How baseball got its beat

How baseball got its beat

September 10, 2026 · 32 min

About this episode

This episode explores the origins of walk-up music in baseball and its cultural significance.

Major League Baseball’s postseason is just a few weeks away, and here on Throughline we know the power of a good walk-up song. But how did baseball become such a musical sport? And where did the idea for walk up-music come from? Guests: John Thorn, author and Official Baseball Historian for Major League Baseball Nancy Faust, former organist for the Chicago White Sox Support public media with NPR+ and enjoy perks for over 25 podcasts like this one. This show’s perks include sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

People in this episode

Guests: John Thorn, Nancy Faust

Topics covered

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Major League Baseball, Chicago White Sox, NPR

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