Thanks to a drive with a World War II veteran named Irwin, I was introduced to a Baseball Time Capsule of sorts, something a baseball fan can appreciate.
It's Red Smith On Baseball a collection of columns by Green Bay-born and raised Walter Wellesley "Red" Smith (Sept. 25, 1905-Jan. 15, 1982). Smith was a sportswriter, a columnist for five decades who influenced a lot of journalists. He started his newspaper career with the Milwaukee Sentinel.
The book carries 167 Smith columns starting in 1941 and carrying on through 1981. It's an interesting walk down the halls of baseball history. And a reflection of society as well. After all, Smith started writing about baseball before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. He writes a little about the Negro Leagues, but other than Robinson, Larry Doby and the great pitcher Satchel Paige, he doesn't touch on the standout names of that league -- Theodore Roosevelt Radcliffe (better known as Double-Duty after he pitched one game of a championship doubleheader and caught the second) or Josh Gibson or Buck O'Neil.
Granted, as you read his columns from the late 1940s -- Larry Doby has joined Jackie Robinson in the majors -- he does include the terms "colored" and "Negro" to describe these players. Keep in mind this was common for the time. Doesn't make it right, but attitudes needed changing. And unfortunately, continue to need change.
That's the biggest negative. On the plus side, he touches on players like "Losing Pitcher" Mulcahy, as Hugh Mulcahy was known. A pre-WWII thrower with the woeful Philadelphia Phillies, Mulcahy pitched in a then-National League record 56 games in his first season. In the span of two seasons (1938 & 1940) he lost 42 times. But he was a good pitcher saddled with a poor supporting cast. Back then, good players on bad clubs ended up making their money leaving for New York or Chicago or elsewhere. But before Mulcahy could cash in, he was drafted -- and ended up losing his best years to the war.
Other pluses worth noting? Details of re-creating a road game for radio relying on telegraph play-by-play; Hank Greenberg's farewell to baseball; Learning of Babe Ruth's death during a steamship crossing of the Atlantic, and talking about the 53-year-old Ruth's final months; The story of a Lou Gehrig medal, presented by Japan and returned via the Jimmy Doolittle Raid on Tokyo. No kidding...
The list goes on and on from Smith, a storyteller who painted great pictures and told stories in column after column. Recommended reading for the die-hard baseball fan.
Wednesday, April 18, 2018
Thursday, April 12, 2018
A Flip Of A Coin
Just saw this regarding the Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks; because of the Eric Bledso trade, there will flip a coin to determine the first-round draft order between the Bucks and the Miami Heat. The winner will get the 16th pick, loser the 17th.
Those of us of a certain age will recall a more memorable coin flip between the Suns and Milwaukee.
Back in 1969, there was no draft lottery (and no real talk about teams tanking). There were 14 teams, compared to 30 today. There were two divisions. Both clubs were expansion teams in the 1968-69 season, with Milwaukee posting a 27-55 record in the East to a 16-66 mark for Phoenix.
The top prize in the 1969 draft was UCLA center Lew Alcindor, who would change his name to Kareem Abdul Jabbar and become the NBA's all-time leading scorer.
Phoenix called heads, the coin came up tails. Alcindor went to Milwaukee, and led them to their only NBA title in 1971 before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers a few seasons later.
Funny how fate can turn on a coin flip.
Those of us of a certain age will recall a more memorable coin flip between the Suns and Milwaukee.
Back in 1969, there was no draft lottery (and no real talk about teams tanking). There were 14 teams, compared to 30 today. There were two divisions. Both clubs were expansion teams in the 1968-69 season, with Milwaukee posting a 27-55 record in the East to a 16-66 mark for Phoenix.
The top prize in the 1969 draft was UCLA center Lew Alcindor, who would change his name to Kareem Abdul Jabbar and become the NBA's all-time leading scorer.
Phoenix called heads, the coin came up tails. Alcindor went to Milwaukee, and led them to their only NBA title in 1971 before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers a few seasons later.
Funny how fate can turn on a coin flip.
Wednesday, April 11, 2018
Back Away From The Edge
Yes, the Milwaukee Brewers are struggling. But the season is, and always has been, a marathon and not a sprint. The playoffs, and the World Series, are not held in April or May.
Many a team that has been stellar out of the gate has been lost in the dust by the All-Star Break. And the opposite holds true.
In short, people, it's a long, long season. And 12 games don't make a season.
Granted, the offense has been pretty much absent, especially in the 7-game home stand that produced a 2-5 record with three shut-out losses. And the gloves of stone (and brains much the same) on defense that add up to a league-leading total in errors committed.
Still, April is not the time to panic. New acquisitions Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain are injured, as is catcher Manny Pina. And toss in pitcher Jimmy Nelson, who won't be back for several weeks.Then there's the bullpen woes that are, in part, due to All-Star closer Corey Knebel being lost for four-to-six weeks.
Bullpen by committee isn't working out that well for Manager Craig Counsell. Perhaps he needs to expand the roll of left-handed fireballer Josh Hader to eat up multiple innings. As ab aside, every time I see pictures of Hader in those glasses I can't help but think of the Hanson Brothers from the movie "Slapshot".
Of the arms in the bullpen, Jeremy Jeffress has at least held the closer roll with success in the past. Might be time to turn the keys over to him and see where he takes us.
Many a team that has been stellar out of the gate has been lost in the dust by the All-Star Break. And the opposite holds true.
In short, people, it's a long, long season. And 12 games don't make a season.
Granted, the offense has been pretty much absent, especially in the 7-game home stand that produced a 2-5 record with three shut-out losses. And the gloves of stone (and brains much the same) on defense that add up to a league-leading total in errors committed.
Still, April is not the time to panic. New acquisitions Christian Yelich and Lorenzo Cain are injured, as is catcher Manny Pina. And toss in pitcher Jimmy Nelson, who won't be back for several weeks.Then there's the bullpen woes that are, in part, due to All-Star closer Corey Knebel being lost for four-to-six weeks.
Bullpen by committee isn't working out that well for Manager Craig Counsell. Perhaps he needs to expand the roll of left-handed fireballer Josh Hader to eat up multiple innings. As ab aside, every time I see pictures of Hader in those glasses I can't help but think of the Hanson Brothers from the movie "Slapshot".
Of the arms in the bullpen, Jeremy Jeffress has at least held the closer roll with success in the past. Might be time to turn the keys over to him and see where he takes us.
Tuesday, April 3, 2018
Opening Day At Miller Park
Another Opening Day in Milwaukee, a fourth straight loss for the Brewers. I'm starting to get emails from the Brewers' owner Mark Attanasio asking me NOT to continue my Opening Day Tradition because of that.
Hey, I'm not THAT bad on ODs. This was my 26th, and I do have an overall record of 15-11. Granted, that's just 2-7 in recent history. But, hey, I'm not the guy out there pitching -- or leaving the starter in for a hitter or two too many. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, Stevie!
Despite the loss (to the hated St. Louis Cardinals, no less!) it was a great day. Temperatures in Milwaukee were in the mid to upper 30s, making it more like Packer weather for tailgating. But inside (and I again thank the Baseball Gods for inventing the retractable roof) it was comfy for the crowd of reported crowd of 45,393. It didn't look like that many were on hand, but how many were passed out in the parking lot from too much tailgating? I can't say.
Milwaukee's sweep of San Diego to start the season had the crowd in a positive mood. I'm sure the additions of offensive (and defensive) help Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich helped that as well.
In a back-and-forth game, the difference came in the fifth inning in the unlikely form of Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas. Two outs, a runner aboard and Mikolas just crushed his first Major League hit, a 407-foot two-run home run to left. Even the two Cardinal fans next to us (Chicago guys who, it seems, prefer coming to games at Miller Park to Wrigley Field) were stunned. Of all the improbable outcomes, that was not one we were expecting.
That made it 4-2, and still not that deep a hole. But a four-run 6th inning made it a deeper hole, and while the team rallied with a pair of runs with two outs in the bottom of the frame, it was too much to overcome.
Milwaukee had home runs from Cain, Manny Pina and Eric Thames, continuing the long ball trend from last year. But they seem to have more contact hitting at the top of the order in Cain-Yelich-Travis Shaw, so I expect better offensive production in 2018.
SPEAKING OF Wrigley Field, and the Chicago Cubs: During the early innings, a gentleman in a Cubs uniform and wearing, for whatever reason, a large sombrero was working his way through the crowd, apparently "hexing" the Brewers and their fans. My thought? That's respect. If the Cubs and their faithful weren't concerned about Milwaukee this year, they would be ignoring us.
Hey, I'm not THAT bad on ODs. This was my 26th, and I do have an overall record of 15-11. Granted, that's just 2-7 in recent history. But, hey, I'm not the guy out there pitching -- or leaving the starter in for a hitter or two too many. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, Stevie!
Despite the loss (to the hated St. Louis Cardinals, no less!) it was a great day. Temperatures in Milwaukee were in the mid to upper 30s, making it more like Packer weather for tailgating. But inside (and I again thank the Baseball Gods for inventing the retractable roof) it was comfy for the crowd of reported crowd of 45,393. It didn't look like that many were on hand, but how many were passed out in the parking lot from too much tailgating? I can't say.
Milwaukee's sweep of San Diego to start the season had the crowd in a positive mood. I'm sure the additions of offensive (and defensive) help Lorenzo Cain and Christian Yelich helped that as well.
In a back-and-forth game, the difference came in the fifth inning in the unlikely form of Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas. Two outs, a runner aboard and Mikolas just crushed his first Major League hit, a 407-foot two-run home run to left. Even the two Cardinal fans next to us (Chicago guys who, it seems, prefer coming to games at Miller Park to Wrigley Field) were stunned. Of all the improbable outcomes, that was not one we were expecting.
That made it 4-2, and still not that deep a hole. But a four-run 6th inning made it a deeper hole, and while the team rallied with a pair of runs with two outs in the bottom of the frame, it was too much to overcome.
Milwaukee had home runs from Cain, Manny Pina and Eric Thames, continuing the long ball trend from last year. But they seem to have more contact hitting at the top of the order in Cain-Yelich-Travis Shaw, so I expect better offensive production in 2018.
SPEAKING OF Wrigley Field, and the Chicago Cubs: During the early innings, a gentleman in a Cubs uniform and wearing, for whatever reason, a large sombrero was working his way through the crowd, apparently "hexing" the Brewers and their fans. My thought? That's respect. If the Cubs and their faithful weren't concerned about Milwaukee this year, they would be ignoring us.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)