Also
Read:
MEMORIES Part
2
ONEMOREINNING
MEMORIES
So
many memories after following the game for over 60 years
now.
Here are some of them:
It’s
1949 and I’m sitting in rightfield in the
Stadium and as usual before the game I’m talking to Cliff
Mapes. Whenever I would get to the games I’d
spend time with Cliff and we would talk baseball in between batting practice.
He even knew my name and was always cordial, friendly and informative.
In
those days the bullpen was next to rightfield and
you could talk to the pitchers down there. Fred Sanford was especially nice
and I even got to talk to Ford and Johnny Lindel
who back then was alternating between pitching and playing outfield.
Mapes arranged to meet me after the game and introduced
me to Tommy Byrne, Bob Porterfield, Duane Pillette,
and Wally Hood and I got their autographs. A great day for
me!
Fast
forward to 1990 and I started One More Inning then. The first interview I
had in the magazine was with Cliff Mapes. After
all these years he still remembered me. We kept on corresponding and became
friends until he passed away from Cancer. Still cherish the bat he gave me
from the last year he played in the Majors.
I’m
about 13 years old, sitting in the bleachers and I’ve just caught my
THIRD BALL IN THIS GAME……Unbeliveable
except this old guy next to me claims I took it out of his hands…which
was bullshit!!. My father turns to me and says give it to him…..I say
NO WAY and the people around me say the man never touched it….and once
again my father says give it to him and when I refuse he grabs it from me
and gives it to the bastard…..
I
didn’t talk to my father for the next two
weeks.
There
are so many players I’ve become friendly and spent time with over the
years because of One More Inning. Unfortunately most of them have passed
away.
Here
are some of them:
WILLARD
MARSHALL, DICK BARTELL, TOMMY BYRNE, BILL
HARRY
DANNING, HAL RENIFF, JIMMY REESE, DUANE PILLETTE, BILLY JOHNSON, DOM DIMAGGIO,
SIBBY SISTI, LOU LIMMER, HANK BAUER, RAY NOBLE, BOB CAIN, HOMER PEEL, TOMMY
HENRICH, Mel ALLEN and of course CLIFF MAPES.
Miss
them all!
My
son and I were at the Stadium when Tom Seaver won
his 300th game. Great stuff except something else happened then
that overshadowed it.
That
same day was Phil Rizzuto day and there was a parade
of presents for him at home plate. One of the gifts was a real live cow who
was presented to him as “HOLY COW” a phrase
Rizzuto used quite often. It got a big laugh from
the crowd which stopped suddenly when the cow bumped him and sort of stepped
on his foot. Rizutto went down, the Cow was trotted
off, the Yankee trainer came out, anxious moments followed, and
Rizzuto surfaced waving his hands to the
crowd.
Seaver’s
300th win was terrific, Rizzuto’s
HOLY COW was better.
Being
invited to cover Hall of Fame induction ceremonies was always a thrill. Three
times in particular stand out. One involved meeting a very sick Ed Stack
the former president of the hall. It was Ed who invited me to send all the
issues from ONE MORE INNING to the Hall to be part of their Library collection.
So from issue 10 until this very day every issue is in their collection.
It wasn’t until 15 years afterwards that I finally got to meet him in
person and wonder of wonders he remembered the magazine and had very nice
things to say about it.
The
second event there involved my interviewing Hall of Famer Joe Morgan during
the pre induction Golf Tournament ceremonies. After a moment he said he had
to go on the course and asked me to come along with him. For two hours I
followed him around and got to spend time and to talk to over 50
hall of famers…..a memorable
moment!
Another
time involved my meeting famed sports writer Maury Allen. We became friends
and over the years kept arguing whether Willie Mays was the greatest ball
player of all time. He said yes and I said he was out of his mind!
TO BE CONTINUED IN NOVEMBER
