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Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

dgwphotography Jul 11 2010 08:52 AM

Yankees Announcer Bob Sheppard, 99. http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/ ... -1.2095992

Kong76 Jul 11 2010 09:50 AM Re: Bring Out Your Dead, 2010

I thought Mr. Sheppard would live forever ... what a life he had!!

Ashie62 Jul 11 2010 10:19 AM Re: Bring Out Your Dead, 2010

Kong76 wrote: I thought Mr. Sheppard would live forever ... what a life he had!! He saw them all, RIP.

MFS62 Jul 11 2010 11:15 AM Re: Bring Out Your Dead, 2010 Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Jul 11 2010 11:25 AM

When Jeter comes to bat at YSIII, he still has them play a tape of Bob announcing him. No matter what other descriptions of his voice you might hear over the next few days, his was the voice of doom for all visiting teams. RIP, Bob. It will be a long time before we can get that great voice, and the phrasing* of each announcement, out of our heads. * = "Your attention please. Now ascending to heaven, Number 1, PA announcer, Bob Sheppard. Number 1." Later

smg58 Jul 11 2010 11:16 AM Re: Bring Out Your Dead, 2010

Sheppard was as iconic as stadium announcers can get. Impossible not to respect.

Edgy DC Jul 11 2010 12:02 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Sheppard's voice appeared in an episode (at least one) of Seinfeld. "Your attention please. Will Joel Rifkin please come to the box office. Joel Rifkin. Please report to the box office."

Kong76 Jul 11 2010 12:43 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

September 20, 2008 Sports of The Times The Man Will Be Absent, but His Voice Carries By GEORGE VECSEY Bob Sheppard will not be in the Bronx this weekend for the closing of Yankee Stadium, but he will participate at Mass at St. Christopher’s Roman Catholic Church. Since early spring, Sheppard has been well enough to take daily communion at the church a few blocks from his home in Baldwin, N.Y. During the terrible winter, when he struggled to raise his weight from 103 pounds, Sheppard could not venture outside the hospital or his home. “Mary gave me communion every day,” he said, referring to the practice of administering the sacrament to the housebound. “Mary is my angel,” Sheppard said Friday over the telephone, praising his wife for nursing him with food, vitamins, rest, advice, orders — and love. Then he amended her rank. “There are three Archangels — Michael, Gabriel and Raphael,” he said, his voice as crisp and clear as when he announced DiMaggio or Mantle or Jackson. “I have elevated her to the first female Archangel.” Mary Sheppard made sure her husband gained weight after he had what has been described as bronchitis last fall. His weight has climbed to 140 ½ pounds as of Friday, Sheppard said, but he and his doctor do not feel he has the strength for even a cameo performance as the Yankees’ public-address announcer for the Stadium’s final game Sunday night. “The Yankees have been very gracious,” Sheppard said as he was awaiting a visit from club officials who would tape a message from him for this weekend. The Yankees offered a limousine and a seat in George M. Steinbrenner’s box, and maybe a few words if he felt up to it. The Boss, who long ago revived the glory of this franchise, is not coming up from Florida this weekend. The two old lions, two decades apart in age, have this much in common: a sense of pride, not wanting special attention. “I don’t have my best stuff,” Sheppard said, sounding like a pitcher whose fastball has lost some zip. But he still has his wits, to say nothing of the elocution that has graced Yankee Stadium since April 17, 1951, opening day. How old is Sheppard? He won’t say. But he is the very same Robert Leo Sheppard who was a left-handed quarterback and first baseman for St. John’s College of Brooklyn from 1928 through 1932. Sheppard does not feel the need to be at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night. His colleague, Jim Hall, has been doing fine in the tiny booth. Sheppard used to sit there, reading from hard-covered books between pitches. In his tweedy blazers, looking like the college professor he once was, Sheppard would approach visiting players before the game and ask how they preferred their name to be pronounced. This diligence led him to employ the Spanish tilde while introducing the White Sox icon Minnie Meen-YO-so. When Sheppard began in 1951, he never expected that one day he would enunciate his ultimate favorite of a ballplayer name, Shigetoshi Hasegawa, a Japanese pitcher of the past decade. Sheppard’s voice will be heard Sunday night, as it has been all season — as the recorded introduction for No. 2, the Yankee captain Derek Jeter, after Jeter requested this rare favor. The shortstop’s name — JEE-tah — has become a stylized flourish for Sheppard, who is otherwise a purist. Or maybe we all have exaggerated it, as we imitated it. At any rate, when they finally tear down the old place, that echo will bounce off the apartment buildings and bridges and hills of the Bronx and Manhattan — JEE-tah, JEE-tah, JEE-tah — forever. Sheppard’s legacy is secure — half a century of Giants football games, including the classic 1958 championship loss to Baltimore, his voice and microphone ensconced in the Baseball Hall of Fame (even if the rules have not been bent to induct him along with hallowed broadcasters) and inclusion in a few movies and commercials over the years. (He does have a business side to him.) Essentially, Sheppard is a simple man, as some poets and clerics and teachers can be termed simple. He never sought the company of the athletes. He had his own niche in life, and he still does, giving thanks that he can attend church each morning, go shopping, and in good weather walk the garden behind his home, always with Mary. They are the most handsome couple in the world. I used to see them walking the shoreline at Jones Beach State Park in the summer of 1961, but what I did not know was that they were newlyweds. When I sat in their living room a few months ago, they told me how they met, at church, of course, after Sheppard’s first wife died of a brain tumor, leaving him with four children. He invited Mary Hoffman to the beach, where they swam and played pitch-and-putt golf, and, when he was ready, he proposed. Bob has not resumed serving as a lector at Mass, but Mary reads from the scripture many mornings — “the best female lector I have ever heard,” he said Friday, as if he were saying “No. 2, Derek JEE-tah.” The Sheppards resisted the Yankees’ kind offer of a limousine for Sunday night, but they do go out. “You know how old I am?” Sheppard asked. “My daughter, Mary, is celebrating her 50th year in the convent. Can you imagine? And she is still young and beautiful.” Sister Mary has arranged for a guest room for Bob and Mary Sheppard so they can rest between the breakfast and the Mass at the Josephites’ convent on Long Island. Sheppard would not miss this celebration. As for the Yankees’ opener next April, this man for many seasons says he just needs to gain a few more pounds, and he just might be there.

Edgy DC Jul 11 2010 12:53 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I like. I knew a lot of good people from St. Chris.

Fman99 Jul 11 2010 02:10 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

As much as anything else, hearing his voice is one of the most memorable things about the one trip I made to YSII to see a game, back in 2001 or 2002.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 11 2010 02:18 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

He seemed like a nice guy. Too bad he spent his life in the service of evil.

Nymr83 Jul 11 2010 02:30 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Benjamin Grimm wrote: He seemed like a nice guy. Too bad he spent his life in the service of evil. The Yankees or The Church?

Zvon Jul 11 2010 02:32 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Benjamin Grimm wrote: He seemed like a nice guy. Too bad he spent his life in the service of evil. lol. still, the force was with him.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 11 2010 02:51 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Nymr83 wrote: Benjamin Grimm wrote: He seemed like a nice guy. Too bad he spent his life in the service of evil. The Yankees or The Church? The Yankees.

bmfc1 Jul 11 2010 03:22 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

When I saw Billy Crystal's "700 Sundays", the pre-show introduction was a tape of Bob Sheppard saying, "Your attention please ladies and gentlemen. Tonight, the part of Billy Crystal will be played by the Reverend Al Sharpton. If you're going to have a hard candy, please unwrap it now."

G-Fafif Jul 11 2010 04:55 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Bob and I shared a mechanic here in the South Shore village where we both lived. I discovered this when we were picking up our cars at the same time one summer's day many years ago. The mechanic told me, after he left, "Mr. Sheppard announces the Giants games." I loved that he limited his credentials to that. Very classy individual in my two minutes of interaction with him (before I realized who he was). I was quite obvious in my desire to get my car first, and when our mechanic came to the counter and asked "who's next?" Bob (in exactly the baritone you'd imagine) said, "well, this man seems to have won the foot race," which shamed me into, "no, please, after you." The mechanic (who sadly is no longer with us either) offered Bob a Giants water bottle, which was free with the oil change. "No thank you," he said. "I have plenty of those."

metirish Jul 11 2010 05:28 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Can't say I'm worked up about this at all.........see ya RIP Bob

Edgy DC Jul 11 2010 05:43 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

How do you say "no" to this guy? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OagSLkS0CgU

seawolf17 Jul 11 2010 06:55 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Had a little mention of Sheppard's death before the game today at the stadium. Nice touch.

seawolf17 Jul 11 2010 07:08 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Oh, and this. Legend, yes, but thanks to Topps and their "Fan Favorites" set a few years back, this is my endearing image of Mr. Sheppard.

Gwreck Jul 11 2010 07:20 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

metirish wrote: Can't say I'm worked up about this at all.........see ya Sorry to be the one to say it but he was just another product of Yankee self-aggrandization and overpromotion. Nice guy who does his job for a very long time does not automatically mean legend in my book.

themetfairy Jul 11 2010 08:10 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I'm not going to speak poorly of the dead. But I'd be lying if I said that I'm particularly mourning him. I acknowledge that this is a loss. But in no way does it feel like my loss.

metsguyinmichigan Jul 12 2010 07:31 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

WHAT THE HECK? I go away for the weekend and some of you guys get all mushy for the MFYs??? I was wondering if Tom Verducci hacked into the admins files, stole your passwords and started posting MFY drivel! Yeah, he was a classy guy and with a nice voice -- and he used it for evil instead of good! What's next? "Derek sort of does have an Edge, and range is overrated anyway, it's the intangibles that count?" "There's nothing wrong with being a Madonna-dating centaur?" "Of course the pool was electrified, aren't they all?" "A Diet Coke in a souvenir cup should cost $6.50?" "Of course Scooter should be in Cooperstown?"

Edgy DC Jul 12 2010 07:36 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Well, I'm certainly not offering any mush, but my feeling is that anything or -one that pre-dates Steinbrenner is entitled to a little more charity --- no more or less than any Mariner or Cub or Astro, anyhow.

Edgy DC Jul 12 2010 07:50 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I have to say that Gary and Howie, arriving a few years ago for the Mets annual visit to Yankee Stadium II, couldn't say enough how disgusted they were that bob Sheppard's substitute was basically doing a Sheppard imitation. They compared it to the notion of one of them coming on the air and trying to talk like Bob Murphy.

metirish Jul 12 2010 07:54 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Edgy DC wrote: I have to say that Gary and Howie, arriving a few years ago for the Mets annual visit to Yankee Stadium II, couldn't say enough how disgusted they were that bob Sheppard's substitute was basically doing a Sheppard imitation. They compared it to the notion of one of them coming on the air and trying to talk like Bob Murphy. Which is such a yankee thing to do , what arseholes they are.

metsguyinmichigan Jul 12 2010 08:05 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Edgy DC wrote: Well, I'm certainly not offering any mush, but my feeling is that anything or -one that pre-dates Steinbrenner is entitled to a little more charity --- no more or less than any Mariner or Cub or Astro, anyhow. WHAT??? Edgy, has the heat in DC gotten to you? That franchise has been nothing but trouble since it's INCEPTION. Look at its record on race, the nefarious dealings with the Kansas City Athletics..... It's not like Steinbrenner made them evil, he was drawn to the evil.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 12 2010 08:11 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Edgy DC wrote: I have to say that Gary and Howie, arriving a few years ago for the Mets annual visit to Yankee Stadium II, couldn't say enough how disgusted they were that bob Sheppard's substitute was basically doing a Sheppard imitation. They compared it to the notion of one of them coming on the air and trying to talk like Bob Murphy. It would be fun, though, if they did a "talk like Bob Murphy" telecast. Maybe just for a half inning.

Edgy DC Jul 12 2010 08:11 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

It's not like anybody is clear on issues of race (except the Mets, who were the first team to be integated from day one). I'm going to go with the "Steinbrenner made them evil" angle.

themetfairy Jul 12 2010 08:27 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

metsguyinmichigan wrote: WHAT THE HECK? I go away for the weekend and some of you guys get all mushy for the MFYs??? I was wondering if Tom Verducci hacked into the admins files, stole your passwords and started posting MFY drivel! Yeah, he was a classy guy and with a nice voice -- and he used it for evil instead of good! What's next? "Derek sort of does have an Edge, and range is overrated anyway, it's the intangibles that count?" "There's nothing wrong with being a Madonna-dating centaur?" "Of course the pool was electrified, aren't they all?" "A Diet Coke in a souvenir cup should cost $6.50?" "Of course Scooter should be in Cooperstown?" I love you, man!

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 12 2010 08:29 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off) Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 12 2010 08:43 AM

All kidding aside... we're talking about a apparently kind and professional baritone who held onto a fun job with a nice paycheck for a good while... not a legend, but not Mengele, either. If his death diminishes me at all, though, it's in the John Donne sense, and in no other.

dgwphotography Jul 12 2010 08:32 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I can't believe this. The man died. A man who seemed to lead his life with class and dignity to the end, something that is in short supply in this country, IMO. Turning this thread into a yankee-bashing thread is disgusting.

HahnSolo Jul 12 2010 08:41 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I really don't like the idea that they will keep using his voice to announce Jeter at the stadium. Seems well, morbid. Rather than a moment of silence, a nice tribute would be a season of silence. Yankee batters would come up to no sounds. PA guy could be used to announce the visiting team and all other promo announcements.

Ceetar Jul 12 2010 08:49 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

HahnSolo wrote: I really don't like the idea that they will keep using his voice to announce Jeter at the stadium. Seems well, morbid. Rather than a moment of silence, a nice tribute would be a season of silence. Yankee batters would come up to no sounds. PA guy could be used to announce the visiting team and all other promo announcements. Keeping with the class theme, if they have a moment of silence, will they get someone to sponsor it? I'm not sure anything sponsorless is allowed on the board there, but they may make an exception.

MFS62 Jul 12 2010 10:33 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Benjamin Grimm wrote: It would be fun, though, if they did a "talk like Bob Murphy" telecast. Maybe just for a half inning. There's a sales guy in my office. Every once in a while he tries to "change things up", so he'll spend an entire call talking like Cristopher Walken. He's not bad at it, either. Later

G-Fafif Jul 12 2010 12:09 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Now that he's gone, the recording of Bob Sheppard introducing Derek Jeter will descend from bizarre fetishism into utter creepiness. Paul Olden is good enough to announce his teammates' names, but The Captain requires his own fanfare? Yeesh. Speaking of Bobs, theirs prepared and read a very nice tribute to ours on the night Murph passed away. That, along with everything I've ever read and heard about and from the man, made me like him despite the one association for which he's best known. Of course to me he's mostly known for picking up his car.

Ceetar Jul 12 2010 12:13 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: Now that he's gone, the recording of Bob Sheppard introducing Derek Jeter will descend from bizarre fetishism into utter creepiness. Paul Olden is good enough to announce his teammates' names, but The Captain requires his own fanfare? Yeesh. Is there anyone else in baseball that this wouldn't be considered egotistical?

themetfairy Jul 12 2010 12:20 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: Speaking of Bobs, theirs prepared and read a very nice tribute to ours on the night Murph passed away. That, along with everything I've ever read and heard about and from the man, made me like him despite the one association for which he's best known. This is reason for me to reconsider my reaction. My first thought was that nobody in MFY-land would have even acknowledged Murph's passing.

G-Fafif Jul 12 2010 12:23 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

themetfairy wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Speaking of Bobs, theirs prepared and read a very nice tribute to ours on the night Murph passed away. That, along with everything I've ever read and heard about and from the man, made me like him despite the one association for which he's best known. This is reason for me to reconsider my reaction. My first thought was that nobody in MFY-land would have even acknowledged Murph's passing. They followed the moment of silence with a standing ovation. I reciprocated yesterday.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 12 2010 12:25 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off) Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 12 2010 01:05 PM

themetfairy wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Speaking of Bobs, theirs prepared and read a very nice tribute to ours on the night Murph passed away. That, along with everything I've ever read and heard about and from the man, made me like him despite the one association for which he's best known. This is reason for me to reconsider my reaction. My first thought was that nobody in MFY-land would have even acknowledged Murph's passing. Nice gesture. But he's not Murph, who was a PBP man when that meant something more than it does today-- he created the game for anyone watching. For all the dignity of his personal comportment, Sheppard was a classy prop-- Michael Buffer with gravitas. Somehow, though, I doubt that, say, Jay Horwitz gets the same treatment when he joins the P.R Office Invisible.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 12 2010 12:27 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Ceetar wrote: Is there anyone else in baseball that this wouldn't be considered egotistical? It certainly should get that consideration here, as well.

G-Fafif Jul 12 2010 12:33 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Ceetar wrote: Is there anyone else in baseball that this wouldn't be considered egotistical? It certainly should get that consideration here, as well. Think about if Barry Bonds had done something like this, that if Candlestick had some legendary voice and he said, "I grew up listening to [that guy] announce my father and it was the thrill of a lifetime when he first announced me" and he insisted on a recording of it accompanying him to Pac Bell for the rest of his career. The story would be there goes Mr. Superstar separating himself from the team. But Jeter does it and he's wonderful.

Edgy DC Jul 12 2010 12:40 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I was on my honeymoon and passed by a TV announcing that Jeter had solicited this privilege for himself (but not his teammates), and was praised lavishly for it. "Honey, what are you upset about?" "Mrmph. Nuttin'."

Frayed Knot Jul 12 2010 12:44 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Don't have to leave NYC. Think of ARod asking (demanding?) that his (and only his) name be announced that way. The guy would be skewered. Heard Jeter, btw, talking about how he listened to Shepard growing up. In Kalamazoo? Yeah I know he had NJ grandparents or something and probably visited from time to time and wanted to be the Yanqui SS since he was in the womb or whatever, but that one stretches it just a bit. The Shepard/Jeter recording will be used in the AS game tomorrow.

Edgy DC Jul 12 2010 12:51 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Yeah, well, at [crossout:3gvzcstb]Shea[/crossout:3gvzcstb] Citi, you're getting Alex Anthony or nothing.

metirish Jul 12 2010 12:57 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Frayed Knot wrote: Don't have to leave NYC. Think of ARod asking (demanding?) that his (and only his) name be announced that way. The guy would be skewered. Heard Jeter, btw, talking about how he listened to Shepard growing up. In Kalamazoo? Yeah I know he had NJ grandparents or something and probably visited from time to time and wanted to be the Yanqui SS since he was in the womb or whatever, but that one stretches it just a bit. The Shepard/Jeter recording will be used in the AS game tomorrow. I had the same thought when he said he listened to him growing up....is the last bit for real?

MFS62 Jul 15 2010 08:15 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

The team is going to honor him by wearing his initials on their uniforms for the rest of the season. Just what we need this week - more Yankee BS. Later

Edgy DC Jul 15 2010 08:27 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Wait, which team?

MFS62 Jul 15 2010 08:29 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Edgy DC wrote: Wait, which team? more Yankee BS. Later

metirish Jul 15 2010 09:31 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

seawolf17 Jul 15 2010 10:06 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Edgy DC wrote: Wait, which team? Good thing Steinbrenner's dead, or it'd be ALL teams.

Fman99 Jul 15 2010 10:25 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: Now that he's gone, the recording of Bob Sheppard introducing Derek Jeter will descend from bizarre fetishism into utter creepiness. Paul Olden is good enough to announce his teammates' names, but The Captain requires his own fanfare? Yeesh. I'm rooting for some sort of zombie Bob Sheppard to handle this. You know, intermittently craving brains audibly while introducing Yanqui legends, and even perhaps taking bites out of the skulls of Michael Kay, John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. I don't see any downside to this plan to be honest.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 15 2010 10:41 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

(Biting insides of cheeks to keep the dark laughs from spilling out)

metsguyinmichigan Jul 15 2010 11:01 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Fman99 wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Now that he's gone, the recording of Bob Sheppard introducing Derek Jeter will descend from bizarre fetishism into utter creepiness. Paul Olden is good enough to announce his teammates' names, but The Captain requires his own fanfare? Yeesh. I'm rooting for some sort of zombie Bob Sheppard to handle this. You know, intermittently craving brains audibly while introducing Yanqui legends, and even perhaps taking bites out of the skulls of Michael Kay, John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. I don't see any downside to this plan to be honest. The collective brains of Kay, Sterling and Waldman would be as filling as stopping the temp waitress with the hors d'oeuvre tray, then seeing that all she had was the little hot dogs wrapped in cheap bread dough that once had Poppin Fresh on the label. "Hors d'oeuvre?" "Ah, no thanks. I'll wait for the next tray..." Not saying it wouldn't be entertaining. "HeeeeEEEEeeeees eating my brain!" "Oh my goodness gracious! The zombie Bob Shepherd is walking through zombie George Steinbrenner's private box!"

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 16 2010 11:10 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I wonder if they'll make it to Steinbrenner's. (That Madden somehow managed to make it about Bossypants... that's no matter for wonder. You expect that much.) But hey, treating "important" people better than you treat others you deem of lesser consequence... they did learn something from Steinbrenner!

seawolf17 Jul 16 2010 11:17 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

I'm surprised too, but the article even says that he didn't fraternize with the players. And he hadn't done a game in a few years, so he probably hadn't been around the park much to know any of these guys. Hell, I doubt some of these current guys ever even met Steinbrenner.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 16 2010 11:28 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ?

Zvon Jul 16 2010 11:29 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

metsguyinmichigan wrote: Fman99 wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Now that he's gone, the recording of Bob Sheppard introducing Derek Jeter will descend from bizarre fetishism into utter creepiness. Paul Olden is good enough to announce his teammates' names, but The Captain requires his own fanfare? Yeesh. I'm rooting for some sort of zombie Bob Sheppard to handle this. You know, intermittently craving brains audibly while introducing Yanqui legends, and even perhaps taking bites out of the skulls of Michael Kay, John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman. I don't see any downside to this plan to be honest. The collective brains of Kay, Sterling and Waldman would be as filling as stopping the temp waitress with the hors d'oeuvre tray, then seeing that all she had was the little hot dogs wrapped in cheap bread dough that once had Poppin Fresh on the label. "Hors d'oeuvre?" "Ah, no thanks. I'll wait for the next tray..." Not saying it wouldn't be entertaining. "HeeeeEEEEeeeees eating my brain!" "Oh my goodness gracious! The zombie Bob Shepherd is walking through zombie George Steinbrenner's private box!" lol. There's a comic strip in that. But then there's a comic strip in everything.

metsguyinmichigan Jul 16 2010 01:50 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

There's a wire story out now saying that the Yankees are denying that a bus full of players was headed to the funeral, but was delayed when it was caught in the traffic on the Meadowbrook after a fatal accident. There was no bus for the players.

G-Fafif Jul 16 2010 02:25 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

It took place at 7 AM the day after the All-Star Break (here in the town where Bob and I live(d). I wouldn't blame the players for not showing...though George would have flown them all in for the occasion. Or he would have flown the funeral to the All-Star Game. He was all about winning.

batmagadanleadoff Jul 16 2010 04:21 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral?

G-Fafif Jul 16 2010 04:24 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

batmagadanleadoff wrote: It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral? Rod Kanehl?

batmagadanleadoff Jul 16 2010 04:31 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral? Rod Kanehl? Yes. The Hot Rod. Good, logical guess if, as your question mark implies, you weren't entirely sure of the answer.

G-Fafif Jul 16 2010 04:38 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

batmagadanleadoff wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral? Rod Kanehl? Yes. The Hot Rod. Good, logical guess if, as your question mark implies, you weren't entirely sure of the answer. I had a vague recollection of having read it when Hot Rod passed. As it happens, YES aired its Caseyography last night with a good chunk devoted to his Mets days and his end -- he rose from his hospital bed and stood when he heard the national anthem prior to the Dodger game he had on the radio. Told his nurse it would probably be the last time he'd do it. And he died the next day. Somehow YES didn't edit this to have Steinbrenner buy Stengel the hospital or send him to college.

batmagadanleadoff Jul 16 2010 04:43 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: G-Fafif wrote: It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral? Rod Kanehl? Yes. The Hot Rod. Good, logical guess if, as your question mark implies, you weren't entirely sure of the answer. I had a vague recollection of having read it when Hot Rod passed. As it happens, YES aired its Caseyography last night with a good chunk devoted to his Mets days and his end -- he rose from his hospital bed and stood when he heard the national anthem prior to the Dodger game he had on the radio. Told his nurse it would probably be the last time he'd do it. And he died the next day. Somehow YES didn't edit this to have Steinbrenner buy Stengel the hospital or send him to college. SNY would've edited it by splicing in a game winning Matt Franco pinch hit single in the ninth.

batmagadanleadoff Jul 16 2010 08:05 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off) Edited 6 time(s), most recently on Jul 16 2010 08:39 PM

It's more than a little odd that NO ex-players showed, though. And Jeter apaprently can't take a shit in the morning without hearing his Sheppard introduction, but... well... ? Off Topic trivia: Who is the only Met player to have attended Casey Stengel's funeral? Rod Kanehl? Yes. The Hot Rod. Good, logical guess if, as your question mark implies, you weren't entirely sure of the answer. I had a vague recollection of having read it when Hot Rod passed. As it happens, YES aired its Caseyography last night with a good chunk devoted to his Mets days and his end -- he rose from his hospital bed and stood when he heard the national anthem prior to the Dodger game he had on the radio. Told his nurse it would probably be the last time he'd do it. And he died the next day. Somehow YES didn't edit this to have Steinbrenner buy Stengel the hospital or send him to college. SNY would've edited it by splicing in a game winning Matt Franco pinch hit single in the ninth. I was always aware of the "so called fact" that Kanehl was the only Met player that attended Stengel's funeral. But after giving this some thought today, I think it's implausible that Yogi Berra did not attend Casey's funeral. I wonder if Yogi's one week stint as a Met player was overlooked. Stengel died on 9/29/75 --- the Mets fired Berra in August of that year. Therefore, Berra's managerial duties would not have prevented him from attending because Yogi no longer had any. I'll ask Yogi the next time I see him.

MFS62 Jul 16 2010 08:34 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

Took a call from an elderly customer yesterday. When I asked him to verify his address, he said "Glendale, California, the home of Casey Stengel". Later

G-Fafif Jul 17 2010 12:47 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

MFS62 wrote: Took a call from an elderly customer yesterday. When I asked him to verify his address, he said "Glendale, California, the home of Casey Stengel". My favorite elderly customer since Bob Sheppard at the Mobil station.

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 17 2010 10:27 AM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

G-Fafif wrote: It took place at 7 AM the day after the All-Star Break (here in the town where Bob and I live(d). I wouldn't blame the players for not showing...though George would have flown them all in for the occasion. Or he would have flown the funeral to the All-Star Game. He was all about winning. Yabbut... that was Thursday. The game was Tuesday night. They could have gotten there on time with minimal personal effort if they'd traveled by train.

G-Fafif Jul 17 2010 02:49 PM Re: Bob Sheppard, 99 (spilt-off)

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: G-Fafif wrote: It took place at 7 AM the day after the All-Star Break (here in the town where Bob and I live(d). I wouldn't blame the players for not showing...though George would have flown them all in for the occasion. Or he would have flown the funeral to the All-Star Game. He was all about winning. Yabbut... that was Thursday. The game was Tuesday night. They could have gotten there on time with minimal personal effort if they'd traveled by train. Stripping away the brand names, imagine you have one short vacation from your job in a six-month span, and you and several of your co-workers have to devote part of that short vacation to attending some job-related conference on the other side of the country. You hear that somebody in a different department from your company has passed away -- somebody who hasn't actually worked there in a few years -- somebody whom you're aware of, but you don't really know that well. You're genuinely sorry to hear about it, but you're traveling and you're busy and nobody has communicated exact information about the services. You definitely plan to do and say some nice things about the deceased when you get back to work where they're gonna have a thing for him. And it's not like nobody's at his funeral or that a big shot from your company isn't attending, 'cause he is. I never thought I'd say this, but I think Jeter (et al) is getting a bad rap on this one. (Yabbut? He threw a no-hitter for them, right?)