The Sports Central Podcast!: Recent Episodes
CBS Los Angeles
Jim Hill & the rest of the KCBS/KCAL Sports Central crew share their own stories as they interview some of the greatest sports stars in LA! The weekly podcast premieres Thursdays.
3-time World Series winner Dave Stewart joins the SC Pod this week as Jim Hill talks to the World Series MVP about his early career w/ the Dodgers (inc. that 1981 title) and his infamous return with Oakland for the 1988 World Series. Stewart is also close to landing an expansion team in Nashville
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The 2023 LA Sparks season is just around the corner. Jim Hill sat down with two of their superstars, sisters Nneka & Chiney Ogwumike. They talked all about their relationship with each other and a look ahead to this year's team, plus there was even some good-natured ribbing between all three
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UCLA Football made a subtle move this offseason that could bring big dividends. Former Navy head coach Ken Niumatalolo is now the Director of Leadership for the Bruins & talks to Jim Hill about making the transition, his native Hawaiian heritage & speaking into the lives of student-athletes
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Chris Hayre chats with sportswriters Farbod Esnaashari & Mark Medina as they give their predictions & thoughts on the upcoming playoff series in which the Lakers & Clippers will be playing
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It's Final Four weekend & with a movie about his career highlight of signing Michael Jordan to Nike on the way in "AIR", Jaime Maggio catches up with Sonny Vaccaro to talk about all things NCAA, the upcoming film, Ed O'Bannon's groundbreaking lawsuit and Kobe Bryant
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As a freshman in 1995, UCLA's Toby Bailey helped the Bruins to their most recent National Championship. In this episode, he goes in depth about that title run with Jaime Maggio. He also gives his insight on this year's UCLA team, his new perspectives as a dad with athletic kids & talks about the times he spent with the great John Wooden
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Big West Player of the Year Ajay Mitchell has UC Santa Barbara in the Big Dance in just his sophomore year. Jaime Maggio chats with the star guard from Belgium on the eve of the biggest game of his career
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Hockey Hall of Famer Luc Robitaille may be the greatest LA King of all time. Drafted by the Kings in 1984, he was an 8-time All-Star who played14 seasons with the club and then led the team to 2 Stanley Cups as top executive. Jim Hill sits down with Lucky Luc to talk about all parts of his career, including the tough recent decisions he's had to make as team president
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This week, Jaime Maggio gets comfy in Jim Hill's office as they talk about the many incredible sports moments Jim has seen and the interviews he's done with so many athletes who've transcended their sport
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Cobi Jones not only had style on the pitch, but he had the game to back it up. One of the greatest American soccer players ever talks to Jaime Maggio about his career, the future of MLS & NWSL and what it means to be an ambassador for the sport as the World Cup gets set to return to LA
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Jim Everett was the King of Anaheim as the Rams' QB in the 80s. He's since gone on to a great media career, including as our own Sports Central Rams analyst. Jim Hill sits down with Jim Everett to talk about his time with the Rams (& Chargers), what he thought about Super Bowl 57 and, of course, his infamous run-in with Jim Rome
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This week, Season 1 comes to a close as Chris Hayre chats with the No. 1 rated girls basketball player in the country, JuJu Watkins. The Sierra Canyon star talks about her senior season, why she chose USC & her relationships with Flea & Bronny James
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Bernie Nicholls is one of only 8 players to score 70 goals in a season & he did it with the Kings. He even had his own goal celebration - the Pumpernickel. Jim Hill talks to Bernie about all that, his new book, playing with Wayne Gretzky & more in this week's SC Podcast
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The NCAA Hoops season is underway and with that another highly-rated UCLA Bruin team coached by Mick Cronin taking a shot at a Final Four. Now in his 4th season in Westwood, he spends some time talking with Jim Hill about this year's team, how he likes to keep things fun and even his skills on the BBQ
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Why is Austin Ekeler probably the most beloved player on the Chargers? It's not just his knack for the endzone, but the way he interacts with fans, his passion for training and his love of fantasy football! Chris Hayre touches on it all (plus a midseason update, naturally) with Austin in this week's episode
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The "Golf, Mostly" podcast, hosted by Michelle Wie West & Hally Leadbetter, will premiere in November with some big name guests like Drake & Venus Williams. Ben Lyons catches up with Michelle & Hally to talk about their collaboration, friendship & more
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Pau Gasol won 2 NBA titles during his time with the Lakers. In this episode, Jim Hill catches up with the next player to have his number retired by the team. Among many things, they talk about his ongoing charity work, relationship with Kobe Bryant & his family and what it will feel like to see his number immortalized alongside so many NBA legends
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Joe Maddon was abruptly let go during the 2022 Angels baseball season despite having a championship pedigree & decades of service with the club. He talks to Jill Painter Lopez about being fired, his new "Book of Joe" & how much baseball has changed (for the worse?) over the years
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All-Pro Shawne Merriman played 6 seasons with the Chargers and has become a fan-favorite ever since. Chris Hayre caught up with “Lights Out” to talk about his time with the Bolts, ventures outside football and what he thinks of this year’s team
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The "Mouth of the South" Jimmy Hart has been in the pro wrestling business for over 4 decades and is getting set to bring Wrestlemania 39 to Sofi Stadium in April 2023. Jim Hill visits with the famed WWE manager as they chat about his early success in wrestling (& singing?), what he expects the event will bring to LA next year, why he wears his flashy outfits & so much more
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In a pivot from our usual format, Chris Hayre interviews a panel of experts in their fields about head injuries in an effort to protect against & recover quickly from concussions. LAUSD's Kirsten Farrell, Dr. Ken Cooper & CIFSS Commssioner Rob Wigod discuss the importance of certified athletic trainers, recent improvements in safety & what's left to be done
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For 32 years & 8 championships, Gary Vitti had a front row seat to multiple Lakers dynasties as the team’s head trainer. Jaime Maggio chats with her good friend about how he walked away from the “Winning Time” set, working with Pat Riley, the time Shaq punched his pelvis (?!) & much more in this week’s episode
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In 2013, Jason Collins became the first openly gay active athlete in the 4 major sports leagues. Ben Lyons catches up with the Harvard-Westlake grad as they talk about winning high school basketball titles, choosing Stanford, Kobe Bryant’s support and even the US Open of Tennis among much more in this week’s episode
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Tyus Edney became a UCLA Legend after winning the 1995 National Title, due to his game-winning, coast to coast heroics against Missouri. Reporter Greg Wolf catches up with Tyus as he embarks on a new coaching adventure at University of San Diego and of course goes into detail about the game-winning shot & much more. And did you know, he’s cousins with last week’s pod guest, Josiah Johnson?!
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Before Josiah Johnson became the king of NBA Twitter, he grew up in a house of champions and played at UCLA while having 1on1s with the great John Wooden. Now he rubs elbows with the likes of Jordan Peele & even LeBron James as he makes the Twitterverse laugh out loud every single day.
In this week’s episode, Jim Hill talks to him about it all.
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Joe West spent a record 43 seasons umpiring 5,460 Major League Baseball games. Not yet a year into retirement, “Cowboy Joe” chats with Jim Hill about all the managers that yelled at him, his relationship with Tommy Lasorda, his love for country music & much more
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Jaime Maggio sits down with our own Jim Hill to talk about his childhood in Texas, his career in football and, of course, his time as one of the most decorated sports broadcasters in LA history
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Basketball Hall-of-Famer and former KCBS/KCAL Lakers analyst James Worthy sits down with Jaime Maggio to talk about his North Carolina upbringing, career with the Lakers and his 2nd career as a broadcaster… and boy does he hate the Celtics!
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In 1989, 17-year-old Michael Chang won the hearts of the tennis world with a gutsy performance to beat No. 1, Ivan Lendl, then go on to win the French Open. His legacy lives on years later as Chris Hayre chats with Michael about his career, family & passion for coaching others.
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USC Football became the talk of the sports nation last year when Lincoln Riley was announced as its new head coach. With training camp around the corner, Jim Hill talks with Riley about coming to LA, his expectations and what he thinks of his key players in this week’s Sports Central Podcast
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Jim Hill & Chris Hayre sit down with UCLA Athletic Director, Martin Jarmond
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