Well I am back. Hope you are all basking in the glow of the Dodgers World Series win. I know for me it will always be a great memory. So, my tale today is about the men who umpire our great game. Specifically 5 of the 10 men who are in the hall. The second half will be in the next installment. Think about that. Over 130 years of professional baseball and only 10 umps have been enshrined. And all of them have different stories to tell. So, lets get started. We all know that in all probability that the electric strike zone will soon be with us. Some of these umps did the whole job by themselves.
Thomas Henry Connolly
Tom Connolly was born in Manchester England on Dec 31, 1870. His family emigrated to the US in 1875. Thomas had played cricket in England, but became fascinated with the game of baseball when he came to the US. He immersed himself in learning the game.
He also learned by umpiring local games and then games for the YMCA in Natick Massachusetts where his family had settled. While doing this, he was noticed by a major league umpire, Tim Hurst, who got him a position in the New England league.
Connolly umpired in the league from 1894 to 1897. In 1898 he was brought up to the National League. But he got angry because the league president was reluctant to back umps decisions on the field. He resigned in the middle of the 1900 season. He joined the AL in 1901.
AL president, Ban Johnson wanted to create a reputation for the AL as a solid challenger for the NL. He therefore gave umpires greater support than they had ever received and that attacks on umpires would not be tolerated and their judgement was final. On April 24, 1901 Connolly had the honor of umpiring the first ever AL game. And he did it by himself.
He showed a willingness to eject players from the game, 10 his first season, but over the years the players respected him so much that he once went 5 years, 1925 to 29 without ejecting a single player. He also showed an ability to stand firm against the toughest players in defense of the rules.
On Sept 11, 1912. he called Ty Cobb out for stepping across home plate while batting, after Cobb had batted in a run during an attempted intentional walk. During the ensuing argument, Connolly was struck in the mouth by a bottle thrown by a fan. His reputation won him some prominent game assignments and he umped the first ever games at Comiskey, Shibe, Fenway and Yankee Stadium. He was also the sole ump chosen to work the first World Series in 1903.
In 1931, Will Harridge, the Al president was concerned about widespread complaints about the quality of umpiring in the AL. Connolly retired and was named the Supervisor of Umpires. He remained at that post until 1954. He traveled around the league meeting with the umps to insure the quality of umpiring was meeting the high standards the league wanted.
Connolly worked 8 World Series and was the home plate ump for Addie Joss’s perfect game on October 2, 1908. He also called balls and strikes for 3 other no hitters. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1953 along with another umpiring legend you will soon learn about, Bill Klem. His record of umpiring for 31 years in the AL was broken by Larry Barnett in 1999. Connolly died April 28, 1961, age 90 in Natick Mass. He was survived by 7 children.
William Joseph Klem
William J. Klem, better known as Bill, was born Feb 22, 1874 in Rochester N.Y. He was born in an area known as Dutchtown. Klem had changed his name from Klimm to Klem because he thought it had a better sound. He pursued a career as a catcher until he sustained an arm injury.
He then worked as a bartender and traveled the Northeast building bridges. He decided to pursue umpiring after reading a newspaper article about MLB umpire, Silk O’Laughlin.
His career started in the Connecticut League in 1902. He had a run in that year with the league secretary and team manager, Jim O’Rourke after Klem ejected one of his players. O’Rourke threatened that Klem would not umpire another game in the league, but Klem responded, Maybe so, but I’ll umpire this one.
In 03 he was in the N Y State league and in 04, the American Association. He joined the NL in 1905. Klem worked a record 18 World Series. 08, 09,11, 12, 12, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 29, 31, 32, 34, and 40. Of the 16 teams in existence only one, the St Louis Browns did not appear in a World Series he officiated. The Browns did not win their first pennant until 1944. And only the Dodgers and Phillies and the Tigers failed to win a Championship. He umpired in the first all-star game in 1933, and the 1938 games. He holds the record for Career ejections at 251. He called 5 no hitters, and was the home plate umpire in 1924 when Jim Bottomley drove in 12 runs.
He had a few nicknames among the players, his favorite was ” The Old Arbitrator” Another was Catfish, which he hated. He was known to eject players who used it. He once ran Al Lopez, who spent time with the Dodgers and later managed the White Sox, when Lopez taped a photo showing Klem making a bad call on a play involving Lopez. Lopez had glued it to home plate and thrown dirt on it. Klem saw it when he cleaned the plate, and ran Lopez from the game.
He became chief of umpires in 1940. The league began experimenting with 4 man crews in 1941. Klem appeared in a few of those games. He umpired 5,375 regular season games, and 103 in post season. He umped for 37 years and Bruce Froemming tied that mark in 2007. He was the first to wear the modern chest protector under his shirt and campaigned to have it adopted across the league. Only Beans Reardon and Jocko Conlan did not use it.
Klem passed away on Sept 16, 1951 at the age of 77. He was elected to the hall with Tom Connolly in 1953. The first two umpires in the hall.
Nestor Chylak
Nestor George Chylak Jr. Born May 11, 1922 in Olyphant Pennsylvania. His parents were of Ukrainian descent. He was the first of five children and he attended the University of Scranton.
During WWII, Chylak served in the US Army in Europe. He suffered shrapnel injuries during the Battle of the Bulge. He was blinded for several days and hospitalized for 8 weeks. He earned the Silver Star and was awarded a Purple Heart for his wounds.
He came back from the war and began umpiring amateur games. He moved to the New York Penn League and then the Canadian American League before he finally made the majors in 1954.
Chylak said that two of his greatest thrills occurred in the early to mid 60’s One was umpiring the 7th game of the 1960 World Series when Bill Mazeroski hit his walk off homer, and the other was the last game pitched by Sandy Koufax in the 1966 World Series when he faced Jim Palmer.
He worked the first AL Championship series in 1969. In 1974 he was on the field for 10 cent beer night in Cleveland. The fans became unruly and started fights with the players, sometimes pouring beer on them. Chylak declared the game forfeit and sustained a facial wound by being hit by a chair. He was the home plate umpire for the first game played by the Blue Jays in 1977 in a snowstorm at Exhibition stadium.
He retired in 1978 and became assistant league supervisor of umpires. He was in the umps room at Comiskey on Disco Demolition night in July of 1979. Between games the fans rioted. Because of the damage to the field, the umps refused to allow the second game to be played and when league president Lee MacPhail decided the Sox must forfeit the game, Chylak had to inform Bill Veeck.
After his retirement he became a member of the Sports Illustrated Speakers Bureau and addressed a wide variety of groups about the lessons learned during his years in baseball. He died at 59 of a heart attack in Dunmore Pennsylvania. He was survived by his wife, 2 sons and 7 grandkids. Elected to the Hall by the Veterans committee in 1999.
John Bertrand Conlan ( Jocko)
Conlan was born on Dec 6, 1899 in Chicago Ill. He had a brief career as an outfielder for the White Sox before beginning his career as an ump. He began his professional baseball career in 1920. He spent 13 years in the minors. He came to the Sox in 1934. But in 1935 he was presented with an unusual opportunity. During a game against the Browns, the ump, Red Ormsby fell ill due to the heat. In those days only two umpires typically umpired games, and a player with a rep for honesty would sometimes be pressed into service if an ump was incapacitated. Conlan was asked to fill and took to it well
The next year, 1936 he started his umpiring career in the minors. He joined the NL in 1941 and stayed until 1965. He did 5 World Series, 45, 50, 54, 57, and 61. He also did six All Star games…43, 47. 50, 53, 58, and the first game of the 62 season. For a couple of years they played 2 all Star games. He also umpired in all 3 of the Dodgers playoff series, 51, 59 and 62. And he was the home plate ump when Gil Hodges hit 4 homers on August 31, 1950. He was also an umpire when Willie Mays hit 4 homers on April 30, 1961. He retired in 64, but was a substitute ump for 17 games in 1965.
Conlan was known for several trademarks. Instead of a regular dress tie like most umps wore…yeah they wore ties back then, he wore a natty bow tie. He also was different in that he made out calls with his left hand instead of his right. He was also the last umpire allowed to wear the outside chest protector.
Casey Stengel admired Conlan’s performance as a player and an umpire. He had managed Conlan when he played for the Toledo Mud Hens. Once Conlan broke his leg sliding into third, he was hitting .292 when he got hurt. He scored a run before telling anyone he was hurt. Stengel gave him 500 of a 1000 bonus he would have gotten for hitting .300.
Stengel related that as a reward for the 500 dollars, Jocko would run him more than any other manager in the league. He had a famous argument in April of 1961 at the Coliseum in LA with Leo Durocher. Leo was arguing with Jocko, and he had already been tossed from the game. Leo attempted to kick dirt on Conlan’s shoes, but he slipped and instead kicked him in the shin. Striking an umpire is a serious offense, but Conlan instead kicked him right back. The entire thing was captured by an alert photographer and circulated for some time. Conlan was wearing shin guards, so Leo’s kick did no damage.
His name was mentioned in the 1962 song “The Los Angeles Dodgers” by Danny Kaye, And in the book, Carl Erskine’s Tales from the Dodger Dugout, Extra Innings..2004, includes short stories from Erskine, and Conlan is prominent in many of them.
Conlan retired to Arizona and enjoyed playing golf. He was elected to the Hall in 1974. He underwent heart surgery while watching the first game of the 1974 World Series. He died in 1989 at 89 years old in Scottsdale Az. His son, John Bertrand served in the US House of Representatives.
William George Evans ( Billy)
Billy as he was called was born on Feb 10, 1884 in Chicago Illinois. He was also called the boy umpire. He joined the Al in 1906 at the age of 22. The youngest MLB umpire ever. He also was the youngest ever to umpire a World Series game. doing so at age 25.
When he was a child his family relocated to Youngstown Ohio where his dad was a superintendent at Carnegie Steel plant. As a youth he participated in programs at the YMCA and played on a youth team called the Youngstown Spiders, in honor of the Cleveland Spiders.
He gained some notoriety as an athlete at Rayen School. Excelling in baseball, football and track. He went to Cornell University and played on a freshman team managed by major league SS, Hughie Jennings. After two years his law studies and sports career came to an end with the sudden death of his father.
He returned to Ohio and got a job as a sports reporter for the Youngstown Daily Vindicator. He had written for his high school yearbook and college newspaper. Evans was approached during a game between a couple of semi pro teams and asked by an exe major leaguer, Marty Hogan to fill an umpiring vacancy. He was on a date with a young woman and was not interested until Hogan said it paid 15 dollars a week, a figure that matched his salary as a sportswriter.
He caught the attention of Charlie Morton, president of the Ohio Penn League and was offered a full time position. He took the job on the condition that he could retain his position as a sports writer. Being an ump is hard enough, but juggling both of those jobs? WOW.
His ability so impressed Jimmy McAleer, a former MLB player and he recommended Evans to AL president, Ban Johnson. So at 22 Evans joined the AL staff with little professional experience. He was also the only ump of his era who had never played professional baseball. After making his debut at Highlander’s Park in NYC, he went on to ump in six World Series, 09, 12, 15, 17, 19, and 23. Working in an era when MLB used no more than 2 umps for any game, and sometimes one, he single-handedly umpired 7 double headers in eight days during the 07 season. He was a base umpire during Charlie Robertson’s perfect game on April 20, 1922.
Unlike a lot of umps of the time, he admitted to missing a lot of calls. His honesty did not protect him from the wrath of the fans, who in those days were a lot more apt to cause problems at games. He sustained a skull fracture on Sept 15, 1907 when a bottle hurled by an angry fan knocked him unconscious.
He made some innovations to a game when he began running to a base where a play was made so that he would be on top of it. He also tried diplomacy over belligerency and proved an ump could control a game without threats of physical violence.
Billy would not back down when physically threatened. In September of 1921 he was involved in a bloody fist fight with Ty Cobb. Cobb threatened to whip Evans right at home plate. That would have gotten Cobb and immediate suspension. Evans supposedly invited Cobb to the Umpires dressing room for post-game festivities. Before long both men were brawling beneath the stands as players from both teams looked on. Some accounts said many of Cobbs team mates were rooting for Evans.
After the fight, Cobb was suspended one game, and Evans had bandages for the next several days. Even though they both agreed to keep the fight quiet, Johnson found out about it and lamented that he was sorry he missed it.
For his entire career Evans remained active as a sports writer. After retiring, he became the general manager of the Indians. He was credited with taking the Indians from a second to a first division team and remained with the Indians until 1935. He worked for the Red Sox as a while as chief scout and head of the farm system. But he left on October 8the 1940 after the Sox sold Pee Wee Reese to the Dodgers over his objections.
He became general manager of the Rams for the 1941 season and in 1942 took over as league president of the Southern Association. He did that for 4 years and then took over as GM of the Tigers. One of his first moves was trading Hank Greenberg to the Pirates. In 1951 he left in favor of Tiger legend, Charlie Gehringer.
In Jan of 1956 he suffered a massive stroke while visiting his son and died on Jan 23rd at 71 years old. In 1973 he was elected to the Hall of Fame. Becoming the 3rd umpire so honored.
It is a joy and a privilege writing for this site, and I appreciate the chance to do so. Since Mark posted a pic of his granddaughter, she is the cute one, I am posting a pic of my granddaughter Charlyssa and my only great grandchild so far, Kinsli Grayce.
Great article, Bear, and we are blessed to have you!
Nice grandkid and great grandkid! It will be a long time before I have any great-grandkids!
BTW, I think I got the “Moderation” issue fixed. We shall see!
Thanks Mark. I am enjoying it a lot.
It appears that no one likes umpires or labor negotiations…
However, both are big parts of the game and LA DODGER TALK covers it all!
Love your historical take on the game Bear. Thanks for the memories! And the Dodgers are WS champs! Just can’t stop saying it!
Thanks Cassidy. I can’t stop saying it either. I ordered a mug and a shirt with that on it. Hope to have it soon. And I do love the history of the game and the Dodgers. The second half of the Umps story’s should be done soon.
Pfizer is reporting a 90% success rate in their clinical trial with their vaccine. Fantastic news for us all. Especially us baseball fans.
Love the private sector.
Let’s hope the details are good.
Thank you for the article you wrote on the umpires, Bear. I have been interested in the umpires lately and the stories they tell. Right now I am rereading the books of Ron Luciano, Strike Two and The Umpire Strikes Back. He was a very colorful umpire and wonder if he will ever make the HOF some day. Your granddaughter and great-granddaughter are lovely.
Thanks DBM. Luciano was one of the 3 Al umps who worked the 74 World Series. He was quite the character. He was a very colorful guy and when I read his Wikipedia page I found out a couple of things that I thought were pretty cool. First off, Ron used to talk to players when they were hitting. Back then, that was sort of taboo. He also refused to call a balk. He said the rule book was to sketchy on what exactly was a balk. He said he never called one in his life. I have a hazy memory of him arguing with Lasorda about something, but I cannot remember when it was. It would have had to been in the series. Tommy was the 3rd base coach then. What I do remember about those days was that the AL umps wore those ugly maroon jackets. As for the hall, His career as a MLB umpire was relatively short, He was voted once by the players as excellent in 1974. Only 2 AL umps got that rating.
Also, forgot to add, thank you Mark for fixing the comment section.
Bear, this was an excellent article on some of the very best umpires MLB has ever known. It does personalize part of the game that is too often ostracized. Today there are too many Angel Hernandez’s and Cowboy Joe West’s, and not enough Jocko Conlan’s.
Mike Petriello of MLB.com put together a ranking of all current ML rosters based on the teams’ cumulative WAR as depicted by Fangraphs on November 8. It is kind of a silly exercise, as no team is going to start on April 1, 2021 with the roster they currently have. But it is the silly season, and these exercises gives a viewpoint as to where each team stands in a moment of time.
With that premise, shockingly the Dodgers are the #1 ranked team with a cumulative fWAR of 44.3. The difference between the #1 ranked team (LAD) and the #2 ranked team, Padres (39.8), is 4.5 fWAR. To put that in perspective, the difference between #1 and #2 is larger than the difference between #2 and #9.
Top 5 ranking:
Dodgers – 44.3
Padres – 39.8
NYY – 38.9
Twins – 38.6
Astros – 38.5
The rest of the NL West are buried in the final 1/3:
Arizona (22.7) – #22
San Francisco (21.9) – #24
Colorado (16.6) – #30
Here is what MLB.com wrote about Colorado:
Despite the myth that “they’ll always hit,” they rarely do, outside of the top two or three bats. Put it this way: Arenado, Story and Charlie Blackmon are projected to contribute 8.3 WAR in 2021. All other Rockies hitters combine to project for -3.3 WAR. This has been the story for three years now.
What was said about the Dodgers:
Other than Turner, who may yet return anyway, none of their impending free agents are the kind of fundamental building blocks who can’t be replaced. They still have Mookie Betts, Clayton Kershaw, Corey Seager, Walker Buehler, Max Muncy, Will Smith, and so on. They’re still the Dodgers. The Dodgers will, as they are every year, be favored headed into next season, this time freed of the “but where’s the ring?” pressure.
If interested here is the article on the ranking and tidbit on every team as they now stand:
https://www.mlb.com/news/where-every-mlb-team-starts-the-2020-21-offseason
Thank you Jeff. I remember when I was a kid listening to games and Vin would talk about the umps sometimes. You could tell by the way he talked which umps he had respect for. Conlan was one of those guys, and so was Doug Harvey. Another HOF ump who I will profile in the next installment. Guys like Hernandez and West are a couple of reason’s why the electronic strike zone is coming. In all of baseball’s history, only one player ever died as a result of getting hit by a ball. Ray Chapman, who died after being hit by a pitch thrown by Carl Mays of the Yankees. To my knowledge, the only umpire who died on the field was John McSherry, who had a massive heart attack in Cincinnati on opening day in 1996. Seven pitches into the game he called time out and motioned for the second base umpire to come in and replace him. He turned to go into the Reds dugout and collapsed. He was pronounced DOA at the hospital and the game was postponed.
What is the estimated dollar amount for each Win Above Replacement? I think it was last around 7 million when I heard it last mentioned. That means the Dodgers quality and production value is worth 310 million. They’re obviously quite a bit under that figure for their total payroll.
It would be interesting to multiply each team’s total WAR value by 7, then divide by current payroll to get a dollar per WAR figure and compare each team.
It is around $8MM.
Nice article, Bear. Your granddaughter actually look like you.
I thought she was cute. Are you saying Bear is cute too?
That question is a trap.
A bear trap?????
All bears are cute….when they are cubs.
That was a good answer. I shoulda thought of that.
I think she looks more like her mom, who looks like my exe. But i would not wish looking like me on anyone. My son is the spitting image of his mother. One reason he is only 5’8″. She was 5’1″ I am 6’1″.
Very nice, looking forward to the next installment.
Thank you. I will have it done by this weekend.
Great stuff Bear. I love articles about the old timers, in his case the Umpires. Colorful characters for sure. Joe West has to be very close to Bill Klem’s all-time record for games officiated. I wished he’d get there soon so he can quit.
Great pic of your granddaughter and great grand baby. What a great look on this kid’s face like he just ate a pickle or smelled something. Thanks for sharing that.
I have an old Ron Luciano story I’ll try to remember from memory:
Ron’s at 2nd base on a sunny day in Oakland and blows a call. And he knows it. So out comes Dick Williams and Ron’s going to hear it in typical Williams fashion. Instead of anger however, Williams is condescending as hell. “Oh Ron, I feel so sorry for you. It’s a beautiful day but 30,000 people are all standing and booing you. That has to feel terrible. I feel so bad for you”.
Ron just stared at him wondering what was going on.
Williams continued, “but you know what Ron, these fans aren’t booing that call. They are booing your whole f***ing career.” You gone.
Speaking of umpires are now in a somewhat tenuous situation with pitchers. Enos Sarris in the Athletic has a great article on pitchers using grip enhancement substances to their advantage. The estimate is 99% use something and it is illegal. But it would be up to the managers to notify the umpires, as of now. to catch the users and punish them. Managers aren’t going to do that because there own guys are doing it too. Infielders are know to apply Pelican Balm, pine tar, whatever when the ball was thrown around the horn. In my day an infielder might have a thumb tack or sandpaper in the glove to cut or scuff a ball. And balls stayed in the game unlike today. Pitchers this year had to find a new hiding place for the stuff as balls weren’t thrown around the horn. Trevor and Driveline claim a 200 – 400 rpm increase by using a foreign substance. It’s a good article.
Anyway, thanks again for an enjoyable morning read and picture. I’m looking forward to your next installment.
Good story Phil and interesting info on the pitchers using illegal substances on the balls they throw. I have suspected that for many years but here is a thought. I would rather that the pitchers have something to have them grip the ball better, especially in the rain, than not and hurt a batter with an uncontrolled pitch.
DBM I’m with you on the point of controlling the baseball. Some hitters agree. Some don’t claiming the increase life on the pitch is such a benefit to the pitchers that it outweighs the risk. They are also experimenting with the hide of the ball to make it more tacky (and I’m an expert on tacky). Apparently the Korean baseball has better grip and seems but it doesn’t fly. Science and technology strike again. It’s a very interesting cat and mouse game.
In a February 2020 Sporting News article, Trevor Bauer addressed this issue. Bauer, appearing on HBO’s “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel,” explained his frustrations with how pitchers are using pine tar. This is a subject Bauer has discussed in the past, and it’s something he spoke with Sporting News about in 2018. Speaking to HBO, Bauer says he believes about 70 percent of pitchers are cheating.
This is a number he’s used before, most recently in an article for The Players’ Tribune.
“But eight years later, I haven’t found any other way [to increase the spin on my fastball] except using foreign substances,” Bauer wrote. “Baseball will never address that problem unless it has to, though, because I would guess 70 percent of the pitchers in the league use some sort of technically illegal substance on the ball. It’s just that some organizations really know how to weaponize that and some don’t. So the Astros are super advanced analytically and they know how to weaponize it.”
“It needs to be talked about more because it affects every single pitch. And it’s a bigger advantage than steroids ever were,” Bauer says. “Because if you know how to manipulate it, you can make the ball do drastically different things from pitch to pitch at the same velocity.”
Quote from the Athletic “Almost everyone is using something,” said a coach with experience in several major league organizations.”
“My guess on total MLB players using some sort of grip enhancement … 99.9 percent,” said another coach who has worked with multiple major leaguers.”
Today’s Athletic article also mentioned the safety aspect of utilizing “grip enhancement”. As a parent of a pitcher I know that the weather, humidity and baseball construction itself affects the slipperiness of the ball and therefore the command of pitches. Rosin, while good for sweaty hands doesn’t improve grip under all conditions. “But, rather than try to eradicate such a widespread practice, it might make more sense for Major League Baseball to legalize it.” https://theathletic.com/2183861/2020/11/09/pitchers-pine-tar-grip-mlb-time-to-legalize/ (Subscription required). I would endorse such a legalization. Our town regularly updates speed limits around town based on average driver behavior. Speed limits have increased on certain roads when most drivers exceed the posted speed with no resulting accidents. This reduces the need for police monitoring, the number of tickets issued and accusation of speed traps.
I do not remember who the umpire was, but I think it was Babe Pinelli. There was a play at second and Pinelli yelled safe but made the out signal with his hand. The runner looked at him somewhat confused and said, Babe, you called me safe, why am I out. He replied, yeah I called you safe but the whole park saw me signal out, so your gone. Great stuff. Stories like this abound and Luciano noted several of them in his books. I only read the first one, “The Ump Strikes Back ” But I have heard that the others are very well done. Baseball books containing the humor of the game have always been a favorite of mine. Another story about Luciano that is one time in spring training he changed hats with 3rd baseman Buddy Bell and played 3rd for an inning while Bell umpired. He got reprimanded by the league for unprofessional behavior.
Yes, read that, Bear. Really enjoying the books. Strike Two is also a book you might enjoy.
Thanks Phil. There is a good story on his Wikipedia page. It explains about Luciano talking to players. And as an example there was an exchange with Yaz that is classic. It was in 1976. Yaz came to the plate and said: listen Ronnie, my kid is hitting .300, my wife is fine, and I haven’t heard any new jokes. I don’t want to know about Polish restaurants. I am nothing for 15 and I want you to keep your mouth shut. Luciano was stunned and did not say a word. On the second pitch, Yaz hit a homer. When he crossed home plate he said to Luciano, ok, you can talk to me now. Classic stuff. He also once congratulated Sal Bando as he rounded the bases after hitting a homer to end a long slump. Bando looked at him as though he had lost his mind. Luciano replied, It’s ok, we’re Italian. He had a long running feud with Earl Weaver that started when they were both in the minors. He was doing a 4 game series and ejected Weaver from all four games. In the fourth game the ejection came while they were exchanging the lineup cards. He also ejected him from both games in a double header, the second game, during the exchange. He was married once for about 2 years to a stewardess who lived in Chicago. Their marriage was strained because she did not want to leave Chicago, and he had no desire to leave upstate New York. He once went 4 months without seeing her at all. Luciano committed suicide on January 18, 1995 of carbon monoxide poisoning. He reportedly had been depressed for quite a while.
December 2 is going to be a day not soon forgotten as many people think over 100 players will be non-tendered. So, I do not expect much movement until after that.
AC, I just read on ESPN.com that Peter Woodfork has been chosen to oversee minor league operations. Is this a good thing, in your opinion and what do you think of him?
DBM, Woodfork is an MLB guy, who will have MLB’s interest at the forefront. We will not know how this plays out until we know how MiLB will be run. I have an article I am working on about this topic, but the answers to the open questions are not forthcoming. I am convinced that SOME of the issues that relate to the players will be addressed, but this is all MLB and what is best for them.
Thank you, AC. Guess we will have to be patient and wait and see.
The first hammer fell in the Yankee system. They are moving their affiliates from Staten Island and Trenton NJ. Staten Island was shocked because they were given no notice. They had been working with the city of New York on stadium upgrades that MLB wanted. I have an eerie feeling that there are going to be a lot of minor league players, many of whom would never make it to the show anyway, out of work soon.
Rockies signed former Giant RH Derek Rodriguez to a minor league deal. He is the son of Pudge Rodriguez. HOF catcher.
Another fine piece Michael – you are rather good at this.
Thought the same thing as Patch – your Grand Daughter does look like you.
Thanks Watford. Did you notice that Connolly was born in England? I thought that was pretty cool. And that he played cricket as a kid. I used to watch a show on Netflix called Murdock Murder Mystery’s. It was from Canada. Pretty good show set in Toronto at the turn of the century. One of the episodes involved murder of a cricket player from India. I remember a few seasons ago, the Dodgers opened the season in Sydney Australia playing in a cricket stadium against the D-Backs.
I saw this story today on some Dodger blog (can’t recall and I’m too lazy to go and find) regarding the recently departed long-time Dodgers’ fan Alex Trebek:
America lost a legend this weekend when Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek succumbed to complications from pancreatic cancer, just about 10 days after he left the studio for the final time, showing extreme dedication to his craft until the very end. But what you might not know is that Trebek was a dedicated Dodgers fan, too, and probably felt the same elation at the tail end of the World Series as you and I.
Trebek loved our boys in blue, but he also passed the trademark test of a die-hard Dodgers fans — he was an avowed hater of the San Francisco Giants. And he did not run and hide from his anti-Giants impulses.
I knew Trebek was a Dodger fan. I saw him at Dodger Stadium on the broadcast a couple of times. But there are always some celebrities there. Used to see Larry King behind home plate a lot before he got so ill. Danny Kaye when he was alive was a huge fan.
I see nobody is talking about the 9 positive tests in Dodger organization. I have no details.
I have read a little about that on a couple of sites. ESPN is reporting it. Not sure who the players are either. They have not been identified. But from what I read, all are quarantined. I did find out that Turner was encouraged by team mates to return to the field. And Dodger officials, who probably should have known better did not try to stop him. By most reports the after game scene was pretty much chaos.
,,, and they won’t give you any either.
From “Think Blue Planning Committee”
“When asked by the host, Freidman stated “We have 400, 500 different employees, kinda all mixed across different areas and different places, and you know, some have contracted the virus. I think for the most part, to my knowledge, everyone who has it has taken the necessary precautions, and also feeling relatively good so I think from that stand point that’s the time period that we’re in right now….and it’s what we do when that happens and we feel good about the responsibility that our employees take… Its different people from every different department, and for the most part, people that live in LA County and work for the Dodgers but weren’t in the bubble.”
There is some mystery as to whether any other players have tested positive from Turner being on the field, and how JT got the virus when by all accounts, he was adhering to protocols inside the bubble. The world may never find out how that was allowed to happen.”
There may not be other players or anyone within the bubble.
As a kid grown up with the PCL prior to to the arrival of the Blue Ill always remember an umpire by the name Emmet Ashford… He was a kick, being very theatrical behind the plate. He left no one in the park wondering if it was a srike or a ball….
I’m worried about losing my Dodger A ball team in Rancho Cucamonga!!!
Damn good stuff Bear and welcome back…
P.S. Badger sorry about having your name dragged in 11-1-20…
Thanks Peter. Ashford made it to the majors in 1966. He was an AL umpire until 1970. He was the first African-American umpire in the majors. You won’t lose Rancho. It is the Dodgers high A team and the proximity to LA makes it perfect for coaches and management to keep track of the kids. I do not know why the Yankees felt the need to move their two teams, but Staten Island was rookie ball.
Don’t be peter. You said nothing that wasn’t true.
Emmit Ashford was guest speaker at my 9th grade athletic banquet. All I remember is he made the adults laugh and he ate a lot.
Walker Buehler’s horse, Authentic won the breeders cup classic at the Kentucky Derby. Buehler is a part owner. Also, Rawlings has expanded the Gold Glove award and is awarding one for team defense now. The Dodgers placed 3rd in the NL behind the Cubs and Cardinals.
Your article reminded me of those old Miller Lite commercials. There’s that one where Honochick was trying to pour ketchup out of the beer bottle that was my favorite but I can’t find that one.
https://youtu.be/Z8c6Ir2okLY
The idiot Jerry Reinsdorf sure knows how to pick ’em:
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30288007/chicago-white-sox-manager-tony-la-russa-charged-dui-stemming-february-arrest-court-docs-show
If the White Sox have an ounce of integrity, LaRussa has to go. You can’t lead an organization like this.
I actually remember that Mark It was on ESPN and a couple of other outlets. Sure sets a bad example for the kids. He should never have hired him anyway.
I just read on MLBTR that he will not be fired or disciplined. Also read some of AF’s comments He stated that signing JT was not a priority. Hmm. seems he would not mind if he signed somewhere else, or for a really team friendly contract. Just my opinion by the way, but not signing Turner is not going to sit too well with the faithful.