who’ve succeeded in spite of it, and considers the path forward to make the game accessible to women at all levels of the game.
His new book, “Baseball Pioneers: True Stories of Guts & Glory as Told by Men and Women of the Game”, is a companion to “The Sweet Spot”, and four of the six pioneers are women! The two men featured are Jackie Robinson and Jim “Mudcat” Grant. Robinson’s story is told by world-class writer Ron Rapoport of the Los Angeles Times.
The March 24 tour stop featured a historic gathering of some of the most accomplished women to play baseball: pitcher Ila Borders, Colorado Silver Bullet Rachelle “Rocky” Henley, Team USA outfielder Lilly Jacobson, and San Jose Spitfires catcher Alex Oglesby. All joined Jon for a spirited discussion and featured a ceremonial first pitch from Ila Borders to 13-year-old slugger Lola M..
In conjunction with the tour, Jon has done numerous radio interviews around the country, including the biggest station is the San Francisco Bay Area: KGO, KCBS, KQED/NPR, and KNBR.
L-R: “Rocky” Henley, Alex Oglesby, Jon, and Ila Borders
JON INTERVIEWED ON RADIO/TV – SEPTEMBER/NOVEMBER 2017
My PR firm, Rick Cerrone Communications, set me up with 20 interviews with local, national, and syndicated radio programs across the US to talk baseball, Season Three of the Sweet Spot, and the 2017 World Series. It was a whirlwind, but fascinating and enjoyable to meet so many different people across the country.
KCBS – SAN FRANCISCO:
KATE DELANEY – AMERICA TONIGHT:
TIM HANLON – GOOD SEATS AVAILABLE: http://bit.ly/2jTdv4E
FOX SPORTS – ROCHESTER, NY:
i24 TV NEWS: http://bit.ly/2AZ5SVg
MAD DOG SPORTS RADIO, 730 WFVN-AM, EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN:
THE ED KALEGI SHOW:
SEASON 3 OF “THE SWEET SPOT” NOW STREAMING!
The entire season is dedicated to “A Star-Spangled Scandal” – the systematic exclusion of girls and women from baseball for over a hundred years, continuing to this day.
All nine episodes explore the social, cultural, and historical factors that drove this exclusion, stories from players, coaches, parents, and analysis by experts. Positive steps being taken and the path forward round out our story, entitled, “Shutout! The Battle American Women Wage to Play Baseball.”
Season three features stories and perspectives from some of the games most accomplished female players and experts: pitcher Ila Borders, Team USA players Lilly Jacobson and Alex Sickenger Oglesby, former Colorado Silver Bullet Rocky Henley, author and political scientist Jennifer Ring, journalist Lisa Nehus Saxon, and author Jean Hastings Ardell.
Look for it on Amazon, ROKU and Vimeo On Demand around October 25!
Click here to watch the trailer: https://vimeo.com/225695418
Click here to watch Season 3 on Amazon:http://amzn.to/2znafbI
Click here to watch Season 3 on Vimeo On Demand: http://bit.ly/2xXToYX
11/11/17: The Sweet Spot – Live! Los Angeles Premiere with Special Guests!
Our afternoon of baseball and storytelling was a grand slam, bringing together baseball and culture fans from across the Southland. World Champion pitcher Jim “Mudcat” Grant, former Yankee batboy Matthew McGough, and writer Ron Rapoport kept the crowd in rapt attention from start to finish.
Jon’s New Venture “The Sweet Spot” on Amazon Prime!
Check out Jon’s newest venture — The Sweet Spot — on Amazon Prime now!
Hano! Film Festival and Screening News
- Hano! wins its first film festival prize, receiving a Spotlight Documentary Film “Silver Award”.
- Hano! was an official selection of the Irvine International Film Festival, screening on January 17, 2016 with Arnold in attendance.
- The 2016 Gasparilla International Film Festival (March 30-April 3) has selected Hano! for screening in the documentary feature category.
- Hano! screened for Society for Baseball Research (SABR) chapters in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
- Hano! to be screened at the NINE Spring Training Baseball Conference in Tempe, AZ, March 10, 2016.
- SABR Minneapolis to show Hano! on May 13, 2016.
2016 San Francisco Giants Fantasy Camp Recap
In January of 2016, I was able to experience a major item on my bucket list: spending a week playing baseball at the Giants Fantasy Camp, being coached by former players like Mike McCormick and Vida Blue. I’d not played organized baseball in some 44 years and spent six weeks preparing for camp at a local baseball academy.
I went for a few reasons, and one of them was to find potential interview subjects for my current documentary project. Another was getting an understanding of how difficult it is to play baseball.
It’s hard to express the joy of putting good wood on a baseball after so many years, but you can check out the video links below to see me work with batting coach Joel Youngblood in the cage, my favorite at bat of camp, which came in the semi-final tournament game, and having an at-bat against a former Giants pitcher, in this instance, Trevor Wilson.
It was a lot of fun, friends were made, and I hit well in the tournament: .750 with three runs batted in.
All camp photos by Andy Kuno.
MLB.com features Jon’s story about Monte Irvin from “Hano!”
Jon’s promo clip created for Hano! about Hall of Famer Monte Irvin was picked up by MLB.com, posted on their web site and sent out as part of their daily e-mail newspaper. Arnold Hano and Ray Robinson remember a special weekend with Monte and their families from 1963.
Arnold Hano and Ray Robinson remember Monte Irvin from Jon Leonoudakis on Vimeo.
Hano! wins its first film fest prize, a Spotlight Documentary Silver Award
The film has been chosen as an official selection of the Irvine International Film Festival in Irvine, CA. Arnold Hano will attend to participate in Q&A.