What I like -- and liked -- about the game:
Knowing Vin Scully, Bob Gibson, Whitey Ford, Dan Quisenberry, Joe Torre, Ed Lynch, Elston Howard, Roland Hemond, Wally Backman, Ralph Kiner, Bob Sheppard, Desi Relaford, Brian Bannister, Le Grande Orange, Jim Leyland, Tom Glavine, Tim McCarver, Moises Alou, Keith Hernandez, Dick Tidrow, Harry Kalas, Jerry Koosman, Bobby Cox, Steve Henderson, Ted Simmons, Joe McIlavine, Bob Watson, Jeff Innis, Mike Cameron, Marvin Miller, Al Jackson, Ike Davis, Fay Vincent, Dennis Eckersley, Lee Mazzilli, Barry Larkin, Todd Zeile, Dave Righetti, Marlon Anderson, Ron Gardenhire, Jeff Francoeur, Lou Piniella, The Mad Hungarian, Tim Bogar, Billy Wagner, Johan Santana, Rich Gossage, Johnny Pesky, Robin Ventura, Cliff Floyd, Willie McCovey, Alex Cora, Preston, Mookie and Paul Wilson and, of course, Mickey Mantle.
Almost any 3-2 game ... Stories told by Torre, Watson, Piniella, Frank Cashen, Earl Weaver, Al Jackson and Jim Frey ... Baseball on the radio ... When a statistic supports my conclusion ... Torre's insight, moderate manner and success ... Andruw Jones in center field ... Jason Bay's unending effort ... Luis Tiant's cigar ... The wonder of Babe Ruth ... The Mile High line at Coors Field ... Jim Joyce ... The old Death Valley ... How Joe Madden seems to figure it out ... Wrigley's ivy ... How a baseball bounce can be more fickle than anything a football does ... How regular a guy Rich Gossage is; Rod Barajas, too ... The absolute mystique of Sandy Koufax ... The Yankees' comeback against the Royals in Game 5 of the 1977 American League Championship Series ... Endy's catch ... Mantle's baseball heroism ... Wrigleyville ... Tug McGraw ... How Rusty could pick up an opponent's pitches in a heartbeat ... Frank White ... Roy Smalley's vocabulary ... Randy Niemann's jokes ... Speaking with scouts in March .... Baseball books by David Halberstam, Roger Angell, Steve Jacobson and Joe Gergen ... The nickname "Dimples" ... Friendships that evolve ... Off-days in San Francisco and Boston ... The name Bake McBride.
How Adam Dunn's home runs sound and how quickly they leave ... The grace of Ralph Branca ... Dwight Gooden, 1985 ... Kibitzing at the cage (a used-to-be pleasure) ... Willie Montanez's home run trot ... Jim Palmer's seemingly rigid delivery ... Watching replays of Ryan's seventh no-hitter ... The elegance of Rachel Robinson ... How the game allows you to talk even if the in-park music doesn't ... Vada Pinson ... That Bob Feller's grandson submitted a one-entry bibliography for a college paper on World War II -- "My grandfather" ... The '87 Twins ... The nickname "Cy Clone" for Storm Davis ... Piazza's recoil ... When tension renders a crowd silent ... The first day of Spring Training ... Jose Reyes' clapping after a triple ... That Brooklyn gave Stan "The Man" his nickname ... A two-hour game ... Lenny Harris ... Jeter working a walk ... The song "Van Lingle Mungo" ... Tony Phillips ... The heartfelt poetry of Ed Charles ... Anecdotes about Zim from Zim ... The cool of Tom McCraw ... Brooks to his right, Clete to his left and Ventura charging ... Guys who are stand-up after a knock-down loss ... Roger McDowell's and Ron Blomberg's appetites ... Old media guides ... Bob Apodaca's metaphors ... Graig Nettles' one-liners ... The laughs of Craig Swan, Al Jackson and Reyes ... Cal's victory lap ... How big Cecil Fielder was ... The filthy, smelly and dank clubhouse runways at Fenway (but not more than once per series) ... Successful overshifts ... But even more unsuccessful overshifts ... Gehrig's speech ... The Phillies' Bull-Schmidt lineup.
How regal the new Yankee Stadium is ... Ted Williams clapping after his home run won the All-Star Game ... Joe Orsulak ... Clete Boyer telling tales, some of them tall ... Roy Halladay's love for the game ... How neatly attired Pinson always was ... Harry Caray's "All right, lemme hear ya." ... Dustin Pedroia's three-homer game ... The end of a 16-to-something game ... John Olerud's desert-dry wit ... How Louie Arroyo used to hop the bullpen fence at the old Stadium ... Clips of Clemente from the '71 Series ... When a pitcher hits one out ... The absolute, unqualified respect players have for Albert Pujols ... Innis' humor (Innis in the Morning) ... Weaver's quick retorts ... How subtlely valuable Willie Randolph was ... The sweet, daily tension of a two-team race ... A 3-6-3 double play with Mex at both ends ... Jerry Reuss and his rock-and-roll mind ... The last day of Spring Training ... Randy Hundley's handshake ... The final-game ceremonies at Shea Stadium and Yankee Stadium ... . How the running gait of Mickey's son was identical to his dad's ... Weaver's nickname for Don Stanhouse: "Full Pack." The Orioles' nickname for Stanhouse "Stan, the Man, Unusual."
Any "Honeymooners" reference Howie Rose makes on broadcasts ... Musial's stance, swing and harmonica ... A 3 a.m. call from Bob Lemon. "Come on down, Meat. Have a drink with me." ... That Thurman Munson still gets a hand ... When "Enter Sandman" audibly exits ... Ryan Zimmerman's unique and quick release on a slow roller ... Mitch Williams' TV insights ... Foley's on 33rd ... Mays' cap flying off (even if it was staged) ... Whitey's classic follow-through ... A great arm in right ... Squeeze plays ... Carl Erskine's class ... That Santana finally hit one out ... The Impossible Dream ... Kick saves on the mound by Jack Lazorko ... That "Old Friends" Simon and Garfunkel attended a game together ... When Madison Square Garden fans chanted "Let's Go Mets" the night after the Mets acquired Gary Carter ... How Reggie could make any story about him ... Ozzie's flips ... Ryan's emphasis on complete games ... The Pink Pony in Scottsdale. It's closed now ... That Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuscahoma McLish had a nickname. And it was "Bud" ... When the cutoff man is hit ... Mattingly's pigeon-toed stance ... When recorded music isn't played at the park ... Rip Repulski ... Bernard Gilkey's clubhouse manner ... Seaver's dirty knee ... The relationship between Bobby Knight, Bill Parcells and Tony La Russa ... When Johnny Maestro sang the anthem at Shea.
Ogden Nash's "Lineup for Yesterday" ... Meeting Pee Wee Reese ... That John Schuerholz thinks the Del Vikings' "Come Go With Me" is the greatest recording ever. He may be right ... Seaver's passion ... That the Yankees have one home uniform and one road uniform, and neither has the players' names ... Fred McGriff ... Tiger Stadium ... Tony Oliva ... Mays' voice ... The candor of David Cone ... Dennis Eckersley's six-gun ... Seaver's precision ... Rocky Colavito's bat-behind-the-back stretch ... McCovey Cove ... Casey Stengel's wonderful lines, particularly "It wasn't good, but at least it was long" ... The late Dodgertown ... Bobby Richardson ... Dallas Green's John Wayne demeanor ... Gooden on a Friday night at Shea ... Ryan challenging the best hitters ... Watching David Wright ... How much alike Wright and Joe Mauer are ... How Mickey Rivers walked ... How Cliff Lee doesn't walk ... When an insightful scouting report, properly implemented, shuts down a good hitter for a series ... How that hitter adjusts the next time ... Gracie ... Moon Shots in L.A. ... Bob Gibson's glare ... Clint Hurdle's Rockies ... John Smoltz's slider ... Harvey's Wallbangers. What a nickname! Almost as good as the Jordan-aires ... Retrosheet boxscores. You can spend a lifetime with them ... That Gehrig's was the first face on a Wheaties box ... The '62 Mets ... "Excuse me" base hits.
The sincerity of Bud Harrelson ... Yankees Old Timers' Days ... How everyone in the game loved the late George Kissell ... Don Baylor's slides ... The way Gary Sheffield cocked and waved his bat ... The popcorn at Municipal Stadium in Cleveland, circa 1974 ... Wrigley ... Tidrow's nickname: "Dirt" ... Kevin Elster's smoothness ... Hook slides ... Jay Hook ... Maddux's 78-pitch complete game in Wrigley ... Ryan Howard's second halves ... Andrew McCutchen's dazzling athleticism ... How David Eckstein usually gets it done ... The peacefulness of Instructional League ... Old photos in the pressroom ... Outdoor baseball in Minneapolis ... When the roof is closed in Houston ... How refined Red Barber was, how kind Ernie Harwell was, how friendly Jack Brickhouse was, how funny Hank Greenwald was, how up-to-date knowledgeable Gary Cohen is, how good McCarver and Buck are ... That John Franco knows the first line or two of every song ... That Jim Ray Hart's spikes once became embedded in McCarver's shin guards. The game was played differently then ... Jose Valentin ... The Nationals' move from RFK Stadium ... That you can see the Capitol -- and the Eiffel Tower -- from the Nationals Park pressbox ... That Reds scout Ray "Snacks" Shore said he'd be surprised if the Reds didn't sweep the Yankees in the '76 Series. And he said it for print ... Cocktails with Seaver and Fisk on Sunday nights in Cooperstown ... When a rookie "gets it" ... Active Brooklyn Dodgers fans ... Ads for The Gap placed in the gap ... Gil McDougald ... That left-handed Gold Glove first baseman Mike Squires played third and caught ... That Ramiro Mendoza was labeled "the imbedded Yankee" when he pitched for the Red Sox ... The penmanship of Darryl Strawberry ... That Dick Groat called Mays "Two Dozen" ... Gil Hodges' hands ... The wonder of Babe Ruth.
That Gretzky appreciates baseball as he does ... Rapid Robert Feller ... Passing Jay Silverheel's home en route to Ebbets Field ... Big Klu ... Joey Votto. It's a baseball name ... That Olympic Stadium is out of the game (though Montreal is quite missed) ... How every inning after the 14th is funnier than the previous one ... Joe Carter's reaction to that home run ... Phenoms who grow up to be players ... That the Braves use "Larry" as a nickname for Chipper Jones; that similarly, Fritz Peterson called Whitey Ford "Ed" ... That Belanger owned Ryan ... How Ron Darling demonstrates pitches in the booth ... Musial's 1948 ... Jim Landis' 1958 Topps card. (I don't know why) ... That Jackie Brandt drove all over Miami looking for ice cream one Spring Training night and then ordered vanilla ... The growl of Frank Robinson ... That Ron Santo never complains about anything ... The anthem done a cappella by a good glee club ... When Bob Murphy said "Ooh, good-looking pitch" ... That Hoyt Wilhelm never hit another one after he hit one in his first big league at-bat ... Unrepeatable pressbox humor ... When pitch counts are ignored ... That Kevin Mitchell played shortstop ... Yaz's '67 ... Tommy Davis ... That Biggio played second and center and caught ... King Felix ... That Steinbrenner was identified as "The Prod of the Yankees" ... The relationship that developed between Marichal and Roseboro ... That Fisk always had the same seat designation on White Sox charter flights ... Campy's wink ... How Jeff Kent proved almost everyone wrong ... Bill Pulsipher's appreciation of every aspect of the game ... Sid Bream's sprint ... Manny Trillo's pivot ... Jeter's flip ... Julio Franco ... The premature obituaries for Mo Rivera ... Kurkjian's reports.
Vladdy's undefined strike zone ... Country Slaughter ... Comebackers to Maddux ... Nyjer Morgan ... Ryan Church's guts ... Boog ... DiMaggio's dignified appearance ... Frank Pulli's salute to strike three ... Clubhouse conversations with Tony Gwynn and his automatic singles through the left side ... Pettitte's pickoff ... That Doc Medich preferred "George" ... Seaver's wine ... Piniella's temper ... Derek JEE-tah ... Wes Covington ... Illegal pitches ... Rey Ordonez's spontaneous creativity around second base ... Eric Davis leaping at the wall ... Junior's smile, Junior's swing, Junior's catches, Junior's charm, Junior's father ... That Junior and Musial share a birthday and a hometown ... The strength of Kingman ... That Doug Flynn identified himself as a "futility" infielder .... The remarkable talent of Johnny Bench ... Hank Bauer's Marine look ... Sid Fernandez's delayed delivery ... The name Wade Blasingame ... Pat Zachry's Gene Wilder look ... Paul Blair .... That Billy Wagner, who threw right-handed as a child, still throws in the 90s with his left arm after major surgery ... Bo Jackson ... That the Rays want a new ballpark ... Bo Belinsky .... Belanger's confidence; he wore no cup ... How Koufax makes anyone over 50 feel younger; he could pass for 45 ... Eddie Mathews (How was he omitted from the All-Century team?) .. Sandy Alomar -- Junior and Senior .... How Johnny Blanchard reveled in being a Yankee ... Biggio's tarnished helmet ... That helmets that didn't glisten unnerved Steinbrenner ... Satchel Paige ... How small Citi Field looks, how big it plays ... Abe Stark's "Hit sign, win suit" billboard ... A walk-off drag bunt single (see: Endy Chavez) ... The Phanatic ... Saberhagen's uncanny control ... That a painting of DiMaggio hung behind the desk of D-backs owner Jerry Colangelo during the 2001 World Series ... Dave DeBusschere's stated reason for giving up pitching and baseball: "Two words -- Harmon Killebrew."
Triples ... That Gooden signed a wall inside Citi Field ... That Doug Harvey has been inducted ... A catcher throwing from his knees ... A center fielder who plays shallow ... Don and Charlie's in Scottsdale ... That Mo throws one pitch. That Sparky Lyle almost did ... All knuckleballers ... That HoJo, a great fastball hitter, crushed knucklers ... Hall of Fame weekend ... The stately appearance of Carlos Delgado ... Dinner at Rusty's ... "Willie, Mickey and The Duke" ... The '79 Pirates ... All the fuss about Strasburg ... The Days of Wine and Rojas ... Boston's comeback against New York in the '04 ALCS .... Rich Donnelly's humor ... The Braves' rally against the Pirates in the bottom of the ninth of Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS ... Dave Parker's unrepeatable reaction ... The Mets' "I won't make the last out" comeback against the Red Sox in Game 6 ... Bill Madlock ... "The White Rat" ... Spahnie's kick ... Aaron Heilman ... All the Dodgers' names on wallpaper outside the clubhouses at Dodger Stadium ... Killebrew's batting practice ... Dave Winfield going first to third ... Rickey's Cooperstown speech ... How Boston forgave Bill E. Buckner ... That Hideki Matsui has hit big league pitching so well as a left-handed hitter. And he's a natural right-handed hitter. Reverse that for Cleon Jones ... Herb Score ... The term hose for a great arm. Dawson's great arm, the Hawk's hose ... Gate 4 in the Bronx ... That so great an athlete as Jordan struggled so to be a mediocre Minor League baseball player.
That Sir Paul McCartney is a fan ... That Marvelous Marv missed second base, too! ... Franco's execution of the three-man lift ... Sheppard's introduction of "Ah-scar Gahm-ble" ... Bern's Steakhouse in Tampa ... Gary Gaetti's grit ... When Piazza's hit scorched the outfield grass ... Kubek and Richardson ... Spring Training lunches with scouts ... The interaction in the Mets' TV booth ... Catfish Hunter's smooth, rhythmic windup ... The odd shape of the Polo Grounds ... Gibson's ferocity -- both Bob and Kirk ... The always earnest Joe McEwing ... How casual the first two weeks of Spring Training used to be, so casual it was just spring training then ... Old nicknames ... Jackie's Rotunda in Queens ... How Yogi blindly handed his second bat to the waiting batboy ... Uecker's induction speech ... Whenever "The Wave" stops ... The last day of the World Series ... How, come late November, I miss the game so much ... Everything about Frank Howard ... Almost any 3-2 game ... That the game's deepest history still is relevant, respected and regulary referenced.
And -- did I mention? -- the wonder of Babe Ruth. |
