Baseball player & author Dirk Hayhurst, Tom Waits afficionado Bruno Bouchard

Program Title: Endeavours - channeling Tom Waits, making it in professional sports
Description: Dirk Hayhurst is a former Major League Baseball Player for the San Diego Padres and the Toronto Blue Jays, as well as the author of the New York Times Bestseller The Bullpen Gospels, released in 2010, which chronicled life in the minor leagues. In his new tale, Out of My League, Dirk has finally made it to the show. He writes about life in the big leagues as a rookie.

After 6 years of toiling in the minors, playing for the Eugene Emeralds, Fort Wayne Wizards, Lake Elsinore Storm, Mobile BayBears, San Antonio Missions, and Portland Beavers, Dirk emerged in the big leagues with San Diego to start against the San Fransico Giants on August, 23, 2008. His performance in that start was unremarkable, but the story between the two aforementioned dates is not.

Dirk started recording his minor league adventures in 2007 in the belief that if he didn’t make it to the big leagues, at least he could write down some of the life experiences he had while trying to get there. Maybe form them into a book? The result was the capturing of stories and experiences spanning the deserts of the Cal League, the snowy peaks of the Pacific Coast League, and beyond the baseball field itself to the warn and traveled roads of real, raw life. In short, the result was a self discovery no string of stats could explain. However, if it’s simple career stats you’re interested in, you can find them here.

At the end of the 2008 campaign, Dirk was claimed off waivers by the Toronto Blue Jays where he spent parts of the 2009 season in the Bigs. All the of the 2010 season was spent on the disabled list, rehabbing shoulder surgery. Healthy once again, Dirk came back for the 2011 season as a Tampa Bay Ray, and played for their Triple A affiliate, the world famous Durham Bulls. Dirk is presently a free agent and hopes to make it back to the big leagues soon.

Currently playing professional ball in Italy, in the off-season Dirk resides in Hudson, Ohio with his wife Bonnie and their Mascot the Garfoose.

Bruno Bouchard is the leader of Orchestre D'Hommes-orchestre, a french-canadian six-piece band dedicated to the music of Tom Waits. In other words, they are the only Tom Waits cover band.

In this powerful tribute to the world of Waits, six frenzied musicians use nearly 100 objects and invented instruments to create madcap scenes of unbridled energy. Using everything and nothing to make music – from teacups to turkey-basters – the group finds offbeat solutions to reinvent virtuosity.

Quebec City’s L’Orchestre d’Hommes-Orchestres (translation: The One Man Band-Band) transforms the music concert genre with raw vigor and captivating stage presence to create music that can be seen. And believe us, you’ve never seen Tom Waits performed like this.

Host(s): Dan McPeake
Featured Speakers/Guests: Dirk Hayhurst Bruno Bouchard

Credits: written & produced by Dan McPeake

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