Mike Safo with Coach Bill Picketts, Philippines National Baseball Head Coach

Mike Safo

Joined today by Head Coach of the Philippines National Baseball team, former Oakland A's draft pick in 1990 and head coach of LA Pierce College, Coach Bill Picketts. Bill and I talk about his first year at Long Beach State, their Cinderella run to the College Baseball World Series, and where the name "Dirtbags" came from. We hear about how Bill got the call in 1990 that he was drafted, his time in the minors and how at the age of 23 did he know it was time to hang up the cleats and go into coaching. Bill and I discuss his jump from coaching the freshman high school baseball team to the head coach of LA Pierce College. He shares bout the one-time Coach Picketts actually picked up his office phone and how a random question about a Filipino baseball player led him to be the head coach of the Philippines Baseball team. Coach Picketts talks about going out to the Philippines, his surprise how passionate they are about baseball and what his long- and short-term goals are out with building baseball from the ground up out there and how we can help. Bill tells us about almost coaching Tim Tebow, what current players the Filipino players look up to, their success in the Southeast Asian games and the challenge that lies ahead as they go to China to compete in the Asia games. All this plus we hear about a Don Mattingly postcard, Ted Williams bat and the moment Coach Picketts knew he wasn't going to cut it as an MLB player. Click on the links below to help support growing the game of baseball in the Philippines, the Pearl of the Orient https://philippinesbaseballgroupstore.myshopify.com/collections/all