I have made many wonderful friends through baseball, and one of my most treasured baseball buddies is Mo Weber, who rounded third for the last time in July of 2019 and headed for Home after 96 years, 64 of which he spent coaching. I knew quite a bit about the game, but my baseball education didn’t really begin until I met Mo, who is the basis for the character Max McGowan in “I love it here in Indiana!” That story appears in The Men Who Saved Baseball and other baseball stories which will be released two weeks from today.

The story revolves around three younger men who must decide the best way to honor Max now that he has died. They vow to spread Max’s ashes on his old ball diamond back in Indiana, but they run into complications. When I outlined the plot to Mo, he said in his usual dry way, “How about you keep me alive in the next story?”

I interviewed him about the coaching he did in the semi-pro leagues in South Dakota in the early 1950s, and that interview appears below. Watch and meet the inspiration for Max McGowan. If you knew Mo, I’m sure this will bring back warm memories.

A NOTE: If you live in the greater Winchester, VA area and would like to order a paperback copy, please let me know and I will include your order with my initial author-copy order. That way, the next time I see you, I can hand you your autographed copy. Thank you, and enjoy the chat with Mo.