Monday was a bittersweet day for me. On the positive side, it was my wife’s and my 46th wedding anniversary. It also marked the 16th anniversary of Andy’s MLB debut. However, it also marked our first anniversary without our son Kris. Kris was a nomad, but no matter wherever he was, he would ALWAYS call his mother on May 25 and wish her a Happy Anniversary. Never failed. I have…
Let’s face it, there has never been another Jackie Robinson and there never will be. However, there was another young man who broke the color barrier in major league baseball as a pitcher. Some time ago I heard a trivia question to which I knew the answer. The question was: “Who was the first black pitcher in major league baseball?” This has the makings of an Abbott and Costello skit….
Today – May 13 – is the 73rd anniversary of, “the embrace”, that moment when Pee Wee Reese left his spot at shortstop prior to the beginning of the inning with the Dodgers in the field and walked over to Jackie Robinson who was standing alone at first base and taking all kinds of abuse from the fans in Cincinnati. The story goes that he put his arm around Jackie,…
In 1942 Branch Rickey joined the Dodgers as the team’s president and general manager. He quietly and in a very determined way began his quest to bring black players to the team. He was well aware of the challenges that lay ahead trying to integrate the first segment of American society – baseball. He knew there would be resistance in the Commissioner’s Office, from other team owners, the players themselves…
Like many baseball players of his era, Furillo answered the call and spent the next three years, 1943-45, in the army. He saw active duty in the Pacific Theater where he was wounded and received three battle stars. His war service gave the Dodgers an early glimpse that Furillo seemed to be uncomfortable in social situations and perhaps almost a lone wolf. Peter Golenbock in his book “Bums” writes that Carl Furillo turned down a Purple Heart medal for his wounds, saying that he hadn’t been sufficiently valiant.
Other than perhaps Jackie Robinson this player’s name is spoken more than any other in the history of baseball. Not a day goes by where you don’t read his name, or hear it spoken on TV or the radio. He’s not in the Hall of Fame(though a strong argument can be made that he should be) and he’s not normally mentioned among the great players of his time or of…
A Word from Mark Timmons: Dodger Fans need a break from all the scandals, charlatans and cheating. Evan Blade is the man with a plan. Enjoy! In 1976, upon hearing that the Japanese Pacific League Saitama Seibu Lions had hired Leo Durocher to manage their ball club, the reserved Vin Scully who rarely said anything negative about anyone said it best. “It took the U.S. 35 years to get revenge…
Yesterday Evan gave us a great read on Ralph Branca – the man – not the unfairly maligned baseball player. With his reference to Jackie Robinson and “shot” it brought me back to another historic moment in time and an article I had written eight years ago about one more little known Dodger who too was a better man. George Shuba – now there’s a name that I suspect doesn’t…
We, as Dodger fans, are all going through different levels of anger as we cope with the sign-stealing scandals of which the Dodgers were victims. It is a travesty of justice that we lost that window of opportunity to see our team win the World Series after so many years of falling short. Frankly, I’m pretty angry about it, but there isn’t much we can do except hope that this…
I am slacking it a bit today as we have had our family with us for the better part of four days and will be away most of tomorrow and Thursday. So, I pulled up an article from exactly four years ago ( January 2, 2016). They say you never forget your first love. At least that’s what I’ve been told. As much affection as I have always had, and…