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Doh!

soupcan Jul 15 2008 09:07 AM

Listening to Evan Roberts & Joe Benigno on WFAN interviewing Phil Neikro via telephone: Joe Benigno: "So Phil, how's your brother Joe doing?" Phil Neikro: "He, uh, had an aneuyrism about a year and half ago and he's passed away" Joe Benigno: "Oh. Uh. I didn't know that. Sorry." As he's asking the question, I'm thinking - what a dumbass.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 15 2008 09:10 AM

All I know about Benigno is what I see when he's shouting on those Daily News Live commercials. And that's more than enough for me.

John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 15 2008 09:10 AM

What a complete douche.

AG/DC Jul 15 2008 09:23 AM

Didn't Chris Kotter or Kevin Burkhardt pull the same shit on Davey Johnson? Thing is, these guests --- even MbtN authors --- have publicists send brief fact sheets that can make you seem informed with about 45 seconds worth of studying. There's no excuse for that.

soupcan Jul 15 2008 09:28 AM

Forget the fact sheet, it was Joe Neikro. It was news among the sports broadcasting set when he died. It was less than two years ago. I knew it, you knew it. How does this idiot - who is in the business - not know it?

metirish Jul 15 2008 09:29 AM

Benigno probably had a slew of questions lined up about Joe , what an asshole.

AG/DC Jul 15 2008 09:37 AM

I have little doubt that, without putting some prepwork and forethought, I could forget who's dead or alive. They've got a lot of airtime to fill with inanity.

SteveJRogers Jul 15 2008 10:04 AM

AG/DC wrote: Didn't Chris Kotter or Kevin Burkhardt pull the same shit on Davey Johnson? Thing is, these guests --- even MbtN authors --- have publicists send brief fact sheets that can make you seem informed with about 45 seconds worth of studying. There's no excuse for that. Steve Phillips.

soupcan Jul 15 2008 10:21 AM

It gets better... Now they have Ed Kranepool on: Kranepool: "I wore #21 when I came up but Warren Spahn wanted it so I gave it to him. This was before guys got money or Rolexes for giving up their numbers to other players, so he just took it. Benigno: "So did Spahn pay you or give you something for the number...?"

AG/DC Jul 15 2008 10:29 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 15 2008 12:25 PM

See, this is what happens to you when you're in a slump. What Kranepool says: "I wore #21 when I came up but Warren Spahn wanted it so I gave it to him. This was before guys got money or Rolexes for giving up their numbers to other players, so he just took it. What's going on in Beningno's head: "So, Spahn took his number... . I just can't believe what an idiot I was with Niekro. Should I send him a note? No that would make it worse, idiot. Idiot. Is Spahn dead? He's got to be, right? It's easy to forget he was a Met. I forget so much shit. Idiot. Oh, fuck, Kranepool's done talking. He was saying that he gave his number to Spahn. OK, I can do this."

metirish Jul 15 2008 10:34 AM

I don't know Edgy , that seems like an awful lot of activity going on inside Benigno's head.

Fman99 Jul 15 2008 10:38 AM

I assume the inside of Benigno's head has no words. Just a cartoon picture of a cow playing the violin and tapping its hoof.

batmagadanleadoff Jul 15 2008 12:07 PM

I didn't know that Joe Niekro was dead until I read this thread. Or maybe I knew that Joe Niekro was dead, but then I forgot. I forget which.

Benjamin Grimm Jul 15 2008 12:10 PM

Yeah, I was unsure about that too. I seemed to remember learning about his death, but there are so many dead people (and more each day!) that I have a hard time remembering them all.

Frayed Knot Jul 15 2008 12:17 PM

I had forgotten about Joe Neikro's death also. And, in fairness to Benigno (even though I believe he truly is a dope), WFAN has been doing their shows from this Fan-Fest thing since about Friday for the purpose of getting baseball-related guests to drop by and chat -- so it probably wasn't a case where they knew in advance he was coming on and did any kind of prep work.

AG/DC Jul 15 2008 12:31 PM

Ex-major league pitcher Joe Niekro dies at age 61 ESPN.com news services TAMPA, Fla. -- Former major league pitcher Joe Niekro, Houston's career victory leader, died Friday, Astros president Tal Smith said. He was 61. The two-time 20-game winner suffered a brain aneurysm Thursday and was taken to South Florida Baptist Hospital in nearby Plant City, where he lived. He later was transferred to St. Joseph's Hospital, where he died. "It came as a real shock to us," Smith said. "He was a great guy. He had a real spark and a great sense of humor." Smith said Niekro did not have an active role with the Astros but kept in contact with many of his former Houston teammates. Niekro, father of San Francisco Giants first baseman Lance Niekro, won 221 games in his career but never became as well known as his Hall of Fame brother, Phil. Like his older brother, who won 318 games, Joe Niekro found success after developing the knuckleball and pitched into his 40s. They had a combined 539 major league victories, a record for brothers. Smith said he was told of Niekro's death by Enos Cabell, one of the Niekro's Astros teammates. "Enos said he just visited with him a few weeks ago in Cooperstown," Smith said. "Enos said he seemed healthy and full of life. This just came as a sudden shock." Niekro won a franchise-best 144 games in 11 seasons with the Astros from 1975 to 1985, when he was traded to the New York Yankees. He was an All-Star in 1979, when he went 21-11 with a 3.00 ERA and followed up with a 20-12 record in 1980. He beat the Dodgers in a one-game playoff that clinched Houston's first postseason berth in 1980. Seven years later, in his 21st season, he finally appeared in the World Series with the Minnesota Twins. "You are always in shock when you hear something like that, mainly when it hits close to home, a teammate who you have spent a lot of years with," Hall of Fame pitcher Nolan Ryan, a former teammate of Niekro's, told Houston's KRIV-TV. "It certainly surprises you when it happens to somebody who has kept themselves in shape and lives a very active life. The last time I saw Joe he looked like he was a picture of health," Ryan said. Niekro was born Nov. 7, 1944 in Martins Ferry, Ohio. A third-round draft pick of the Cubs in 1966, he broke into the majors in 1967 and appeared in 702 games, including 500 starts, in 22 years with the Cubs, Padres, Tigers, Braves, Astros, Yankees and Twins. Niekro, who once was suspended for getting caught on the mound with a nail file in his back pocket, pitched his final game in April 1988 -- at age 43. He finished 221-204 with a 3.59 ERA, including 144-116 with a 3.22 ERA for the Astros. Smith said the team was waiting on funeral arrangements before deciding how to honor Niekro. "He played a very prominent role in our first trip to the playoffs [in 1980]," Smith said. "He was very popular with our fans, and he was truly one of our all-time greats." Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Centerfield Jul 15 2008 12:34 PM

Frayed Knot wrote: I had forgotten about Joe Neikro's death also. And, in fairness to Benigno (even though I believe he truly is a dope), WFAN has been doing their shows from this Fan-Fest thing since about Friday for the purpose of getting baseball-related guests to drop by and chat -- so it probably wasn't a case where they knew in advance he was coming on and did any kind of prep work. I can certainly see that happening. If Phil Neikro walked into my office, I might have asked about his brother too, and I had no idea he had died. Of course, this is not meant to imply that Beningo is not an idiot. On that point, the evidence is beyond overwhelming already.

Valadius Jul 15 2008 12:49 PM

Benigno probably didn't ask about Joe's son Lance Niekro, did he? No, he's not smart enough to know about him.

bmfc1 Jul 15 2008 01:00 PM

The Niekro interview was edited on wfan.com to omit the portion discussed above.

soupcan Jul 15 2008 01:05 PM

I wouldn't hold it against any layperson if they didn't know that Joe Neikro was dead. A guy whose job it is to talk sports all day, everyday, however, should know that.