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Post by utahyank on Jun 21, 2019 10:39:08 GMT -5
This may be the most exciting CWS yet....Louisville, trailing the whole game and behind 3-0 in the 8th scored 2 runs...and then 2 more in the bottom of the 9th to walk it off...Mississippi State, in some quarters thought to be the only team that could challenge Vanderbilt, is now out....
Two more games scheduled today....
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 11:54:41 GMT -5
I found the memory of Ron Perranoski to be even more stirring than recollections of George Brett’s hemis. Recalling how he got nicknamed the vulture as he would enter a game just in time for his team mates to score runs. Sometimes he’s allow just enough runs to allow the tie or to trail by a run or two. The runs were often inherited runners, and he’d still be on the mound when his Dodgers would push across the winning run. The name vulture likely came about when Perranoski won four games in a six game stretch in May. By June 30, he was 9-2, all in relief and had thrice won a game on consecutive days... Inger -- minor point, but "The Vulture" sobriquet was attached to the Mets new 82 year old pitching coach Phil Regan rather than Ron Perranoski. Easy to confuse the two -- they were both relievers on some very good Dodgers teams in the 1960s. Each led the league in saves several times, although ultimately Perranoski had the longer and more successful career of the two. Supposedly, Sandy Koufax gave Regan the nickname for the reasons you touched on. Regan also had a bit of a vulturish stance on the mound, kind of tall and leaning forward. Not extreme like Kimbrel by any means. Perranoski was a bit more chunk-style. I see his baseballref page lists him as six feet 180, but my recollection of him would be more along the lines of 5'10" 210. He was good for a long time. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 12:09:34 GMT -5
you know if you throw out the name of Perranoski, I am compelled to counter with a mention of Moe Drabowsky….and one-up you with Al Hrobosky…… Speaking of the Crazy Hungarian...do you remember seeing the clips of Hrobosky head-hunting the Mets...getting into an argument with Mazzilli from the on-deck circle...and when Lee got in the box, he took Hrobosky out deep to left.....and where did Crazy Al go but to intercept Mazzilli before he got to home plate....if he wasn't mental, Al put on a good show.. Al Hrabosky put on quite an act between pitches. He would walk off the mound, turn his back toward home plate, and allegedly psych himself into a fit of rage before getting back on the mound. It was a nice gimmick when it worked, but made him look rather foolish when it didn't. Another quirky reliever was Stu Miller. His so-called fastball sat at about 60 MPH, but he rarely revved it up. The junkiest junk pitcher I ever saw. Most famous for being blown off the mound at the All-Star game in Candlestick Park. If memory serves he was called for a balk. But hey, he still made the All Star team and had his share of effective seasons. Until Dan Quisenberry came along, maybe the most effective submariner reliever was Ted Abernathy. A few of you might remember him. He had a submariner teammate named Dick Hyde. Now no jokes on that, Inger. |
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Post by inger on Jun 21, 2019 12:33:50 GMT -5
I found the memory of Ron Perranoski to be even more stirring than recollections of George Brett’s hemis. Recalling how he got nicknamed the vulture as he would enter a game just in time for his team mates to score runs. Sometimes he’s allow just enough runs to allow the tie or to trail by a run or two. The runs were often inherited runners, and he’d still be on the mound when his Dodgers would push across the winning run. The name vulture likely came about when Perranoski won four games in a six game stretch in May. By June 30, he was 9-2, all in relief and had thrice won a game on consecutive days... Inger -- minor point, but "The Vulture" sobriquet was attached to the Mets new 82 year old pitching coach Phil Regan rather than Ron Perranoski. Easy to confuse the two -- they were both relievers on some very good Dodgers teams in the 1960s. Each led the league in saves several times, although ultimately Perranoski had the longer and more successful career of the two. Supposedly, Sandy Koufax gave Regan the nickname for the reasons you touched on. Regan also had a bit of a vulturish stance on the mound, kind of tall and leaning forward. Not extreme like Kimbrel by any means. Perranoski was a bit more chunk-style. I see his baseballref page lists him as six feet 180, but my recollection of him would be more along the lines of 5'10" 210. He was good for a long time. Well, POOP. I did get them corn-fused. Thanks for straightening that out. It’s odd because I was of course also thinking about Regan as I wrote that, but the whiteout function in my brain didn’t kick in to assist mode and save me... Regan has a very similar season. Guys like Perranoski, Regan, John Hiller, and Elroy Face come to mind today as I keep expecting to see a reliever with a gaudy won-lost record since so many decisions now go to the bullpen. I suppose that as long as most relievers are only pitching one inning, that’s not likely to happen. Maybe the guys that they are now starting to call the “bulk guys” (following the opener) will start ringing up more decisions than the typical starter... |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 13:18:13 GMT -5
Some great names in there, Inger. The year Elroy Face went 18-1, he actually blew ten leads where the Pirates came back to win. Timing is everything.
One of the craziest relief seasons I can remember was Darold Knowles in 1970. Pitching for Washington, he had a 2.04 ERA and an ERA+ of 174, yet a won-loss of 2-14. That sounds really hard to do.
Bill Campbell of the Twins was another reliever who had a lot of decisions. He won 17 one year. Hiller you noted. Regan also had a 14-1 season as a reliever.
Mike Marshall was 15-12 in a relief role one year. You would have to blow a lot of saves to get there, although obviously in his time relievers were used differently.
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Post by inger on Jun 21, 2019 13:44:16 GMT -5
Some great names in there, Inger. The year Elroy Face went 18-1, he actually blew ten leads where the Pirates came back to win. Timing is everything. One of the craziest relief seasons I can remember was Darold Knowles in 1970. Pitching for Washington, he had a 2.04 ERA and an ERA+ of 174, yet a won-loss of 2-14. That sounds really hard to do. Bill Campbell of the Twins was another reliever who had a lot of decisions. He won 17 one year. Hiller you noted. Regan also had a 14-1 season as a reliever. Mike Marshall was 15-12 in a relief role one year. You would have to blow a lot of saves to get there, although obviously in his time relievers were used differently. That season from Knowles and Nolan Ryan’s 8-16; 2.76 season havealeays been puzzlers for me...I think Ryan won the ERA CROWN, but I’m not certain... Jwild was did a 167-page, 24,447- word treatise on how Tyan deserves that record, but it’s hard to swallow... |
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Post by utahyank on Jun 21, 2019 14:00:12 GMT -5
you know if you throw out the name of Perranoski, I am compelled to counter with a mention of Moe Drabowsky….and one-up you with Al Hrobosky…… Speaking of the Crazy Hungarian...do you remember seeing the clips of Hrobosky head-hunting the Mets...getting into an argument with Mazzilli from the on-deck circle...and when Lee got in the box, he took Hrobosky out deep to left.....and where did Crazy Al go but to intercept Mazzilli before he got to home plate....if he wasn't mental, Al put on a good show.. Al Hrabosky put on quite an act between pitches. He would walk off the mound, turn his back toward home plate, and allegedly psych himself into a fit of rage before getting back on the mound. It was a nice gimmick when it worked, but made him look rather foolish when it didn't. Another quirky reliever was Stu Miller. His so-called fastball sat at about 60 MPH, but he rarely revved it up. The junkiest junk pitcher I ever saw. Most famous for being blown off the mound at the All-Star game in Candlestick Park. If memory serves he was called for a balk. But hey, he still made the All Star team and had his share of effective seasons. Until Dan Quisenberry came along, maybe the most effective submariner reliever was Ted Abernathy. A few of you might remember him. He had a submariner teammate named Dick Hyde. Now no jokes on that, Inger. inger goes for the low fruit...he is waiting for a mention of Dick Pole... |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 14:30:12 GMT -5
Oh yeah, Mr. Pole has been subjected to some rigorous commentary in the past as a result of his unfortunate name. As has his near-contemporary Peter LaCock.
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Post by Renfield on Jun 21, 2019 14:40:56 GMT -5
Wasn't Phil Regan the guy that slid into home plate one time and his tube of Vasoline or K-Y Jelly fell out of his warm-up jacket? Don't recall if he was ejected or not. Had to be late 60's early 70's.
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 15:12:50 GMT -5
Wasn't Phil Regan the guy that slid into home plate one time and his tube of Vasoline or K-Y Jelly fell out of his warm-up jacket? Don't recall if he was ejected or not. Had to be late 60's early 70's. Wow, good recall Renfield. Yes, he had Vaseline fall out of his uniform. Regan was one of the prime ball-doctorers of his time. There was a big controversy with him throwing doctored baseballs and the umpires disallowing pitches he threw because of the weird flight of the ball. I had forgotten that. BTW, Whitey Ford was a master at nicking the ball with his belt buckle. I don't think vaseline was in his repertoire. |
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Post by Renfield on Jun 21, 2019 15:24:40 GMT -5
Thanks, pipps. If you've never read Gaylord Perry's "Me and the Spitter" (or something like that) I'd recommend it. It's not Steinbeck, but an entertaining read. Said he could make a thumbnail of Vasoline last an entire inning. Funniest part of the book was a game he described where he said the opposing team was all over him about throwing grease balls in the first inning or two. After the inning, he went into the dugout and took off the undershirt that was loaded with grease and put on a clean one. Next time out, they were all over him again claiming he was hiding the grease on the undershirt and the umpire came out and said, "Gaylord, I'm sorry but I'm going to have to ask you to change that shirt." Gaylord of course agreed and went into the dugout and put the greasy shirt back on. Said he knew they'd not ask again that game.
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Post by Renfield on Jun 21, 2019 15:33:24 GMT -5
I found the memory of Ron Perranoski to be even more stirring than recollections of George Brett’s hemis. Recalling how he got nicknamed the vulture as he would enter a game just in time for his team mates to score runs. Sometimes he’s allow just enough runs to allow the tie or to trail by a run or two. The runs were often inherited runners, and he’d still be on the mound when his Dodgers would push across the winning run. The name vulture likely came about when Perranoski won four games in a six game stretch in May. By June 30, he was 9-2, all in relief and had thrice won a game on consecutive days... Inger -- minor point, but "The Vulture" sobriquet was attached to the Mets new 82 year old pitching coach Phil Regan rather than Ron Perranoski. Easy to confuse the two -- they were both relievers on some very good Dodgers teams in the 1960s. Each led the league in saves several times, although ultimately Perranoski had the longer and more successful career of the two. Supposedly, Sandy Koufax gave Regan the nickname for the reasons you touched on. Regan also had a bit of a vulturish stance on the mound, kind of tall and leaning forward. Not extreme like Kimbrel by any means. Perranoski was a bit more chunk-style. I see his baseballref page lists him as six feet 180, but my recollection of him would be more along the lines of 5'10" 210. He was good for a long time. Didn't the Yanks have a reliever nicknamed "The Vulture" as well? Think he got it for his appearance, though. Was tall, thin and kinda had a hook nose. Wore glasses, I think. Ron Davis was his name, maybe? |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 16:04:28 GMT -5
Inger -- minor point, but "The Vulture" sobriquet was attached to the Mets new 82 year old pitching coach Phil Regan rather than Ron Perranoski. Easy to confuse the two -- they were both relievers on some very good Dodgers teams in the 1960s. Each led the league in saves several times, although ultimately Perranoski had the longer and more successful career of the two. Supposedly, Sandy Koufax gave Regan the nickname for the reasons you touched on. Regan also had a bit of a vulturish stance on the mound, kind of tall and leaning forward. Not extreme like Kimbrel by any means. Perranoski was a bit more chunk-style. I see his baseballref page lists him as six feet 180, but my recollection of him would be more along the lines of 5'10" 210. He was good for a long time. Didn't the Yanks have a reliever nicknamed "The Vulture" as well? Think he got it for his appearance, though. Was tall, thin and kinda had a hook nose. Wore glasses, I think. Ron Davis was his name, maybe? Renfield, I definitely remember Ron Davis -- he had some good years for the Yanks in the late 70s to the early 80s -- but I don't recall any nickname for him. He wore those big aviator glasses that were popular at the time. Seemed he was mostly a set-up guy for Goose Gossage and had some nice seasons in that role. I see he went 14-2 one year as a reliever. Even though he pitched well for the Yankees, he was the kind of guy who didn't seem to be at his best in high leverage situations. He holds the record for most blown saves in a season (14) when he was with Minnesota. Can't come up with another guy nicknamed The Vulture. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 21, 2019 16:07:21 GMT -5
Thanks, pipps. If you've never read Gaylord Perry's "Me and the Spitter" (or something like that) I'd recommend it. It's not Steinbeck, but an entertaining read. Said he could make a thumbnail of Vasoline last an entire inning. Funniest part of the book was a game he described where he said the opposing team was all over him about throwing grease balls in the first inning or two. After the inning, he went into the dugout and took off the undershirt that was loaded with grease and put on a clean one. Next time out, they were all over him again claiming he was hiding the grease on the undershirt and the umpire came out and said, "Gaylord, I'm sorry but I'm going to have to ask you to change that shirt." Gaylord of course agreed and went into the dugout and put the greasy shirt back on. Said he knew they'd not ask again that game. I'm ashamed to say I haven't read Gaylord Perry's book. I'm sure it would be entertaining. He gave you a pretty good show on the mound. Always a conman. Seemed like he pitched forever. |
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Post by inger on Jun 21, 2019 16:42:14 GMT -5
Didn't the Yanks have a reliever nicknamed "The Vulture" as well? Think he got it for his appearance, though. Was tall, thin and kinda had a hook nose. Wore glasses, I think. Ron Davis was his name, maybe? Renfield, I definitely remember Ron Davis -- he had some good years for the Yanks in the late 70s to the early 80s -- but I don't recall any nickname for him. He wore those big aviator glasses that were popular at the time. Seemed he was mostly a set-up guy for Goose Gossage and had some nice seasons in that role. I see he went 14-2 one year as a reliever. Even though he pitched well for the Yankees, he was the kind of guy who didn't seem to be at his best in high leverage situations. He holds the record for most blown saves in a season (14) when he was with Minnesota. Can't come up with another guy nicknamed The Vulture. When Davis had that big year he would stride towards third and deliver with a straight side arm action that made RHH nervous... I know because I sped that motion pitching to one of my nephews one day (for fun). He was a good little hitter, but he pleaded with me to throw overhand... |
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