Bruce Caldwell, briefly in MLB, but eternal Yalie

Caldwell had a cup with these mugs in '32

Who was Bruce Caldwell ?  That’s what I was asking, and am now asking.

The Southern New England Chapter of S.A.B.R. has collectively undertaken a book chronicling every MLB Player born in Rhode Island.  SABR members can take a crack at writing a chapter on a player.

I wanted to participate.  I didn’t want to be presumptuous and ask for a status guy like Napoleon LaJoie or Gabby Hartnett.

I intentionally chose a no-name.  A fellow named Bruce Caldwell.

How much more obscure could a ballplayer be than Bruce Caldwell ?  I never heard of him.  His MLB career was less than a cup of coffee.  He batted .184 in 45 plate appearances for the ‘28 Indians and the ‘32 Dodgers.  I thought there wasn’t much of a story to tell.

Wrong.  At one point, he was national news — before he even played pro ball.

Caldwell of the Diamond

Caldwell was a major success in the minors from 1929 to 1932.  Over 4 year minor league seasons, he logged a .356 BA and a .629 Slugging Average –  an O.P.S. of .984.

Let’s go backwards in time.

In 1932, he faded from pro baseball, choosing to attend Yale Law School after splitting the season between  Hartford & Harrisburg while notching a .301 BA for the year.

In 1931, He won the Eastern League Triple Crown with the New Haven Profs, leading the EL with a .356 BA, 38 HR, 130 RBI – and — 327 TB !  A quadruple crown.

In 1930, he batted .380 and .333 in a season split between Albany (A) and Minneapolis (AA).

While in Albany, he had the pleasure of playing with Billy Werber, a doubles-and-speed guy who went on to receive NL MVP votes in 4 seasons, and played in the 1939 & 1940 World Series for the Reds.

In 1929, with New Haven, he batted .366 with a .661 slugging average, playing with Jim Weaver, who would go on to lead the NL in shutouts in 1935, and Cliff Bolton, who batted Hubbell in the ’33 World Series as a Senator.

And in 1928……Before he ever played an inning in the minors, he made his MLB debut for the Cleveland on June 30, 1928, pinch hitting for Dutch Revsen and striking out in a 6-2 loss to Lena Blackburne’s White Sox.

You might well ask how a rookie with no minor league experience jumped immediately to the Bigs and got in the box score with Mel Harder, Joe Sewell and Lew Fonseca ?

The answer to that question is:  Billy Evans.

7 days before he struck out in his debut against Chi Sox ace Tommy Thomas, Caldwell sent a telegram to Indians General manager, Billy Evans.

The AP wire story said…. “Billy Evans, general manager of the Cleveland Indians, announced tonight that he has received a telegram from Bruce Caldwell, versatile Yale Athlete, accepting terms of a contract to play for the Indians and expressing his intention of joining the club in Chicago in a few days.”

 

“Caldwell waited until today’s conclusion of the Yale-Harvard baseball game before taking the plunge into professionalism, Evans said, in order to remove all question of his eligibility to compete for his alma mater.”

 

“While his fielding is not sure, his coach ‘Smoky Joe’ Wood, ex Cleveland and Red Sox player, considers that he will be a batting rival of Rogers Hornsby within two years, Evans stated.”

Caldwell of Yale

Smokey Joe Wood was indeed Caldwell’s Baseball Coach when Bruce was a Yale undergrad (1925-1928).  And Caldwell was a fine collegiate Baseball player.

But Caldwell’s national fame stemmed from what he did on – and off — the Yale gridiron as the starting left halfback in his senior year, Fall of 1927.

He had come to Yale from Providence, the son of working class millworkers.  He was the only member of the backfield that did not Prep at a blue blooded private school.

He made himself fit in on the athletics fields and in the classrooms.

He turned the Georgia defense inside out in an unexpected 19-0 victory.

He made All American.

He was the star of the Yale team at a time when College Football in the East was near the pinnacle of Sport in America.

But he would be thrown off the Yale team halfway through his senior season when he was declared ineligible for playing a few freshman football games for Brown in 1924.

Caldwell’s own words describe the odyssey in this excerpt by the Hartford Times from an article he authored in the Dec. 2, 1938 issue of the Saturday Evening Post, titled, “After the Ball is Over”.

“Because of the chores involved in working my way, and a broken ankle at the outset of my junior year, I got a slow footed start.  But in my Senior year, the newspapers told me that my forward passing was phenomenal, my drop-kicking and punting superb.  I averaged 5.3 yards carrying the ball.

I was getting the same kind of publicity Albie Booth, Jay Berwanger, Larry Kelley, Clint Frank, Marsh Goldberg, Sid Luckman, Whizzer White and others were to enjoy later.  Particularly after the Army Game.

 

The year before, Army had defeated Yale 33 to 0.  The ’27 Army team was supposed to be even stronger.  The battle was billed as a duel between Harry Wilson, then playing his eighth year of college ball, and me.

With a bale of newspaper clippings under my bed back in my room, I enjoyed the pleasant knowledge that the eyes of 72,000 people were focused on my bright number 48.  As it happened, I managed to live up to even Tad Jones’ expectations.  Tackle Sid Quarrier, now a surgeon in Hartford, shifted out of the line trickily, became an eligible receiver, and caught one of my long heaves.

“I converted for the extra point.  Then, after enjoying a couple of nice runs, I kicked a 47-yard field goal.  We won 10 to 6.  That was the year Army trimmed Notre Dame and remained undefeated, except by the Bulldog.  The sportswriters turned cartwheels for my glorification.

 

A few weeks later, along came what looked like a bad break, but something that caused the publicity spotlight to play on me more brilliantly than ever.

In 1924, because I wouldn’t get a (Yale) scholarship…I had entered Brown University as a Freshman. I was cut from the Brown Freshman squad on the second day.

But when books threw some of the boys for losses, they took me back.  I played for short periods against Andover and Harvard seconds, but did nothing notable and wasn’t a regular.  The next year, 1924, I entered Yale, still a Freshman.

On Nov. 8 of my Senior year, I picked up a Providence Bulletin to discover that those few minutes of playing obscurity on the Brown freshman eleven were to make me a more talked about halfback than anything I had ever done in big games for Yale.

A reporter had written about my Brown record, and cited the Yale-Harvard-Princeton agreement not to use any player who had been a competitor on any other college football team.

I was barred from Yale football immediately.  A New York paper offered me $1,000 for the story of my life.  Press and public seemed to resent the technicality which had disqualified me.  The Yale A.A. broke a rule and awarded me a letter.  After the close of the season, Ashton, R.I. took a day off to celebrate Bruce Caldwell Day.

An American Hero

Mr. Caldwell is an American story.  He rose from the Rhode Island mill town of Ashton.  He was educated beyond his class at America’s most prestigious University, where he was a star athlete, and would later return to earn a Law degree.

He would go on to serve in the Navy during the War and earn the rank of Lt. Commander.  He would be a successful lawyer in private and public practice.  He would serve in Government as the Commissioner of the Hartford Housing Authority and lead a $10 Million slum redevelopment.

He never married.

He passed on Feb. 15, 1959.

One obituary said it was cancer.  Another one said it was pneumonia.

His Death certificate indicated liver disease.

My research isn’t done.  I’ve just scratched the surface.  Any living survivor of Bruce Caldwell or anyone with a connection to him can contact me at athomeatfenway@gmail.com.

Pete Rose would have paid for hitting Jerry Moses

This guy was not afraid to get hurt.

Athomeatfenway.com had the opportunity to do a Q & A with Jerry Moses, Red Sox catcher from 1968 to 1970.

Some remember Jerry as the Yazoo City, MS gridiron star who chose Baseball over Football but was sidetracked by injuries.  Others recall Jerry as the 1970 All Star who had a ringside seat on the collision between Pete Rose & Ray Fosse.

When you meet him today, he is a friendly, soft spoken man with a kind countenance that hides his toughness.

He trained with Ted, cheered for Mantle and ran with the Hawk & Frank Howard.

You were a big bonus baby.  How did injuries effect your career ?

Three times I broke my middle finger, I did it even though I put my hand behind the glove.  Anytime the ball went below my glove I flipped it and the hand automatically opened up.  I couldn’t stop it.  I was out 6 to 8 weeks each time I broke it.  The one that really got me was in 1970 when Bert Campaneris was batting in Oakland, and he came around on his swing and hit my glove hand, crushing the network of nerves in my hand.  I tried to play about two weeks with it being that way, but finally the manager said what’s wrong with you ? I said “Nothing’, and he said, ‘Well, you’re not even swinging the bat.”  I said, “I can’t”.  I was bunting for base hits.  I was trying to get walks.  The injury  caught up with me.  I didn’t play the rest of the year.  I got traded the next year. 

The 1970 All Star Game:  Pete Rose & Ray Fosse

I think Ray Fosse and I should have been the only two catchers on the team.  But it didn’t work that way.  Bill Frehan was hitting around .240, but all the fans voting decided Bill should be there, even though Fosse and I were hitting about .310 a piece.  I didn’t get in the game.  When Fosse got in, there was no shot for me because they have to keep somebody as a backup if someone gets hurt.  So, when the collision happened, I was in an open area where the pitchers were getting ready.  We’re in Cinncinati and it’s the 14^th inning, and here comes Rose around 3^rd.   Ray tried to block the plate without having the ball.  Rose came in shoulder first, and Fosse didn’t know Rose was going to hit him like that.  He came in full bore.  That’s the way Rose played.  He played hard.  I don’t think he had to do that.  I don’t think he should have.  And I don’t think Fosse should have tried to do what he did because that game didn’t mean anything at the time like it does now.  But I will say this, and I’ve said it my whole life:  I had a football mentality, not necessarily a baseball one, and I don’t believe he would have ever gotten to the plate and run over me like he ran over Fosse.  If he did, he would have felt it.  I played a lot of football and I didn’t mind getting hurt.

What do you recall about Gibson and Satriano – the late 60’s Sox catchers ?

In 1970, Satriano was the back up.  He got to catch some because Sonny Siebert and I didn’t see eye-to-eye. Siebert nibbled too much and he didn’t want to challenge the batters. Satriano ended up catching Siebert every time.  The other catcher was Russ Gibson.  Gibby had come up in ’67, playing that year with Elston Howard and Mike Ryan.  In ’68, Gibby caught a good bit of the games and Elston was only there a little that year.  Then in ’69, Gibby was the starting catcher and I was his back up.  In 1970, Eddie Kasko named me as his starting catcher, and Gibby ended up going to the Giants.

Did you recall Hawk Harrelson’s famous psychedelic wardrobe, Nehru jackets, racks of designer shoes and boots?

I loved Hawk.  He was a character.  He swung the bat pretty darn good.   He was unique in so many ways.  I loved him.    He may not have had all the tools, but he had enough.  I saw his Nehru clothing and his cowboy hat and boots, and that was just him.  I was with him a few times on the road, we’d go out to dinner and have a few drinks together, if we were in Washington, he and Frank Howard and a bunch of us would get together and go night clubbing.  These were high profile guys and I was just getting to the majors, so I enjoyed it.  Hawk took me along.  He was somewhat older than me, he had his own group, but he was good to me.

What was Frank Howard like to spend time with ?

The best.  Everytime he came up to bat, the first thing he would do was to greet the catcher, “How you doin’ ?”.  I’m doing fine, how you doin’?”  He was the nicest guy.

He was a guy we listened to.  We were playing Washington at Fenway one day, when Siebert, Reggie Smith and a Senator ended up in an exchange with somebody hitting somebody else, and all of a sudden we started fighting.  And Howard ran in from left field and gets in the middle of it, and says, “Boys, cut this out.”.  And we did.  We listened to him. No one could hit a ball as far he did.

Did you spend time with Ted Williams ?

Yes, actually.  7 years with Bobby Doerr and Ted Williams, both as hitting instructors.  Ted worked a lot with me.  I was a bonus kid that came out early.  This was pre-draft.  I guess they babied me through my time coming in.  It was really an awful situation in that you had two great hitters, great players, great HOF’ers, and what they did they did well, but they had two different ideas of how you should hit.  Doerr wanted you to hit on top of the ball, not necessarily swing down on the ball, but swing close to it.  And Williams wanted you to swing up…and I heard that difference of opinion year after year after year.

There was this wonderful video that Bobby did with Ted, and Bobby gave it to me because he knew I loved both of them.

Bobby was so neat…and Ted was John Wayne, you know, that’s what they called him.

It hurt my hitting to work with both of them.  The first year I hit 13 HR’s in 8 weeks in single-A ball.  I had no problem getting the ball out of the park.  Hitting HR’s was one of the reasons that the Red Sox outbid everyone else for me.  And then once I got into the organization, I tried to do what Ted told me and what Bobby told me.  Before you knew it I became a line drive hitter.  Hitting line drives isn’t a bad thing, but I never hit more than 7 HR’s a year.

Did you find Ted the hitting instructor to be overly technical ?  Mantle once said that Ted confused him.

Ted expected everybody to be as good as him.  And nobody was.

Mantle was my idol, as a kid growing up.  Down in Missisippi, the only guys we could see were the Yankees on Saturdays.

Anyway, I apologized for not being as good as Ted Williams wanted me to be.

Favorite guy to catch ?

Oh, I loved Lonborg.  I didn’t get to catch him as much as I wanted to.  Lonborg and Ray Culp were great. I think Ken Brett would have been a HOF’er had he not hurt his shoulder.

I caught Gaylord Perry with the spitball.  He was a master, a pro’s pro, a tough guy, not always gentle with guys he did not think were hustling.

Favorite pitcher to hit ?

I hit Nolan Ryan pretty good…I went 1 for 3…He K’d me once, I popped out once, and in the third at bat I bailed out on a curveball and broke my bat with the ball going over the shortstop’s head for a single.  God, Ryan could throw the ball.  I didn’t have to face him often.  You didn’t have a chance to tell if there was a tail on the ball because it was coming so quick.

I thought Rollie Fingers was one of the toughest guys coming out of the bullpen.  He had a ball that would sink and a slider that would go the other way.  If you didn’t guess right you weren’t going to come close to it.

It seemed like I hit the better pitchers better than I hit the guys who didn’t pitch so good.  I’m not bragging about any of it.  I hit fairly good off Bert Blyleven, and Jim Palmer, but not so well against the two Baltimore lefthanders, Cuellar and McNally.

I didn’t hit Catfish Hunter well, a guy who never let anybody hit a HR when there were men on base.   He’d wear you out inside and then come outside, and then with the slider.  I faced Hunter 30 or 40 times and always wanted to bat against him because I thought I could hit him, but I never got a hit…..

The good pitchers all pitched inside.  I knew a lot of guys who wouldn’t throw inside because they were afraid of giving up a home run.  You have to have the confidence.

The pitcher is going to pitch whatever he wants to pitch.  The catcher just makes the signs.  But if you have that chemistry, they won’t shake you off more than 3 or 4 times a game.  That’s what made guys like Bill Lee so good.  He’d pitch to you inside.   Bill didn’t throw the ball over 90 or 91 mph, but he would throw strikes….he was a little crazy, but he could pitch.

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Gerry Moses came straight out of Baseball into the Food business where he has stayed for 40 years.  Among other successful ventures, he is the founder of Ann’s Boston Brownie Company.

He is in good health, is still working and having fun.  He works out and makes it a habit to eat healthfully.  He credits his wife of 41 years, Carolyn, for keeping him in line.  “If it wasn’t for her, I don’t know what I’d have done; she’s the strength of our house.

Gerry says the present BoSox owners “have been fabulous.  They embraced us and involve us…they seem to understand marketing better than most…..they get us (retired players) into Fenway despite the sell outs…I am lucky and proud to still be in the Red Sox family.”

Moses also added that the Sox he played with were multi-talented.  “We thought after ’67 we were going to have a good run there, but Lonborg got hurt, Santiago got hurt, Mike Andrews got hurt.

Those are the BoSox I remember so well.  Moses, Yaz, Reggie, Harper, Andrews, Rico, Boomer, both Conigliaro’s, Peters, Nagy, Romo, Lee, Lyle, Culp, Siebert and John Kennedy, the super sub.

That pre-Rice era of BoSox played its heart out and won more than it lost.

Gerry Moses fit right in.

Fosse's shoulder injury may have cancelled his ticket to stardom.

Don’t blame Selig for Manny & David. It’s the Money, honey.

We don't need a scape goat. We need disinfectant.

This is an up and down week for loyal Red Sox fans.

 

Tears of joy fell over the enshrinement of Jim Rice 4 days ago.

 

Anguish and anxiety struck today. Big Papi and Manny Ramirez tested positive in 2003.

 

There is a stark contrast about which to be spoken.

 

Rice averaged one HR every 21.5 AB’s.  He never touched PED’s.

 

Papi & Ramirez combined to average a HR every 15.2 AB’s.

 

It’s no surprise, really.  If you saw Rice play you know he was just as terrifying to face (if not more) than David or Manny.

 

The differences between the Dominican Dandies and the Boston Strong Man are about cheating and honesty, shortcuts and work ethic, popular culture, the relativity of talent, and M-O-N-E-Y, baby.

 

Can’t help but think of my friend who once ended up at a Florida cocktail party with Wakefield, Varitek and Mirabelli.  The talk was all about money.  Real Estate.  Business.  Opportunity. 

 

The MLB is a Money Machine.   It is a pathway to the riches of a lifetime.

 

What would you do to stay on that pathway ?

 

How many of us would do whatever is legal to stay there ?

 

How many of us would stop taking steroids after 2002, when they became illegal ?

 

These are hard questions. 

 

90% of us would cheat if they had company and the protection of the MLBPA.

 

The money is just too hard to resist.

 

So, Papi and Manny should now pay the price.

 

The BBWA and Old Timers should forever keep Manny out of the HOF, along with A-Rod, McGwire, Clemens, and every other “immortal” who would otherwise be enshrined.

 

The Red Sox should forever keep David out of the Red Sox HOF, and never retire his number.  (His heroics, tarnished or not, would not have made him a Cooperstowner anyway.)

 

We may all look at David’s 2009 struggles and 2008 decline a little differently knowing he was PED-fueled.

 

It’s a sad day.  And we must face the music.  The MLB must be cleaned up.

 

Let’s get off our asses and stop blaming Bud Selig.  Let’s insist on the release of all 103 names that tested positive in 2003.  Let’s agree to ban every one of them from the HOF.

 

Let’s get clean and stay that way.

Francona & Varitek have Golden Spikes

 

 

 

 

 

1980 Golden Spikes Winner in his '78 Goldpanners uni.

One of the best Red Sox trivia stumpers I know goes like this:  Who are the five current Red Sox that won the Golden Spikes Award in college ?  

 

The Golden Spikes is like the Naismith Award, going to the best college player in the nation.

 

Answer:  J.D. Drew, Mark Kotsay, Jason Varitek, Dave Magadan and Terry Francona.

 

Surprised about Francona ?  The injury prone manager batted .401 in 1980, was College World Series MVP, lead his team to the National Title, and left the University of Arizona in the Top 8 all time in RBI, Hits, Extra Base Hits, and Total Bases among all Wildcat players.

 

His bench coach, Brad Mills, wasn’t half bad either, with a .515 career OBP, third on the Cats’ all time list.

 

Francona batted .274 with just 10 HR’s in 16 gimpy MLB seasons, but his 900 – 525 WL record as Sox Manager burnishes his image.

 

J.D.  Drew starred at Florida State University (1997), and .now sports a career .282 BA w 202 HR’s in 12 (part time) MLB seasons —  very respectable.

 

Mark Kotsay won when at Cal State Fulleron (1995).  His career MLB .282 BA and 1542 Hits in 13 campaigns is a workmanlike line.

 

Sox Batting Coach, Dave Magadan, University of Alabama (1983), had an MLB career .288 BA and squeezed out 1197 hits over 16 seasons.  Certainly qualifies him to teach.

 

Jason Varitek won when at Georgia Tech (1994).  Considered altogether, the two World Championships, .261 BA and 174 HR’s over 13 years are very respectable.  Add in the 4 no-hitters he has called with 4 different pitchers, and you understand why he has earned a special place in the hearts of baseball fans, and baseball history.

 

These five Sox pretty well represent all GS winner when it comes to position players.  Plenty of long MLB careers among the winners, but no MVP’s or Batting Champs. And, of course, no Hall of Famers.

The Sox Golden Spikers beat out some fine competitors in college, including  Nomar Garciaparra, Todd Walker, Todd Helton, Troy Glaus and Lance Berkman, to name a few.

 

Since the award’s inception in 1978, a lot of matriculated MLB superstars were not selected — Barry Bonds (Az. State), Roger Clemens (Texas), Ryan Howard (Mo. St.), Jeff Bagwell (Hartford), Frank Thomas (Auburn), Jason Giambi (Cal-Longbeach), Dustin Pedroia (Az. State), Tony Gwynn (San Diego St.), Kirby Puckett (Bradley), and Randy Johnson (USC).

The award has produced a steady supply of starting pitchers like Ben McDonald, Alex Fernandez, Jim Abbott, Darren Dreifort, Jason Jennings, Mark Prior, Jered Weaver…..and Tim Lincecum.

 

++++++++++++++++

 

32 winners.  20 position players.  12 pitchers.

 All but 4 of the 32 players reached the majors.

 Nice players, yes. 

 It’s a roster of talent, but the big guns signs out of high school. 

College has not been, since the Class of 1978 at least, a path to the Hall Of Fame.

But that could change.

Mark Prior and Tim Lincecum are the only Golden Spikes winners who pitched themselves to the MLB All Star game.   The similarity should end there. Young Lincecum projects to have a long and fruitful career, unlike the injury prone Cub, who hung it up after just 5 seasons.

++++++++++

 At the All Star Break, USA Baseball’s Executive Director Paul Seiler announced that the 2009 Golden Spikes Award winner is Stephen Strasberg of San Diego State.  He had a 13-1 WL record this year, with a 1.32 ERA, and 195 K’s in 109 IP. 

To learn more about the award and its history, go to www.goldenspikesaward.com

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A herd of future pro’s go for the sheepskin at Arizona State, which alone has sent 91 players to the major leagues since 1961, including the player-of-the-century (in his own mind) Reggie Jackson (’66), the durable Gary Gentry & Larry Gura (’67), ’86 BoSox keystoner Marty Barrett, the loveable ’69 Met Duffy Dyer, and the first Golden Spikes winner ever, Bob Horner.  Just part of what makes Arizona a FANTASTIC Baseball state.

 

Young Tek won The Spikes at Tech in '94.

Lon Warneke is worthy !

 

Lon Warneke vs. Lefty Gomez

By Don Loveless

The National Baseball Hall of Fame is the pinnacle accomplishment for baseball players.  Less than one percent of the ball players reach this plateau.  The elections almost always lead to huge debates.  An example this year is the election of Jim Rice.  Rice was elected on his fifteenth and last chance with the baseball writers.  His election now has everyone asking about players like Andre Dawson and Richie Allen. 

Many old players seem to be forgotten and need to be revaluated.  One such player is former pitching great Lon Warneke.  The pitcher I want to compare Warneke with is former Yankee great Vernon “Lefty” Gomez.    Gomez was enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972 by the “Old Timers” committee.  Warneke has never even come close in all these years. 

Lon “The Arkansas Hummingbird “came up with the Cubs in 1930 as did Lefty Gomez.  Both would become dominant pitchers for their teams.  Their career numbers would almost mirror each other.  But, for some reason Warneke was never considered for the Hall while Gomez always received a fair amount of votes.  Below is a comparison of their records.

 

1. Warneke   192-121   3.18   1140     30
2. Gomez      189-102   3.34   1468     28

Gomez was on 7 American League All-Star teams while Warneke was on 5 National League teams.  Gomez won 20 games or more 4 times while Warneke accomplished the feat 3 times.  Warneke played for the Cubs from 1930-1937, then played for the St. Louis Cardinals from 1937 to 1942 before returning to the Cubs to finish out his career.  Both had success in the World Series with Gomez going 6-0 with a 2.86 ERA and Warneke going 2-1 with a 2.63 ERA. 

Warneke continued his success with the Cardinals with a no-hitter against the Cincinnati Reds on August 30^th 1941.  Upon his return to the Cubs, Warneke went into the military for almost 2 years.  Arm injuries took their toll on both Gomez and Warneke with them retiring in 1943 and 1945 respectively.  Gomez attempted a comeback with the Washington Senators in 1943 but soon realized it was over. 

Vernon “Lefty” Gomez died in 1989 of Congestive Heart failure.  Typical of his lack of respect, Lon Warneke died of a heart attack at home after the initial ambulance was totaled in a crash on way to his house.

During their careers, both pitchers were among the best in their respective leagues.  They were both the aces of their staffs.  I believe that if these 2 pitchers had switched cities, Warneke would be in the Hall of Fame and Gomez might be on the outside looking in.

 

(Don Loveless lives on the East Coast but is a Chicago native.  An expert on the Cubs and White Sox, Don would be granted a Masters in Charlie Grimmology, if one existed.)

THE ESSENTIAL BRAD PENNY FOR RED SOX FANS

11 Keys to understanding Brad

No doubt, this guy is a double-wide.

Brad is the new Booty King.  Brad is 6 ft 4 inches tall and 260 pounds.  Same height as Ortiz — and 30 pounds heavier.

 

Welcome to New England.  Brad Penny is from Blackwell, OK., where Katharine Hepburn was stopped for speeding in 1950.  Hepburn told the cop that he was a moron, and that if she ever came across a car with Oklahoma plates in Connecticut she would let the air out of its tires.

 

Penny clichés will be everywhere.  Penny Wise and Pounded Foolish.  Posada Pinches Penny.  A Pretty Penny.  A Bad Penny.  A Penny Saved, a Penny Spurned.  Bad Penny Comes Back.  In for a Penny, In for a Pounding.

 

Brad Penny is single:  Brad has dated Alyssa Milano and Eliza Dushku.  He is going to like Boston.  The Irish landed there, you know.

 

Brad has no kids:  “One guy (from the 2003 Florida Marlins) gets up and votes a (playoff) share for the baby-sitter. They already get paid to baby-sit. And I don’t have any kids. No way, no chance, no share. That got shot down real quick.” – Brad Penny in The Miami Herald (February 28, 2004)

 

Brad can surprise you:  He struck out 4 batters in one inning (dropped 3rd strike).  He also gave up a Homer, a double and 3 runs in the same inning.

 

Everybody thinks Beckett was the Big Fish:  Actually, Brad beat the Yankees TWICE in the 2003 World Series, winning Games 1 & 5.  Jack McKeon had a feeling about Brad.  When Aaron Boone delivered the Yankees to the Classic, McKeon started Penny instead of Dontrelle Willis. 

 

He really does throw hard.  Brad hit Umpire Kerwin Danley with a 96 mph heater when he missed Russell Martin’s call for a curve.  Danley was knocked out for 18 minutes. He likened the impact to a left hook that he could see coming but could not dodge.  A week later, Danley lay in his Arizona home trying to stop the headache. 

 

His Draft Day could have been worse.  Brad was picked 155^th by the D-Backs in the 1996 Draft.  That was well after Kris Benson, Travis Lee, and Eric Chavez.  But ahead of Jeremy Giambi (#169), Shea Hillenbrand (#301), Ted Lilly (#688), and well ahead of Roy Oswalt  (#684), and the very patient Aron Amundson (#1,739).

 

Brad is colorful.  He’s been interviewed ringside making predictions at Ultimate Fighting Championships and has great respect for Kimbo.  There is also a lovely You Tube video of Brad in a Hollywood donnybrook in which you hear a concerned partier asking, “Are you going to taze me ?”.

 

Brad at the #5 is a gift.  This is the real key.  Brad is a great upgrade.  I mean I liked Paul Byrd.  He was to 2008 what John Burkett was to 2003.  But Brad will be a blistering  fifth starter following Beckett, Lester, Matsuzaka and Wakefield.  Are you kidding me ?  Let Masterson be the bridge to Oki and/or Pap.  Let Buchholz find his Wa in peace.  I’m glad this Penny turned up.

Brad and his pal, Eliza.

 

Review: DEEP DRIVE Mike Lowell

DEEP DRIVE, A long journey to finding the champion within.  By Mike Lowell with Rob Bradford.  Foreword by Josh Beckett.    256 pages.  2008.  Celebra books.

 

This book is a great baseball story and an even better human one.

 

In Short – Lowell’s family are refugees from Castro, and he grows up a scrawny kid near Miami.  He works his ass off, turns the skinny build into a productive one.  599 guys are drafted in front of him, but he grows into the Yankee Organization Player of the Year before being traded to the Marlins.   Cancer interrupts his life TWICE.  Steroid rumors swirl but do not prevail.  He loses his swing.  He is betrayed by money grubbers.  He overcomes it all.

 

Lowell wins the World Series twice.  Lowell becomes a World Series MVP. 

 

Great Player.  Great Teammate.

 

It’s a great read and you should pick it up.

 

*******************

 

 

Lowell’s Dad, Carlos, at age 11, escaped from Cuba to Puerto Rico.  Carlos played baseball on the San Ignacio H.S. team.  He played his college ball at St. Joseph’s in Philly, where he tossed a no-hitter and won the MVP Award.  Carlos competed for the Puerto Rico National team.

 

Mike Lowell was raised in Florida where he changed High Schools when it became apparent he wouldn’t get adequate playing time while studying with the good Brothers at Christopher Columbus High School.  The last two spots in the batting order of the Christopher Columbus freshman team were historic.  Batting 8^th and playing SS was Alex Rodriguez.  Batting 9^th and playing second base was Lowell.

 

A-Rod transferred to Westminster H.S. due to a lack of playing time and Lowell left for Coral Gables H.S. for the same reason.  Imagine what Brother Herb Baker might say today about not having foreseen the potential of these future MLB All Stars.  According to this book, Baker was pretty stoic about it.

 

Before going to Florida International with close to a full ride, Lowell was recruited by Notre Dame assistant Coach Pat Murphy, who would later coach Dustin Pedroia at Arizona State.

 

After developing as a second baseman throughout High school and College, Mike was selected by the New York Yankees in the 20^th round of the 1995 draft.  He was shocked when the Yankees informed him they intended to convert him to a catcher.

 

They didn’t stick with that decision after seeing what great hands he had at third.

 

Mike had little power at first.  He was underweight at Oneonta (NY Penn League) and Greensboro (A).  But in 1996 and 1997 he gained 25 pounds of muscle, batting .344 for half a season in Norwich (AA) and hitting 15 Homers in half a season in Columbus (AAA).  In 1998, he played 126 games for Columbus, batting .311 with 25 HR’s.  Mike made his MLB debut on 9-13-98 at Yankee Stadium in front of 47,471 fans.  He singled in his first at bat.  Although he was the starting 3^rd baseman that day, he was behind Scott Brosius on the depth chart.  Still, he was the Yankees 1997 Organization Player of the Year and had a terrific 1998.  Thus, before the post-season, Lowell was told he would be the 1999 starting third baseman on the Yankees, unless Brosius won the World Series MVP, an unlikely possibility…..

 

……and that is exactly what occurred. 

 

Lowell was traded to his hometown Marlins on Feb. 1, 1999. 

 

He had no objection to playing in hometown Miami.

 

But within a month of the trade he was diagnosed with cancer.

 

1999 was a rollercoaster.  Traded, then diagnosed, he underwent surgery and chemo, was sent down to AAA to rehab, and was required to prove he was still major league capable in May. 

 

By Oct. 1, 1999, Mike had batted .253 with 12 home runs in 97 games and was informed he would be a starter for the 2000 squad.

 

“Surviving cancer was, and always will be, my toughest battle. I laugh when people talk about how tough it is to deal with the boos of fans….when cancer comes calling, baseball takes a backseat…having 40,000 people at Yankee Stadium tell me I suck is a nice diversion.”

 

 

NUGGETS

 

 

THE STORY OF “PAM”:  Lowell clarifies why MLB players might be wary about people pretending to be friends.  The story of “Pam”, a BFF of Bertica, his wife, makes the point.  Friends since they were age 15, “Pam” was injured in a car accident with Bertica at the wheel during Lowell’s rookie year.  At first unconscious, “Pam” recovered pretty quickly and all was well.  Some months passed, and then “Pam” stopped speaking with Bertica.  Suddenly, the Lowells were hit with a $1.2 Million law suit alleging pain and vision issues for “Pam”.  At that point, Lowell had made $60,000 total playing 4 years of pro ball and had $7,000 in the bank.  “Pam” and her attorney were stunned when Mike showed them his IRS returns.  The money grubbers slunk away.  They were not heard from again under after Mike signed a major contract the following year.  Ultimately, they sued for $600,000 and Lowell settled for half of that to put it behind them.  Unfortunately for Bertica, the emotional injury cast a shadow for two years.

 

 

THE IRON MAN  SONG:   Have you sat in Fenway wondering how the music dude selected Black Sabbath’s IRON MAN for Lowell’s at bats ?  Turn to page 161.  The story involves getting beaned in the noggin by Adam Loewen and then diving into the field boxes to make a catch in the top of the next inning.

 

BEING GROUNDED:  Mike Lowell is a grounded individual.  “I’ve always said that I play baseball but that is not who I am.  That’s part of who I am.  But I’d much rather be a good father, husband, friend and brother…the game is just what everyone sees, but there is so much more to me.”

 

As Jackie Kennedy said, “If you screw up raising your children, it really doesn’t much matter what else you achieve with the rest of your life.”

 

 

BE POSITIVE:   “You can choose to harp on negativity  – I certainly could have when cancer came calling, or when the hits were hard to find in 2005 – but if you choose the positive you’re going to get the most out of life.  It has worked for me, and I’m not about to stop now.”

 

 

 

AMERICA IS A PLACE TO START AGAIN:  Lowell’s family believed, achieved and overcame Communism & Cancer. 

 

The Seattle Mariners’ Don Wakamatsu today became the first person of Asian ethnicity to be a MLB Manager, rising above a different and regrettable form of oppression.

 

Lowell’s Dad and Father-in-Law were victimized by Castro. 

 

Wakamatsu’s grandparents were victims of the U.S. Government. 

 

They lost their home and were imprisoned in a World War II internment camp.

 

Baseball reflects America.  The good and the bad.

 

 

DEEP DRIVE is a story of family strength.   It’s a good read.  Tackle it and be rewarded.  Red My fellow Sox fans will be rewarded to know that though we lost Teixeira to the Yankees we have retained a man of singular character and skill.

MVP gets 2 cars & a Disney Parade !

Ferguson Jenkins at World Series Club

Ferguson Jenkins back in the day

On Dec. 15, 2008, Fergie spoke for 90 minutes at the World Series Club of Greater Hartford’s hot stove league dinner.

The World Series Club of Greater Hartford was founded in 1926.  Early speakers included Lou Gehrig, Frankie Frisch, Connie Mack & Lefty Gomez.  The club continues  today.  If you can drive to Hartford, you’ll want to experience this.  Go to:  http://www.worldseriesclub.com/index.asp

 

Ferguson Jenkins is an eloquent and dashing figure today at age 65.  His considerable speaking gifts held 240 baseball fans in his palm on Dec. 15 at the W.S.C. of Hartford. 

The mind is sharp, the build still tall and powerful. 

The abundant hair is gone and replaced with a shining, shaven dome.

He was as forceful in bringing the audience back to the 1960’s as he was knocking down MLB batters.   (He hit 84 of them.)

It was completely appropriate on this night that one of the classiest radio personalities anywhere, Arnold Dean of WTIC-AM, introduced Ferguson Jenkins. 

Dean noted Fergie’s 3000+ K’s and few walks (less than 1000) in over 4500 MLB innings; his 20 victories in 6 yrs consecutive, and being named to the list of Top 100 Best BB Players of the 20^th Century.

Not to mention his HOF induction in 1991 with Gaylord Perry, Rod Carew, Tony Lazzeri and Bill Veeck.

Ferguson took us back to his beginning – growing up in Chatham, Ontario.  That’s where he played youth hockey with Chico Mackie, Pat Stapleton and Walt Tkachuk  -  all future NHL players.

Fergie was a hockey star, making the Chatham All Stars.  He was not destined to play hockey though.   After one particularly rough game at age 15, his Mom, who was blind, said “Fergie, hockey won’t work out  -  because the only things on the ice that are black are you and the puck.  It isn’t meant to be.”

 

Fergie’s mother was a Baptist, and she raised him with discipline.  She told him that if he did not abide in The Lord and read the Bible, he would soon enough meet The Devil.  (“Well, in 1966, I met The Devil.  And it was Leo Durocher.  He had two sayings, ‘If you don’t like it, I’ll back the truck up.’, and ‘Nice Guys finish last.’.”)

Jenkins says he was lucky because he had two parents.  “My Mom always ironed my uniform and had it very clean.  My Dad always told me I had better polish my shoes.  I had black, black spikes.

Look presentable.  Play the way you look.  Always listen to your Coaches.  And Coaches, never talk down to your players.

At Mom’s behest, Fergie took up Baseball.  2 years later he signed a pro contract.

*****

 

Jenkins knows his career achievements like you or I know how our pants size.  4,500 IP.  267 complete games.  Hit 84 batters.  Lost 79 1-run games
Lost 13 games by a score of 1 – 0.  Might have won 350 games with a few breaks, a few more run scored.

Staying healthy is the key, according to Jenkins.  Gibson and Koufax had freak injuries that limited their win totals.  A Clemente liner off the tibia cut Gibby’s career short.  A slide into second base caused the initial damage to Koufax’s elbow.   All you can do is work hard, keep your team in the game, and try to stay healthy, advises Ferguson.

 

Some more advice:  Don’t be afraid to pitch inside.  Knock down the biggest guy on the other team.  If the biggest guy doesn’t charge the mound, the little guys won’t either.

 

NUGGETS

 

The McCovey Story.  It’s 1967 and Willie McCovey is tearing the cover off the ball.  The Cubs go to Candlestick early in the season.  Jenkins pitches well but McCovey smacks a 2-run game-deciding homer.  Cubs & Jenkins lose.  Some time later, the Giants visit Wrigley.  Jenkins pitches well but McCovey hits a bases clearing double for 3 RBI and sure enough, Cubs & Jenkins lose again.  Later in the same season, the Cubs return to San Francisco.  Jenkins and Ernie Banks, roommates, check in at the hotel and are unpacking when their phone rings.  It’s the concierge.  He surprises Fergie when he tells him that their car is waiting.  Fergie tells the concierge to hang on and asks Banks if he ordered a car.  Banks says “No.”.  The baffled Jenkins returns to the phone and asks the concierge, “What’s the significance of the car?   We didn’t order it.”.  And the Concierge said, “Oh, Mr. McCovey wanted to make sure that Mr. Jenkins gets to the ballpark alright.  He paid for the limousine.”

True story.

So they took it to the ballpark.

McCovey went 0-for-3.

*****

The Buffalo Head Gang.  This is how Fergie remembers it.  Mid-September, 1977.  The Red Sox have a 2 game lead on the Yankees with 13 games left.  Zimmer demotes Rick Wise, Bill Lee and Fergie Jenkins himself into the bullpen.   Yankees win.  Sox finish 3^rd behind the Orioles. 

Retrosheet.org has it a little differently.  The Yanks have a 3.5 game lead on Aug. 31, 1977.  The Sox go a remarkable 22 – 8 for September.  The Bombers go 19 – 9.    Sox play .733 ball down the stretch and it is not good enough.

What ?  Were they going to win all 30 games with the Buffalo Head Gang in the rotation ?

 

 

Fergie on New York signing Sabathia for $160 million:  He’s not as heavy as he looks, he’s hard as a rock…it will work out…he loses only to the Yankees, he beats every other team in the league….N.Y. will score runs for him…I’d be happy going to the ballpark everyday if I signed that contract.  (In fact, with what rookies make, I want to play again.)

Fergie on the 6 HR’s that he hit in a year:  I got my chance to show what I could do (with a bat) in the NL…if a pitcher made a mistake, I was going to punish him…..Zambrano is one ahead of me in career homers by a pitcher…but I had a 20/20/20 season:  24 wins, 28 hits, and 20 rbi in 1971…..I also hit 2 HR w 3 rbi in a win vs. Montreal……

Favorite Park to Pitch in:  Yellowstone.

The one time he was ejected: (paraphrased) 1972.   I was going to pitch to Henry Aaron, whom I had great success against.  I gave up 2 HR to Hank in 11 years of pitching to him.   (Seaver, in 7 years yielded 11 HR to The Hammer.). With a game on the line, two on, and Aaron at the plate, Whitey Lockman yanked me…I just knew I would have gotten Aaron out.  Of course, the reliever yielded a 2 rbi double on his second pitch.  Game over.  And I just lost it.  I chucked 6 bats onto field and was ejected.  The Cubs sent me to a therapist. 

Best all around Cub:  Billy Williams

Best all around players in the N.L.:  Mays and Clemente.
Best in the A.L.:  Kaline and Carew

Best Fenway Memory:  How Yaz lowered his head but didn’t move any other muscle when an opponent crushed a homer over the monster.

Pete Rose:  we’re not on speaking terms.

Jim Rice in the HOF:  He has the stats, but he never won a championship, and that has held him back.

Baseball strategy today:  Back in the day, the starter pitched every 4^th day, went 7 or 8 innings, threw 110 pitches, then handed the ball to a closer. 

Today, we have 5 starter,s each expected to go 6 innings, with 110 pitches. 

Today it is Starter-Holder-Set-up-Closer. 

Back then, the roster held 9 pitchers and 16 position players.  Today, the roster holds 14 pitchers and 11 position players.

That’s where the strategy has gone.

Back in the day:  After a start, here is what your schedule looked like:
Day 1 Off
Day 2 throw BP
Day 3 Throw
Day 4 Start

On knowing your career is done:  You know it.  You feel differently. The fire is gone.

 

Ferguson Jenkins held court for 90 wonderful minutes.  We sang Happy Birthday to him.  He signed autographs for all.  We enjoyed abundant chicken, sausage, pasta, ribs and salad.  Beverages at friendly prices, too.

 

 

The World Series Club of Greater Hartford was founded in 1926 by businessmen who wanted tickets to see the New York Yankees play the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. Soon the Club started inviting baseball personalities to speak at off-season dinner meetings.  Speakers in the early years included Lou Gehrig, Frankie Frisch and Lefty Gomez.  In a meeting celebrating the Club’s 25^th anniversary in 1951, the guest speaker was Connie Mack.  The club continues to meet today, holding for 4 to 6 dinners with speakers every off season.   If you are within a reasonable drive of Hartford, you’ll want to experience these dinners.  For more information, go to:  http://www.worldseriesclub.com/index.asp

Fergie more recently

Review: Reversing The Curse

REVERSING THE CURSE:  A Season in the Life of America’s Greatest Sports Rivalry.  By Dan Shaughnessy.  2005. 272 pages. Houghton Mifflin.

 

 

About 40 pages in, Shaughnessy lucidly recalls how young Theo submerged himself in professional baseball, postponing his driver’s license test for 7 years, living on McDonald’s, working 12 hour days, becoming a lawyer and climbing the ladder with preposterous speed.

 

At that point I thought, “This book is far better than I expected.”.

 

About 70 pages in, Shaughnessy quotes Halberstam’s summation of Red Sox fans, “It’s really very distinctive……I have maybe gotten into the artists and writers and poets of Red Sox Nation.  The fans are quite interesting and important and different……”

 

At that point, I started to feel like I owed Shaughnessy an apology for not reading his book sooner.

 

Should have known that the guy with total access to Theo and his minions would bring a book packed with inside stuff.

 

Should have known that the guy who can make about 800 words work three times a week would write one of the better books about the 2004 Red Sox.

 

Shaughnessy has serious writing chops.  On TV and in public he carries himself with reserve and courtesy.  He’s a polite guy.  Maybe even camera shy.  I am almost surprised he isn’t a little bit immodest.  He’s that good.

 

He has taken his hard shots at the Sox in the past, but not so in this book.

 

Nothing so cutting as the harpoon with which he speared Nomar on Aug. 1, 2004.  (As I remember it, he wrote that the clubhouse cancer had been removed.)

 

The sharpest criticism D.S. levels in REVERSING is to make it clear than Pedro Martinez did not attend team meetings, work outs or even arrive in the dug out for games he did not start  —– until the 7^th inning !

 

During one critical series against the Yankees, he didn’t even come down with the team.  He waited until his start before making the 200 mile trip.

 

So, why did Tim Wakefield make the same trip promptly ?

 

“Because I wanted to be with my teammates.”, said, Wake.

 

That’s the contrast Shaughnessy strikes.  Pedro the Hall Of Fame Prima Donna versus  Wakefield the Team Guy.

 

Pedro had a negative effect on Manny.  After Pedro took an outrageous 6-day vacation in the middle of the season, Manny reported tightness in his hammy and took a few days off, too.  There had been no indications that anything was wrong with Manny.

 

Two feakishly talented slackers.   Two players that find themselves outside of the organization’s circle of love at the moment.

 

************ 

The portrait of Larry Lucchino in the book is titillating.  LL emerges as a fearless, F-bomb dropping, Yankee hating leader.  With a mind like a steel trap.

And yet, Lucchino has moments of doubt.

 

Larry’s moments of vulnerability came in game 4 and game 5 of the 2004 ALCS when the Sox were within a few outs of elimination.  Lucchino began scribbling notes for a speech.  As much as losing hurt, he would say that they were not vanquished, not defeated, and would come back with passion and a singular goal in 2005.

 

But things kept happening.  With the Yankees leading 4-3 in the 9th, Millar walked and Roberts stole second.  Lucchino put his notes in the desk of his luxury suite.  He settled in until Ortiz hit a 12^th inning walk-off HR off Quantrill, making Larry’s speech at least temporarily moot.

 

The next night, down 4-2 in the 8^th and back on the brink, Lucchino retrieved his note pad to re-draft his concession-without-submission speech.  But then Ortiz homered off Tom Gordon, a rally ensued, and Tek sacrificed in the game tying run..  Again, Lucchino put his notes back in the drawer.  He settled in to watch the completion of the 14 inning Sox victory, won when David’s gork dropped into Centerfield for a single.

 

I don’t know about you, but I’d like to see that incomplete draft of Lucchino’s speech.  It marks a desperate moment in Sox history and shines light into Larry’s character.  The darkest night comes just before the Dawn.

 

Call me a sick Soxaholic, but I just feel gratified to know about that draft.  If and when I meet Larry, I’ll be sure to ask about it.

 

Reversing The Curse is filled with such gold, excavated and preserved by the author.  I won’t ruin it for you b revealing more now. 

Even if you are prone to bashing Dan,  I recommend you read this book this winter.

 

You’ll be glad ya did.

 

The Author

Red Sox Larry Lucchino bidding on Cubs ?

Larry would do a hell of a job for the Cubbies.

 

I had an opportunity to speak with the owner of a MLB club this morning — and was granted some insights into the hot stove league season that is upon us.

 

The A.L. East is terrified that the BoSox will land Mark Texieira.  The Sox hitters are a little older, a little worn, and would benefit tremendously from the addition of Texeira. 

 

With Texeira in the 4-spot behind David, you’ve got a bashing line-up with no rival in the League.  The concern over the potential damage an Ellsbury-Pedroia-Ortiz-Texeira top of the order would do is magnified by the awareness that the BoSox are hell bent on signing Texeira.  That’s the word.  Apparently, they are in it – all the way.

 

MLB owners recently asked Larry Lucchino straight up what the heck was going on with the rumors that he is involved with a group trying to purchase the Cubs.  This one seems to come straight out of left field, fellow Soxaholics.  But, who better than Lucchino to evaluate and harvest the rich fiduciary potential of a club that owns the hearts, minds and wallets of the vast mid-west and that has not won a Championship in 100 seasons ?   Lucchino-Henry-Werner pulled off an extraordinary monetization of New England’s BoSox affection.  Don’t be surprised if Larry is setting up an office on Waverly Avenue next year.

 

The Red Sox have become the least colorful team in MLB, and by colorful, yes, I mean racially.  How ironic that in the year that America proved that color will not be the criteria by which we pick our President, there is a suggestion that the Boston Red Sox have intentionally gone Caucasian.  Let’s see….Youk at first, Dustin at second, Jed at short, Mike at third, Bay in LF, Jacoby in center and Drew in RF, David at DH, with Tek behind the plate.  Not one African American.  And there’s not a lot of pigment present.  But — our D.H. is from the D.R..   Dustin is Italian-Portugese-Spanish.  Mike is of Cuban heritage.  Jacoby is Native American.  Hmmm.  We may not have any African American starters —  but we do have diversity.  Did I mention Youk is the best Jewish player in the game ?.

 

The free agent market changes.  What the Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Cubs, Angels and Dodgers decide to do will effect everyone and everything with each and every change.  Why did Johann Santana go to the Mets for veritable peanuts last winter ?  Why indeed did this happen after the BoSox offered Jed Lowrie and Jon Lester to Twins GM Terry Ryan, who held out for more ?  Because in between the Yankees came out of the market for Santana, deciding to go with Kennedy and Hughes, their own young guns, instead of locking up the 2x Cy Young winner.  With the Yankees out of the bidding, the Sox didn’t need to play keep away –  and the Mets had an easy path.

 

Stay tuned my brothers and sisters.  Much swappin’ and signing to be done in December.