Baseball: 1) Who has the most pinch hits, career? Actually, try
to name the 3 who had 140 or more? Answers below.
Memorial Day – Korea
It was on June 25, 1950 that North Korean forces invaded the
south. 3 days later they had captured Seoul. As we approach the
anniversary, I will have more in Bar Chat. For now, we should
honor and remember the 6 million Americans who served in
Korea, 33,650 of whom were killed.
A story by the Star-Ledger”s Matthew Reilly captures the essence
of the time and is a good reminder of the horrors of that conflict.
Hector Cafferata was a local New Jersey boy and a private with
Fox company, a unit attached to the 2nd Battalion, 7th Regiment,
1st Marine Division. On November 6, 1950, Cafferata and other
friends from New Jersey arrived in North Korea, heading for a
village at the southern tip of the Chosin Reservoir. Recalled one,
“At this point, MacArthur was still saying we”d be home by
Christmas.” There, up in the Chosin, they dug in for what would
become a hellish experience. Their company was to protect a
strategic hill that overlooked the only road in or out of the area.
At 2 a.m. on Nov. 28, the Chinese launched an assault on what
would later be called “Fox Hill,” for the Marine company that
fought to hold it. Writer Reilly picks up the story.
“Cafferata said the Chinese were 25 feet away by the time he and
his partner managed to get out of their sleeping bags. The two
friends made their way to a shallow gully that was already full of
dead and wounded Marines.”
“That”s where we made our stand,”” Cafferata said.
“We were about seven hours in constant combat. I never stopped
shooting, single shots, aimed shots. They just kept coming.”
In his haste to take cover, Cafferata had left without his boots or
a parka and was in his stocking feet throughout the first night of
the battle.
Cafferata told Reilly, “There were times when the Chinese hand
grenades were coming down like rain…I beat some off with an
entrenching tool. Some I picked up and threw back. Some, I
dove flat on the ground and waited for them to go off.”
Cafferata went through several hundred rounds of ammunition
that night. His Medal of Honor citation credits him with killing
15 Chinese soldiers and wounding dozens more.
“There are some poor bastards I remember shooting. They were
so close I could see their faces, 15 feet away, and I shot them. I
looked at their face and I thought, ”Jesus Christ, I”m going to
shoot him.””
As dawn broke the next morning, Cafferata and his partners went
to retrieve their gear and he was shot in the arm and chest. He
had to wait through four more days of battle before he could be
evacuated.
Against incredible odds, the 15,000 Marines at the Chosin
Reservoir eventually fought their way out against 120,000
Chinese troops. Only 89 of the 240 in Cafferata”s company were
able to walk off the battlefield on their own.
Beetle Bailey
Last Wednesday, the Army honored Mort Walker, the creator of
Camp Swampy, with the highest civilian award – The
Distinguished Civilian Service Award – for 50 years of the strip, as
well as his own military service.
Army Secretary Louis Caldera said, “The troops of Camp
Swampy may not be the rock-hard fighting force we see in
today”s Army but they”re a lovable and unforgettable bunch who
serve as a daily reminder of all the men and women who serve our
nation in uniform.”
Of course, over the years the Army”s Stars & Stripes newspapers
twice banned the strip on such grounds as it promoted lack of
respect for officers. Walker said, “I think the brass has learned
how to laugh at themselves a little bit.”
Walker also poked fun at his own service. “I was in almost four
years and I didn”t win the war. But I was in and we didn”t lose
it!”
The Baseball
Recently, Sandy Alderson, Major League Baseball”s Executive
Director for Operations, took a van full of execs on a tour of the
Rawlings baseball factory in Costa Rica. The goal was to find out
if the ball is truly juiced, as many of us despondent over the
proliferation of HRs believe. The conclusion? It”s not the balls
fault.
Alderson explained, “It is not enough for us to tell the media and
the fans that there”s nothing wrong with the ball.” [He was
careful not to use the word ”juiced.”] “We need to be more
familiar with the process ourselves.”
Alderson left the tour believing that the hand-stitched balls could
somehow be altered to become more hittable. But he added he
did not think that was happening. “I”m not a physicist,” he said.
“But I think you could look at each component of how the ball is
made and realize there could be ways to make slight changes.
(However), I am now confident there is no difference in the balls
being made here now and those being made here at the start of
last season.” Not really convincing, Sandy. Too many were hit
last year as well. Personally, it”s all a Commie plot.
[Source: AP]
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/27/67: #1 “Groovin”” (The Young
Rascals) #2 “Respect” (Aretha Franklin) #3 “I Got Rhythm”
(The Happenings).
Canadians – The Rant
As a follow-up to the last Bar Chat, my friend Harry K from
Toronto asks the simple question, “How many Americans have
even the slightest clue that Canada is by far the U.S. largest
trading partner?” Good point, as always, Harry.
NRA Theme Restaurant
You probably heard that the NRA wants to open a restaurant in
New York”s Times Square which would feature fresh game. So
Canadian commentator Mark Steyn, and the ever ubiquitous
Harry K, came up with some potential menu items:
Carbine blue, trigger lox, Saturday Night Special, gun rack of
lamb, sea bass served on a Ruger, assault trifle, Soldier of Fortune
Cookie, Colt 45 on tap and, of course, the option to magnum-size
your fries. [You all are welcome to submit your own choices.]
New York Restaurants
If you live in the New York area you may want to check out the
following web site which gives you the health ratings for each
restaurant. For example, a famous one, Le Bernardin, seems to
have a “vermin” problem (though they vehemently deny it).
“http://207.127.96.244/webfood/search.htm”
Quiz Answers: Manny Mota (150), Smoky Burgess (145), Greg
Gross (143).
*I was just watching James Carville and Mary Matalin on “Meet
the Press.” Mary, come back to us. Please, please, dump him.
Next Bar Chat…Wednesday.
