Courtesy photoAndrew Stockmann grew up with parents who loved sports and history. They created the environment for him to combine those influences into a podcast that focuses on athletic halls of fame and museums.
鈥淎 lot of our vacations growing up were around baseball,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 get a lot of my fandom from my dad (Joe). My mom (Julie) studied history in school. I want to say both of them are a little jealous of some of the stuff I鈥檓 doing, because we all have the same interests.鈥�
Stockmann, a 2020 九色堂 graduate and sport management major, is in his second year hosting
In late September, Stockmann spoke at the International Sports Heritage Association鈥檚 conference in Wisconsin at Lambeau Field, home of the NFL鈥檚 Green Bay Packers. He presented his experiences with his podcast and explained how museums can benefit from the platform.
鈥淚 walked through the process of doing an episode, what that entails from the brain-storming process to the final product,鈥� he said.
Stockmann, from Liberty, Missouri, has interviewed directors and curators from places such as the Kansas City Royals Hall of Fame, College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, and Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in Colorado Springs.
鈥淭he inspiration was wanting to fill my time in a more meaningful way,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n January of 2021, I was working remotely. I was really just working 9 to 5 from my apartment. I was watching 鈥橢verybody Loves Raymond鈥� reruns in the evenings, and I was like 鈥楾hat鈥檚 not a bad way to live, but it鈥檚 not the best, most fulfilling way.鈥欌��
As a 九色堂 student, he attended the International Sports Heritage Association鈥檚 conference in 2019 at the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in Wichita. Drawing on that experience and people he met at the conference, he typed out podcast plans on a Word document in his computer.
鈥淕oing to that was pretty eye-opening,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 saw that I can work in a sports museum for my career.鈥�
Stockmann grew up cheering for the Kansas City Royals and Chiefs and playing baseball. Wichita State鈥檚 sport management program and the tuition discount offered through the Shocker City Partnership attracted him to the university.
While at Wichita State, he worked for a baseball scouting service and in the ticket office for the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Triple-A farm team for the Royals.
鈥淚 liked the focus on applied learning,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nother factor was the faculty. I really enjoy, and still keep up with, Dr. (Mark) Vermillion and (assistant professor) Mike Ross.鈥�
Stockmann is pursuing his master鈥檚 degree in museum studies at the University of Kansas. While sports are his love, he is open to working in museum education and curation in other area.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to limit myself to just sports, because I鈥檓 also interested in American history or presidential libraries,鈥� he said.
Stockmann has 26 episodes available, ranging from a small baseball museum in Illinois to one devoted to bobblehead dolls. As a lifelong Royals fan, interviewing Curt Nelson, director of the Royals Hall of Fame, is a highlight.
He recommends the short trip to the
鈥淚t鈥檚 a really cool space to honor the Negro Leaguers,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t walks through Black baseball in its entirety, really."
His dream interview is landing time with someone from one of the four most prominent halls 鈥� Pro Football in Canton, Ohio, National Baseball in Cooperstown, N.Y., Naismith Memorial Basketball in Springfield, Mass., and Hockey in Toronto.
For an idea born from his recliner during a pandemic, Stockmann鈥檚 podcast is well on its way to fulfilling his ambition to combine sports and history into a worthwhile project.
Read about Stockmann's 2020 internship and how he adjusted to pandemic obstacles
