I got to thinking the other day about why baseball is my favorite sport. And I also wondered why others choose this sport to be their favorite.
It is not the easiest game to play. And it requires a lot of skill sets to play at the highest level. The greatest are usually said to have had 5 tools. Hit for average, run well, field at a high level, hit for power, and have a great throwing arm. Most of us mortals fail in at least 3 or 4 of those skills.
Baseball when I was a kid was the one sport that came fairly easy to me. I had decent hand-to-eye coordination and hitting baseballs thrown at speeds I could handle was not all that difficult. I was not a fast runner… the medium speed at best, but I could judge balls fairly easily. My throwing was so-so. It became worse after I strained my shoulder in Little League making a throw from CF to home plate.
I knew there was little chance I would ever play pro ball, but I loved the game and my Dodgers. I think part of the love affair comes when you first go to a game. The sights and smells of a ballpark are like nothing else on earth. My first big league game came at the Coliseum in 1958. I cannot remember exactly who the Dodgers were playing, but it was a Sunday afternoon game in the summer.
I bought my first Dodger souvenir pack of Dodger player photos that day. Other than baseball cards, it was my first close-up view of them. You really could not see their faces way out there down the RF line in the cheap seats. And in those days, TV did not give you the closeups that they do today. And remember, when the Dodgers first moved to Los Angeles, the only televised games were the games against the Giants played in San Francisco.
Dodger Stadium was a whole different experience completely. The reason was simple, Dodger Stadium is a baseball park. Not a football and track stadium configured for baseball. You had a much closer view of your favorites, and if you sat in the pavilions, you could try and get a ball from one of the outfielders or the bullpen pitchers.
The pavilions were packed during batting practice. That was the way I got the first ball I ever caught in a stadium. Joe Ferguson hit one that bounced on the warning track and came right at me. Had my first baseman’s mitt on and caught it. I have come close a few times since then, but that was the only one I actually caught. I would love to get a chance to sit in those HR seats there now. Looks like a lot of fun.
I also think that back in those days, players were more accessible. You look today, and unless they are signing autographs along the rails before a game, or you catch them during spring training on one of the paths at Camelback, players are just not all that accessible to the fans.
For many years the Dodgers would set up autograph booths prior to games on Sundays on each tier of Dodger Stadium and on both sides of the ballpark. I got a few back when they did that. Tommy Davis is on my first baseman’s mitt. They also had these stickers shaped like a baseball that most of the players would sign.
The best chance at a Dodger game to get some autographs back then was to also wait by the player’s parking lot which is behind the LF pavilion. At least it was then. My son got a couple thereafter a doubleheader with the Expos. Hershiser signed for about 10 minutes before he left, but Strawberry and Davis just got in their rides and left.
When the Dodgers were in Brooklyn, most of the players lived right there amongst the fans. Some of the fans were close friends with Gil, Pee Wee, Erskine, and others. And probably some of the players a lot earlier than that period.
In New York, back when he was obviously the king of the hill, Babe Ruth was rarely alone when he went out in public. Babe loved kids, and he always was available to them to sign autographs, show his batting grip or discuss most anything about baseball they wanted to know. You do not see that kind of thing today. Babe also visited hospitals and spoke to kids who were ill. Teammate Lou Gehrig also would do that.
Imagine that kind of thing happening today. About the only way a kid gets one on one contact like that is when there is a clinic or something of that nature. I always get a warm feeling when I see a player connect with a kid during a game. Like the instance a couple of years ago where Mike Trout played catch with a fan in between innings. Those kinds of acts make lifelong fans.
The vast majority of us will never be major leaguers. But kids in my youth had that dream. It is the kind of thing you would do in your backyard when you would pretend you hit the game-winning walk-off home run in the bottom of the 9th in the World Series. The playoffs came a lot later, so all of our backyard heroics came in the World Series.
It was the only way you could be able to visualize that kind of thing. Imagine how it felt to Kirk Gibson, injured, hobbling around the bases, and delivering one of the most revered moments in Dodger history.
Chris Taylor must have felt something similar this year when he beat St.Louis with his walk-off. Belli, with his go-ahead shot in the 2020 NLCS. Kike with 3 HR’s in the clincher of the NLCS in 2017. We have those moments to savor. It is like you won the game. When we talk about the Dodgers, it is usually we. Even though none of us plays.
Baseball is so embedded in most of us that we feel like we are a part of the team. That is part of the fun and allure of baseball. The game is not the National Pastime anymore. Most football fans are far more passionate about their teams, and the baseball season is long. Football is 17 games, basketball, and hockey in the 80’s.
A baseball season when you add in spring training and the playoffs can end up being close to 200. For example, the Dodgers played 29 spring games, followed by a 162 game season, a wild card game, a 5 game series with the Giants and 6 against the Braves. Total games played 203. Spring record, 13-11-5. Season record, 106-56. Playoff record, 6-6. Total 125 W, 73 losses, and 5 ties.
So, keeping the fans interested takes a lot of work. Thus things like the All-Star Game and the trade deadline make for a lot of hot stove discussions. The other thing is stats. Baseball stats are much more detailed than the stats of the other sports. Although some can name the all-time rushing leader or the all-time scoring leader in basketball, most baseball fans can dig much deeper and give you a literal laundry list of stats.
As a kid, I knew the stats on the back of my favorite player’s card as well or better than any subject I took in school. And baseball cards as collectibles are much more desirable than those of any other sport. And when put up for auction, they sell for unreal amounts of money, some getting into the millions like a Mantle rookie that went for over 5 million and the Honus Wagner card that sold for close to that price.
Yes, baseball has that kind of pull. And those of us who have loved the game since childhood, even with all the new rules and changes, still consider it the best game there is. This is an addition this post. I realize that fans and players are a lot different now. Players are more like movie stars and get mobbed where ever they go if they are famous enough to be recognized. Players can and do charge for their appearances at card shows and such. But sometimes you just long for simpler times. I know I do. Once I went to Universal Studios with my wife and kids. When we went to get some lunch, I noticed a guy who came in and sat down not two tables from me. His moustache was unmistakable. It was Rollie Fingers. Realizing he was probably there enjoying himself and not really wanting to be a pest, I resisted the temptation to ask for his autograph, which was a good call because I did not have anything to write with or on. Yep, baseball players are people too.
Nice write up Bear. I became a baseball fan around1956 and used to go to a few LA Angels and Hollywood Stars (PCL) games at old Wrigley field. The one player I remember from the Angels was Steve Bilko who was a HR hitting first baseman. They had some great teams and were a Chicago Cubs minor league team. But, once the Dodgers came to LA I was an immediate fan and attended many games at the Coliseum, watched them build Dodger Stadium, and went to lots of games there up until the 2000’s. It was $1.50 to sit in the pavilion. Rarely any problem doing a walk up and getting a ticket for a game.
I loved the game but was average skill wise. My younger brother, on the other hand, could have been a big league player. He had four teammates off his high school team who played in the show and he was better than all of them. But, he was a knucklehead and never took advantage of his skills. This frustrated me to no end. Anyway, baseball used to be a great game. Now, it’s still entertaining especially because of the success the Dodgers have had recently. Discovering this blog a few years ago has also added to my appreciation and enjoyment for the game. We have some incredible contributors to this blog.
Like you Bear I collected cards and was a stat freak. Then there were only 16 teams in baseball so it was easier to follow and remember who was doing what. Now, I don’t know many of the players that populate the teams. That’s why I enjoy Jeff’s and DC’s following and introducing us to the Dodgers of the future. If and when they finally get to the Dodgers we have some information on where they come from, who they are, and what are the expectations of their abilities.
Until the CBA and the Bauer situation is resolved it doesn’t interest me to be making projections on who may or may not be signed or not signed. Both those issues could have financial restrictions for the Dodgers. We’ll see.
Carry on.
I went to Gilmore Field once with my uncle to see the Stars, who he loved and he took me to Wrigley once. I remember Bilko well, and I still have my 59 Steve Bilko Topps card from when he played for the Dodgers.
Good column today, Bear.
I agree players are no longer as accessible as they once were in Brooklyn, they lived and worked in the community. But many LA Dodgers have visited children in hospitals, pre-Covid, participated in clinics you mentioned and other community activities, sometimes in one on one situations. It’s obvious the Dodgers organization and players understand the need to give back.
The Spectrum Dodger channel often features players interacting with youth and the community, especially on charity work.
But probably no one will ever connect with the Babe Ruth approach, although Yasiel Puig would often stop at youth baseball practices unannounced, interact and play ball with the kids.
Justin Turner is an example of a player who interacts with fans and children on an on-going basis, one of the benefits of having a player living in the area year round.
I’ve never been to Vero Beach, but people who have said the access to players was incredible. Still, Glendale feels pretty fan friendly by today’s standards.
Vero Beach is hallowed ground. Nothing will ever be quite like it.
You can still hear the Ghosts of Roy, Gil, the Walters, Tommy, Junior, Jackie, Big DNewk, Willie, and all the others if you walk the grounds on a warm Spring morning!
xcellent article Bear, I imagine all the memories you had at the time of writing this brilliant collaboration of yours. From a distance and with a lot of imagination, based on the few illustrated sports magazines that I had access to in the 60’s, I recreated scenes such as the games and the LA Dodgers players, luckily I became a fan of them for the Koufax, Drysdale, Willy and Tommy Davis Etc .., and like other colleagues I found this site, may God want us to keep active, Congratulations Bear
Thanks Jose. I appreciate it. I had a couple of instances when I was a kid to actually meet Dodger players. But I would guess the best moment was getting to sing the Anthem at Dodger Stadium. Getting a chance to actually be in the Dodger dugout and then sing the Anthem in front of that many people, wow. It was a Giant-Dodger game so the stands were packed.
Good stuff this morning Bear. And I always enjoy tedraymond’s take on things.
I still love baseball. It started for me when I was little and tagged along, starting at about age 5, with my dad as he played shortstop and pitched fast pitch. As many have reported the hardest thing when you’re done playing is missing the clubhouse and all the characters as much as the game itself. I found a substitute for that by coaching. I really enjoyed the interaction with the high school and community college age kids. And I still love talking and teaching baseball. Now, I just finished up another season of Fall Ball at Camelback Ranch. It is sure nice to have that back. It’s fun to get the great information on young players by the experts on this site and than put a face to their names. I’m looking forward to an extremely interesting off season starting with a new CBA. (when can we expect Manfred to rule on Bauer and the $31 million floating around like the wind? What’s the delay? Is the excuse now the upcoming CBA?)
Bear, I love your images of the simpler times when fans and players would interact. I love the fans. I got hackled as a player some and we lived by the idea that the fans paid their money and were entitled to say what they wanted. I don’t really believe that but it helped ignore it. (I sometimes had a fantasy of going into the stands and sitting next to a hackler and explaining that I was a real person and not that bad of a guy and I was doing my best.)
Today is different. Social media for one has made things different between fans and players. And the amount of attention paid to the game. And the money. And players and fans both are more entitled. I hear fans young and old being openly rude and belligerent toward players. From the mouth of babes. In return, I see players openly ignore and avoid fans and autograph seekers who are now in it for money sometimes. Talented kids now (who have parents with deep pockets) play in national showcase games, rated at a young age by Perfect Game by state and position. play on expensive select travel teams all over the country and go to Area Code Games. Latin kids are pros at 16 and a 1/2 and are showcased by the Biscones. These kids know they are special at a young age and act like it.
When I was a kid I remembered every player who was rude to me when I was seeking an autograph and vowed to never do that to a kid. I didn’t either. As long as there were kids there asking, I’d stay and sign. I was a nobody in the big picture but the minor league fans didn’t care. I was a ballplayer.
Now days fans are way more aggressive and verbal. My buddy works the bullpen for a Spring Training site. He has amazing stories about fans, both kids and adults, above the bullpen begging for baseballs. Mothers yelling down profanities at players because the players didn’t toss their kid a ball and “he said please”. The players shake their heads and ignore it.
Players have to be very careful and guarded with fan interactions now days. There are a few obvious cases. The age of innocence is long gone. I find that very sad. But the kids today don’t know anything different.
Thanks again for your posts.
Thank you Phil. I always love your posts. You are very right about one thing, back in those days players would never dream of charging a kid or anyone for their autograph. That night my son and I went to the double header, he was very impressed by one of the Expos players, Kent Bottenfeld, who pitched the first game that night. Bottenfeld, who was with relatives, got out of his car when a fan approached him and ended up signing for about 5 minutes in the middle of the parking lot behind the pavilion. My son treasured that autograph more than any other he got simply because Kent took the time to stop, greet the kids and actually speak to them. Most of the Dodger players, with a couple exceptions, ignored them and left. Hey, I get it. It’s late, the games are over, I am tired and I want to go home. But even 2 or 3 minutes of their time would have meant years of good will.
Thanks for the shout out Phil. I’ve always enjoyed your comments because they are based upon your minor league play and extensive coaching experience. You have been in the trenches and know what can really go on in a professional clubhouse and with your coaching how to breakdown the skill aspects of the game. I can see the obvious things, but you go beyond the obvious with some great insight. Thanks.
I just made a nice long post thanking Bear and sharing some thoughts but it disappeared. Anybody know where it went?
Let me check
Thanks Mark
It was in jail. I bailed it out! 😉
So my email is jail now? How embarrassing..
Thanks again Mark. Do I need to post bail? The worst part now is the mug shot. It ain’t pretty.
It was sent to my email box for approval, but I cannot get on the page to approve it. Mark should be able to.
As you stated Buff, the Dodgers are very community conscious. They do an excellent job of having the players interact with the community and some players like JT take it to a whole different level. But overall, player interaction with the fans is not what it once was. I went to Camelback for games a few times when I lived in Phoenix. It is a lot easier to interact there. The pathways are roped off, but fans can take photo’s and get autographs when players are not busy. My closest experiences with players as a kid came because I was living in a home for kids in Highland Park. When they built a new housing tract on the same street in the hills that used to be our biggest playground, 2 Dodger players moved in just up the block from us. Larry and Norm Sherry. That led to actually getting to shag balls when they were getting ready to head to Vero. Best day of my life. Me and about 12 other kids chasing down baseballs at Arroyo Seco Park for the Sherry brothers and a couple of other players in the Dodger system. Then when the home had a multi purpose rec building built, the Sherry’s and Tommy Davis came to the opening. I got to talk to the batting champ for about 10 minutes. He said don’t change your stance, but grip the bat like this. Cool stuff for a 11 year old kid.
Seems like Seager has narrowed his choices to two teams. The Dodgers and the Yankees. Now, it also seems like he wants to sign before December. Also in that boat is Justin Verlander. Verlander supposedly has multiple offers in hand. Cy Young tonight. Now Bochy gave the Manager of the Year Award to Kapler. Bench gave the ROY to India. Hershiser is awarding the Cy Young tonight…..does that bode well for Mad Max???? Supposedly the MLBPA and MLB have been having meetings daily. No word on any progress being made.
Hershiser’s giving out the award definitely sounds good for Max, unless Joe Davis is on the ballot.
Of course the minute Max grabs that award, Boras ups his price by a few million.
Absolutely. But I do not really believe that if they really want the guy back, LA will worry about the cost. They have not shown that inclination so far. I have read a couple of posts that they are also very interested in Verlander. I would put it this way, if SF makes a push to get Max, LA is not going to let that happen. But as always for this year anyway, the elephant in the room is Bauer. Billy Epps likely to be named the new Mets GM by Friday.
I’ve been reading that Verlander would like to sign with a team that has ST in Florida. Think we can convince him we still train at Vero?
He resigned with Houston. It appears to have an option for a second year.
One of the NY papers is saying that word is getting out that the Yanks are not going to go crazy spending on a free agent shortstop, because they have a couple of excellent shortstop prospects not far away and because they have a major need in center field and at pitcher while at the same time having major commitments to Cole and Stanton with Judge coming up to free agency soon.
If true, that suddenly puts us in good shape for getting Corey to stay, although it might also encourage Detroit and Texas to get more heavily involved. I just can’t see Corey wanting to play for 8-10 years in Detroit, but I could see him thinking hard about Dallas.
Belt accepts the QO and stays in SF.
#1. I do not think the Dodgers will sign Verlander or anyone who has the QO attached. If the Dodgers sign a qualified free agent from another team, they must forfeit their second-highest and fifth-highest pick in the 2022 draft. The team will also have its international signing bonus pool reduced by $1MM.
If the Dodgers lose Seager and/or Taylor to another team in free agency, they’ll receive a Draft pick (one for each player they lose) after the fourth round as compensation.
I do not see them losing a 2nd and 5th pick and the bonus pool money.
2. I would offer Seager $200 Million/8 Years. Take it or leave it!
Verlander just re signed with the Astros for one year, 25 mil.
If Seager says he’s down to two teams, doesn’t that imply that he has offers from them?
Anyways, I’m glad it’s reported that it’s down to us and the Yankees especially after reading STB’s post about the direction that the Yankees are going. (Thanks STB!) I said early on that Seager doesn’t make as much sense for the Yankees as some would believe. They already have more payroll committed than us, more needs and two top shortstop prospects. I really feel like Seags is meant to stay a Dodger.
On the pitching front, the Dodgers have shown interest in Scherzer, Verlander, Castillo, Matz and Gray so far and signed Heaney to a one year deal. The common denominator here is short term deals. I’m pretty confident that they’ll get a quality starter on a short deal and also resign Kershaw. I’ll take any of those guys and feel good about it.
After those two moves, I could see Andrew swinging a deal for bench help. He might even trade a reliever that’s currently rostered in order to fulfill that need.
Rosters need to be set for the Rule 5 draft by Friday. I believe three spots are currently open on the roster.
Great article, Bear.
A lot has changed with fan interaction over the years. No question there are some players who simply don’t believe they should ever have to interact with fans. But how fans treat players has also changed. Even just in the last few years. My son and I go to 20-30 minor league games each year in (what was once called) The California League. The “pro graphers” at minor league games have increased significantly in since around 2015/2016 when my son really started to get into baseball. They are aggressive, relentless and (more recently) numerous. They are also cheap. As many don’t bother even purchasing a ticket. They will show up in the 8th or 9th inning when the stadiums just leave the exits open and wait at the locker room door for autographs. It’s all but eliminated autographs after the game in places like Rancho Cucamonga. The team now lets Quakes players exit out the back into the players parking lot to avoid the mob. That was the result with an incident in 2018 with Gavin Lux. Apparently some autograph pro found out which car was his and waited for Gavin in the dark parking lot, leaning on his driver side door (or at least that is the version of the story a security guard told me). Freaked him out.
That said, players still sign a lot before the game during warm ups in the minors. My son never has an issue getting his favorites to sign before the game. Even some of the LA Dodgers on rehab assignments. The “pro” graphers don’t seem to come out during the day, especially when it’s 100 degrees and the sun is directly overhead. In 2017 and 2018 my son got to know several of the players. DJ Peters actually became a friend and my son’s hitting coach last off season. Gavin Lux was always great before the game. My son has a couple of his bats and a pair of cleats. My son’s all time favorite, however, was Jaren Kendall. We’ve been rooting for him all along. I still hope he finds a way to turn it all around. He was a super nice guy. Promised my son a broken bat for 3 months. Finally, the last week of the season he broke one when we were there. It’s my son’s favorite bat. Regardless what his strikeout rate was in AA.
The big leagues are much different. My son hasn’t had much luck at Dodger or Angel games, no matter how early we come or how late we stay. He did get David Fletcher on back to back nights. He was the only Angel who stopped his car to sign for fans, two nights in a row. Even if players are willing to sign, security (especially after COVID) works hard to keep fans at a distance. They have now blocked off where players exit to their cars. No more parking lot autographs at all.
But the minors are still fun. My son got to know quite a few current MLB and has a hoard of cool memorabilia players and coaches have given him. None of which he will ever sell. Ever. The Quakes manager in 2019, Mark Kertenian, gave my son the team lineup card many times. And even gave him his personal fungo bat at the end of the season. I hope he will look back on this the same way you do, Bear.
Baseball is the greatest sport ever conceived.
Thank you. I really appreciate it. That it resonates with so many of the readers is very gratifying. The only autograph I have gotten in the last several years happened at a Quakes game. I was near the visiting dugout and had a post game chat of about 5 minutes with former Dodger infielder, Joe Thurston. He was the oppositions bench coach. Really nice guy. The closest relationship I ever had with a Dodger was the friendship I had with Wes Parker. Wes was great. We met socially a few times and he came twice to Georges Round-up in Long Beach to see show’s I did. Got me my Anthem gig, so I will always have a special memory of Wes. I knew the Sherry’s because they lived up the street and had us kids shagging balls for them. I saw Norm much later when he was managing the Angels farm team in El Paso while I was in the Army. Got to talk to him after games a couple of times. Just actually having one of those guys take the time to chat is a great feeling. The best experience was Wes taking me into the Dodger dugout just before I did the Anthem. Meeting those guys and having Wes introduce me, well that was the pinnacle. Last time I went to a card show, they had one of the former Rockies there. He was charging kids 20 dollars for an autograph and the parents were paying it. That part bugs me most of all. A friend of mine when we were kids would send off for autographed photos of the players. Most would send one back. I did that with Strawberry and got a postcard of him like they used to sell at the stadium. But the autograph was printed with the card, not personally signed.
Burnes won the Cy Young. Scherzer got only 6 first place votes. He got jobbed.
AF just reduced his offer to Max by 20 million. 🙂
Barnes and Wheeler deserved 1st and 2nd just as much as Scherzer. Scherzer did not get jobbed.
It’s not so much that Max deserved to win more than the other two, but the total points between them and him seemed way off.
Burnes and Wheeler each got the same number of first place votes. Max only got half as many and most of his votes were for third place.
The second half, he was much better than both of those guys and the Dodgers did not lose any of his starts. That has to count for more than it did. It is an award given by the writers, and it, like ESPN usually has an east coast slant.
Just my opinion. Wheelers Phils were not even in the playoffs and Giants rolled the Brewers. NY Daily News is reporting that the Yankees prefer to sign a stop gap SS rather than a high priced free agent star. Do not know much about that paper, but that sounds like they know something we do not.
I would consider signing Scherzer with a contract DOUBLE what Verlander got!
Seriously, there’s almost no downside to short term deals for orgs like the Dodgers.
$50M for 1 year might have a little downside.
Nobody is getting $50M per year, especially right before the CBA.
Mark, got into the dashboard just a while ago, so I am back in business. Max is going to get at least a 3 year deal from someone. AF also says he thinks LA has the inside track on resigning Kersh.
Just for fun, I watched Moneyball again. Here it is 20 years after that fateful 2002 season, and Billy Beane is still running the A’s. What I find amazing is he still is doing it his way after all of these years. Also after all that time, he still has not achieved his ultimate goal, a win in the World Series. In fact, they have never advanced further than the ALCS. They got there once, 206. They have lost the ALDS 5 times and been eliminated in the WC twice. They finished 1st in their division 5 times and also finished 2nd 5 times. I understand his use of sabermetrics more now than I ever did. And it is used universally in baseball now. But the guy who started it all has never tasted the victory he hoped they would provide.