Looking Back: Joe Pettini

During the baseball season, I will occasionally revisit some of my favorite baseball interviews.  Former infielder Joe Pettini was a favorite of mine and our interview can be found at On the Beat with Joe Pettini.

Pettini played parts of four seasons with the San Francisco Giants, collecting 70 hits for a .203 batting average and one home run.  I always liked the underdog.  He has gone on to have a long coaching career.  During a trip to Houston, when I got press credentials for a game against the Cardinals, I targeted Pettini.

I know my limits.  I'm not ESPN.  I'm not going to get a lengthy, hard-hitting interview, but I can use my credentials to meet some of my old favorites.  This is exactly what I did with Pettini.

It cracks me up always.  As a fifteen year old baseball card buyer, little did I know I would one day be on the field with these bubblegum heroes.  As my friend Chuck says, "We're all professionals."  Joe Pettini and me, just a couple professionals doing our jobs...and loving it!

Joe Pettini and me in Houston, TX-Summer 2012.

On the Beat with Joe Pettini of the Houston Astros

When I was growing up, I thought it was cool when I found players who had my birthday.  One such player was Joe Pettini, middle infielder for the San Francisco Giants.
I immediately started following Pettini's career.    Pettini's last year in the majors was 1983, but he played three more years in the minors, retiring after the 1986 season.  Back in those days, if a player was in the minors, you had to get The Sporting News to really keep up with the player.  Pettini was one of those guys I followed through TSN.
Pettini eventually became a coach and even an interim Manager for the St. Louis Cardinals when Tony LaRussa missed a few games recovering from shingles.  Pettini left with LaRussa, but joined the Astros staff.  When I saw that, I immediately put him on my "want" list for this year.
We did the usual questions with Pettini, but he gave us one unusual answer.  I am not sure if he was having fun with us or if he was serious about his dining choice.  As much as I like their Jack Daniels chicken strips, I am not sure I would rank them as my favorite restuaurant, but Pettini did.  Which restaurant did he name.  Check out the interview below.
In case you missed them, we have already run a few of the interviews from our trip to Minute Maid.  You can scroll back to find them.  You can also find them on the JohngysBeat.com You Tube channel.  Also, I turned this into Travel Favorites of Baseball Greats, an online piece for Global Traveler magazine.