The above picture of Duke, Andy Pafko and Carl Furillo is a snapshot of my all-time favorite outfield. I expect this is the case because it was my first outfield and all three homered on my first night of Dodger baseball which also gives me a way to trace my first game. That is the only time all three homered in the same game.
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.
It took me a while to come to grips with it, but I’m now absolutely convinced that the coronavirus hysteria and panic has been perpetrated by the Boston Red Sox so that the Dodgers might never have Mookie Betts play a game for them. Think about it, it is plausible. Stinking Red Sox!!!
In March 2013 I decided to play Nostradamus regarding the Dodgers and made predictions as to what would happen to a number of Dodger players in eight years. So here we are, seven seasons later, and I can now see how far off I was with my predictions. Surprised? Not really. I always seem to view the Blue with optimism. Here is the post below. I’ll interject with italics to…
Many can identify Chuck Connors as the “The Rifleman” but perhaps not nearly as many know he was once a Dodger and always remained a Dodger in his heart. Chuck Connors, christened Kevin Joseph Aloysius Connors, was born in Brooklyn, New York on April 10, 1921. His parents of Irish descent, Allan and Marcella Connors, had emigrated to the United States from what was then the Dominion of Newfoundland and…
Baseball season might be two months away… if ever. If AC, DC, Evan, and 2D2 want to continue to write, I’ll continue to support that. However, I am going to back off the day-to-day stuff until I see a clear plan to the start of the season. I’ll probably post at least once a day, but I have some other stuff I have to do during this crazy period of…
As hysteria about Covid-19 spreads across our land (faster than the disease and possibly more dangerous than the disease) we have found ourselves entered into uncharted territory with the suspension of all professional sports activities, as well as college sports and activities. I have previously shared on here my love for college baseball. I am an avid college baseball fan. Well, this week the reaction to the Covid-19 virus affected…
There’s not much to do with the MLB season on hold, the NBA season on hold, the NCAA Tournament canceled, High School Tournaments in limbo, schools closed, and restaurants and theaters are persona non-Grotta. My youngest son and I spent the day plumbing his house, the house he has had since he was 18 (he’s almost 21 now) and has totally gutted and rebuilt it. It was built in 1900…
It’s not possible to address ANYTHING about the coronavirus without getting political and I won’t even explain that. We simply are not going to go there. PERIOD! This country has never been more divided politically than right about now and we are all here for Dodger baseball, so that is all we will talk about: the one thing that unites us. That thing has been put on hold and we…
Last week we had a preview of some of the teenage position players in the Dodgers minor league system. This week a sneak preview at some of the teenage pitchers which is a more difficult task it seems. As of today, there are at least 36 young pitchers in the system who have not yet turned 20. Left-hander Robinson Ortiz and 32nd round selection in 2018, right-hander Jacob Gilliland, both…