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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 30, 2019 19:36:28 GMT -5
I am sadly old enough to remember when the 1962 Mets were being formed. They came in the same year as the Houston Colt .45s and the consensus was that the Mets would be the superior team because they selected so many established veterans like Richie Ashburn, Gil Hodges, Gus Bell, Don Zimmer and the first Frank Thomas. Plus Casey Stengel was the manager.
Obviously it didn't go as planned. Over the next few years they signed up Hall of Famers at the end of the line like Warren Spahn, Duke Snider and Yogi Berra. They didn't win much, but the fans loved it.
Ed Kranepool was 17 years old when he played for them in 1962. One of my favorite names from that team was Jay Hook. Then there were the two Bob Millers on the pitching staff. That was truly a terrible team. But even that sorry squad only lost five more games than last year's Orioles. Who on paper should be better than this year's Orioles.
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Post by greatfatness on Mar 30, 2019 19:41:00 GMT -5
I am sadly old enough to remember when the 1962 Mets were being formed. They came in the same year as the Houston Colt .45s and the consensus was that the Mets would be the superior team because they selected so many established veterans like Richie Ashburn, Gil Hodges, Gus Bell, Don Zimmer and the first Frank Thomas. Plus Casey Stengel was the manager. Obviously it didn't go as planned. Over the next few years they signed up Hall of Famers at the end of the line like Warren Spahn, Duke Snider and Yogi Berra. They didn't win much, but the fans loved it. Ed Kranepool was 17 years old when he played for them in 1962. One of my favorite names from that team was Jay Hook. Then there were the two Bob Millers on the pitching staff. That was truly a terrible team. But even that sorry squad only lost five more games than last year's Orioles. Who on paper should be better than this year's Orioles. I once went to pick up my girlfriend at a friends house and Ed Kranepool answered the door in sweats. I guess he was the friend’s step dad or something. Freaked me out. |
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Post by inger on Mar 30, 2019 19:47:48 GMT -5
Warren Spahn’s baseball card looked like an old, bald-headed fart that would shout at you for losing your baseball on his lawn without his teeth in. Of course he WAS something like forty one or forty two years old, I believe...How awful is it when an athlete refuses to believe his time in sports is over. There are some sad stories out there of final seasons. Sometimes several final seasons that turned out bad...
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Post by inger on Mar 30, 2019 19:55:33 GMT -5
I am sadly old enough to remember when the 1962 Mets were being formed. They came in the same year as the Houston Colt .45s and the consensus was that the Mets would be the superior team because they selected so many established veterans like Richie Ashburn, Gil Hodges, Gus Bell, Don Zimmer and the first Frank Thomas. Plus Casey Stengel was the manager. Obviously it didn't go as planned. Over the next few years they signed up Hall of Famers at the end of the line like Warren Spahn, Duke Snider and Yogi Berra. They didn't win much, but the fans loved it. Ed Kranepool was 17 years old when he played for them in 1962. One of my favorite names from that team was Jay Hook. Then there were the two Bob Millers on the pitching staff. That was truly a terrible team. But even that sorry squad only lost five more games than last year's Orioles. Who on paper should be better than this year's Orioles. I once went to pick up my girlfriend at a friends house and Ed Kranepool answered the door in sweats. I guess he was the friend’s step dad or something. Freaked me out. How did you know it was Ed Kranepool? I’m picturing a scene like one of those reverse mortgage commercials where the guy is famous, but not enough to be recognized on sight. So I see Kranepool at the door saying: “Hi! I’m Ed Kranepool and I’ll be letting you in to pick up Phoebe. Her father will expect her in fully intact by 11:00 PM. This may not apply in your state”... |
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Post by inger on Mar 30, 2019 21:45:02 GMT -5
Kim Karns. He’s got Betty Davis eyes. Kim Carnes was quite attractive. Maybe she still is, I haven’t seen her in years. Her very best work was probably her duet of “Don’t Fall In Love With A Dreamer” with Kenny Rogers. Her raspy voice actually fit better in a duet or as a backup vocalist in country, but she hit the Adult Contemporary charts several times with singles...Without “Betty Davis Eyes”, she might have never gotten much attention...You have to give her kudos for having the moxie to release “Crazy In The Night (Barking At Airplanes), just for the title alone... Once again, a game thread waxes* musical. * Actually wanes musical, but no one says that... |
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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 31, 2019 5:46:15 GMT -5
Warren Spahn’s baseball card looked like an old, bald-headed fart that would shout at you for losing your baseball on his lawn without his teeth in. Of course he WAS something like forty one or forty two years old, I believe...How awful is it when an athlete refuses to believe his time in sports is over. There are some sad stories out there of final seasons. Sometimes several final seasons that turned out bad.. Warren Spahn actually won 23 games when he was 42 years old, his thirteenth and final 20-win season. He did hang around for a few more seasons after that, but I don't remember him seeming like a tragic figure. He never seemed to take himself too seriously. I remember regarding him more like an old golfer who couldn't hit it 300 yards anymore, but who every now and then surprises you with a nice iron shot. |
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Post by desousa on Mar 31, 2019 7:32:15 GMT -5
Warren Spahn’s baseball card looked like an old, bald-headed fart that would shout at you for losing your baseball on his lawn without his teeth in. Of course he WAS something like forty one or forty two years old, I believe...How awful is it when an athlete refuses to believe his time in sports is over. There are some sad stories out there of final seasons. Sometimes several final seasons that turned out bad.. Warren Spahn actually won 23 games when he was 42 years old, his thirteenth and final 20-win season. He did hang around for a few more seasons after that, but I don't remember him seeming like a tragic figure. He never seemed to take himself too seriously. I remember regarding him more like an old golfer who couldn't hit it 300 yards anymore, but who every now and then surprises you with a nice iron shot. I grew up on an island on the west coast of Florida, south of Tampa. Warren Spahn, Fred Hutchison, Birdie Tebbetts and Earl Torgeson all had houses there. Spahn and Hutchison helped build the little league field I use to play on. There's a great picture in the historical society of Spahn driving a bulldozer. |
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Post by greatfatness on Mar 31, 2019 7:42:49 GMT -5
I once went to pick up my girlfriend at a friends house and Ed Kranepool answered the door in sweats. I guess he was the friend’s step dad or something. Freaked me out. How did you know it was Ed Kranepool? I’m picturing a scene like one of those reverse mortgage commercials where the guy is famous, but not enough to be recognized on sight. So I see Kranepool at the door saying: “Hi! I’m Ed Kranepool and I’ll be letting you in to pick up Phoebe. Her father will expect her in fully intact by 11:00 PM. This may not apply in your state”... He seemed oddly familiar and was wearing Mets sweatpants. Then he was introduced to me as Ed. And later it came up in conversation. Weird day. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 31, 2019 9:54:06 GMT -5
Warren Spahn actually won 23 games when he was 42 years old, his thirteenth and final 20-win season. He did hang around for a few more seasons after that, but I don't remember him seeming like a tragic figure. He never seemed to take himself too seriously. I remember regarding him more like an old golfer who couldn't hit it 300 yards anymore, but who every now and then surprises you with a nice iron shot. I grew up on an island on the west coast of Florida, south of Tampa. Warren Spahn, Fred Hutchison, Birdie Tebbetts and Earl Torgeson all had houses there. Spahn and Hutchison helped build the little league field I use to play on. There's a great picture in the historical society of Spahn driving a bulldozer. Great names in there, Desousa. Earl Torgeson I remember for his Clark Kent glasses. He actually played briefly for the outstanding 1961 Yankees team. I remember when Fred Hutchinson died from cancer, just three months after managing his last game for the Reds. He seemed like such an old guy to me; he was only 45. Birdie Tebbetts looked like he could have been a character actor in a John Ford Western. He was a really bright guy -- not too many then or now who had degrees in Philosophy -- and a great scout and student of the game. Players like Frank Robinson and even Reggie Jackson gave him lots of credit for helping them with their games. Spahn was a real character and maybe the most under-rated elite pitcher of all-time. Your mention of him driving a bulldozer sounds right in character. I think he and Lew Burdette used to pull some goofs on baseball card poses. One of my favorite Warren Spahn quotes was that he played for Casey Stengel both before and after Casey was a genius. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 31, 2019 9:56:56 GMT -5
Oh, I forgot to add -- how cool that you played on a Little League field built by such players.
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Post by desousa on Mar 31, 2019 10:28:59 GMT -5
' I grew up on an island on the west coast of Florida, south of Tampa. Warren Spahn, Fred Hutchison, Birdie Tebbetts and Earl Torgeson all had houses there. Spahn and Hutchison helped build the little league field I use to play on. There's a great picture in the historical society of Spahn driving a bulldozer. Great names in there, Desousa. Earl Torgeson I remember for his Clark Kent glasses. He actually played briefly for the outstanding 1961 Yankees team. I remember when Fred Hutchinson died from cancer, just three months after managing his last game for the Reds. He seemed like such an old guy to me; he was only 45. Birdie Tebbetts looked like he could have been a character actor in a John Ford Western. He was a really bright guy -- not too many then or now who had degrees in Philosophy -- and a great scout and student of the game. Players like Frank Robinson and even Reggie Jackson gave him lots of credit for helping them with their games. Spahn was a real character and maybe the most under-rated elite pitcher of all-time. Your mention of him driving a bulldozer sounds right in character. I think he and Lew Burdette used to pull some goofs on baseball card poses. One of my favorite Warren Spahn quotes was that he played for Casey Stengel both before and after Casey was a genius. Hutchison was known for having a really bad temper. I can't remember who said it, but after Hutch replaced another fiery guy Mayo Smith, a player was asked the difference between the two infamous tempers he replied, "When Smith gets mad he throws chairs, when Hutch gets mad he throws rooms". I played little league against his youngest son and saw him get tossed more than once for screaming at the umps. I still see his son once in a while. Last time I ran into him he told me how his uncle Bill started the Fred Hutchison Cancer Hospital in Seattle. Bill was like a father to Hutch and it really pained him to see his brother die so young. I liked Birdie Tebbetts. One of his daughters was in my class. He watched our little league games all the time. His youngest was a pretty fair fielding SS, but couldn't hit that much. Years later when I was bartending he would pop in for a beer or two and we would talk baseball and Vermont. He was actually born where I live now, Burlington. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 31, 2019 10:40:40 GMT -5
' Great names in there, Desousa. Earl Torgeson I remember for his Clark Kent glasses. He actually played briefly for the outstanding 1961 Yankees team. I remember when Fred Hutchinson died from cancer, just three months after managing his last game for the Reds. He seemed like such an old guy to me; he was only 45. Birdie Tebbetts looked like he could have been a character actor in a John Ford Western. He was a really bright guy -- not too many then or now who had degrees in Philosophy -- and a great scout and student of the game. Players like Frank Robinson and even Reggie Jackson gave him lots of credit for helping them with their games. Spahn was a real character and maybe the most under-rated elite pitcher of all-time. Your mention of him driving a bulldozer sounds right in character. I think he and Lew Burdette used to pull some goofs on baseball card poses. One of my favorite Warren Spahn quotes was that he played for Casey Stengel both before and after Casey was a genius. Hutchison was known for having a really bad temper. I can't remember who said it, but after Hutch replaced another fiery guy Mayo Smith, a player was asked the difference between the two infamous tempers he replied, "When Smith gets mad he throws chairs, when Hutch gets mad he throws rooms". I played little league against his youngest son and saw him get tossed more than once for screaming at the umps. I still see his son once in a while. Last time I ran into him he told me how his uncle Bill started the Fred Hutchison Cancer Hospital in Seattle. Bill was like a father to Hutch and it really pained him to see his brother die so young. I liked Birdie Tebbetts. One of his daughters was in my class. He watched our little league games all the time. His youngest was a pretty fair fielding SS, but couldn't hit that much. Years later when I was bartending he would pop in for a beer or two and we would talk baseball and Vermont. He was actually born where I live now, Burlington. Oh man, priceless stories, Desousa. I love hearing about first-person encounters with these guys. I know that cancer hospital in Seattle is one of the most prestigious of its kind. Jon Lester went there for his own cancer battle. I remember as a kid reading about Hutch and his temper. The Big Bear. But most of his players had great respect for him. Stan Musial said anybody could play for him. It seemed like Birdie Tebbetts was active in scouting well into his eighties. He was always showing up in the stands at ballparks all over the place. A wonderful baseball lifer who was mentored by Mickey Cochrane and influenced players who were still active into the 1990s. |
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Post by desousa on Mar 31, 2019 10:49:33 GMT -5
Garagiola gave Hutch the nickname The Big Bear. Said he was happy on the inside but never showed it in his face.
Tebbetts was Steinbrenner's favorite scout for a while back in the 70's. Reggie credited him with helping him hit 3 home runs in game 6 of the 77 World Series. The new little league park on the island is named after him.
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Post by pippsheadache on Mar 31, 2019 11:01:35 GMT -5
I love that we're talking about Birdie Tebbetts and Fred Hutchinson!! Never knew Joe G. gave him that nickname. Just from what I could see of him on the field, Hutch seemed like an angry, intimidating guy. Whereas Danny Murtaugh, to name one, seemed like a great-uncle of some sort, patient and kindly. I don't know if he really was, he just seemed that way to me.
They aren't always the same on and off the field, as you know. As a kid I had many a post-game chat with Gene Mauch when he was managing the Phillies, just hanging around outside Connie Mack Stadium after a game. He was another smasher of furniture and screamer at umpires, but he was just as kind and patient as could be with kids, discussing the game when I am sure he had better things to do. We, of course, did not have better things to do.
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Post by michcusejoe5 on Mar 31, 2019 11:04:17 GMT -5
Was moving yesterday so missed most of the game. Looks like it was a bit of a letdown. I still expect Holder to be pretty strong this year even though from what Ive read he struggled a bit. Still a good 6th option out of the bullpen (when Betances is healthy).
Fun fact though (which I may have mentioned here before), Jimmy Yacabonis who was first in relief yesterday for Baltimore graduated from my high school (same year as my brother actually). He made his MLB debut in 2017 vs the Yankees and got taken deep by Judge. Looks like yesterday he caught Judge looking.
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