**Note: Some of you can imagine that I write Bar Chat on Saturdays and Sundays and often it takes a lot of time, especially when other, more serious news requires me to focus on that as well because of the column I write that I actually sign. I bring this up because this Sunday was one of the more depressing days of my life. You know what a Mets fan I am and not only did we choke for a second consecutive year on the very last day of the season, but Sunday was the last day for Shea Stadium. Suffice it to say, it ended up being a bit emotional.
I deal with the Mets’ finales down below at the end. What follows first was written before the crushing Mets loss and the ceremonies for Shea.
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NFL Quiz: Name the last five #1 overall draft picks. Answer below.
Just this past Sept. 1st in this space I noted a story about Paul Newman as my friend Jeff B. saw him at dinner. As Jeff and I exchanged notes this weekend, he was undoubtedly one of the last to see the great American actor/race driver/philanthropist, who died the other day at the age of 83 of cancer. At the end, Newman was surrounded by family and close friends. A statement read: “His death was as private and discreet as the way he had lived his life.” Newman’s five daughters praised their father’s “selfless humility and generosity.”
“Paul Newman played many unforgettable roles,” they said. “But the ones for which he was proudest never had top billing on the marquee: Devoted husband, loving father, adoring grandfather, dedicated philanthropist.”
Count me among the tens of millions who loved this man. He garnered as much respect and admiration as anyone in public life, and even though he was a passionate liberal, I know that speaking for myself, a conservative, that never bothered me because unlike others in Hollywood, he never seemed to be obnoxious about it.
Born Jan. 26, 1925, in Cleveland, the second son of a sporting goods store owner, Newman began acting in elementary school and got his start on Broadway and television in the early 1950s. From there he would go on to gain 10 Oscar nominations, winning one regular award and two honorary ones while starring in more than 50 pictures, including “Exodus,” “Hud,” “The Hustler,” “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,” “Cool Hand Luke,” “The Sting,” “The Verdict,” “Absence of Malice” and “The Color of Money” (for which he picked up the best actor trophy).
But there’s so much more to the man. He stayed away from Hollywood, living in Westport, Conn., since 1962. He wed actress Joanne Woodward in 1958 and they were together ever since as Paul famously said, “I have steak at home, why go out for hamburger?”
An obit in the AP noted, “Newman had a soft spot for underdogs in real life,” giving some $250 million over the years to charities through his food company and setting up the “Hole in the Wall Camps” for terminally ill children, the name coming from the hideout in “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.”
His friendship with fellow actor Robert Redford is legendary, one built on practical jokes played on each other, including the time Newman had a Porsche assembled in Redford’s home, only it was crushed into little pieces with bows on top.
In the 1970s, Newman, bored with acting, took up auto racing, a sport he studied when he starred in the 1972 film, “Winning.” After turning professional in 1977, Newman and his driving team made strong showings in several major races, including fifth place at Daytona in ’77 and second place in the 24 hours of LeMans in ’79. At 70, he became the oldest driver to place in a professionally sanctioned auto race when his team took third in the 24-hour at Daytona.
“Racing is the best way I know to get away from all the rubbish of Hollywood,” he told People magazine in 1979. Mario Andretti, who raced for Newman/Haas for 12 years, once said “If he would have started earlier, he would have been just as successful as his acting, no question.”
Carl A. Haas, co-owner of Newman/Haas/Lanigan racing: “I want to express our most sincere condolences to Joanne and the entire Newman family on the loss of a great human being. Paul and I have been partners for 26 years and I have come to know his passion, humor and above all, his generosity. Not just economic generosity, but generosity of spirit. His support of the team’s drivers, crew and the racing industry is legendary. His pure joy at winning a pole position or winning a race exemplified the spirit he brought to his life and to all those that knew him. We will truly miss him.”
George Clooney: “He set the bar too high for the rest of us – not just actors, but all of us.”
Kevin Spacey: “He should be an example to everyone in the acting profession because he seemed to have had his ego surgically removed.”
Director Martin Scorcese: “The history of movies without Paul Newman? It’s unthinkable. His presence, his beauty, his physical eloquence, the emotional complexity he could conjure up and transmit through his acting in so many movies, where would we be without him?…But in addition to being a great actor, one of the greatest really, he was also such a fine, caring man. I will miss him greatly.”
Newman’s love affair with Joanne Woodward was legendary, a lasting match that Newman attributed to “correct amounts of lust and respect.” An unnamed friend released a statement following Paul’s death on what it was like to watch him watch Woodward.
“No one in his audience was ever privy to the tenderness and pride Paul had for Joanne and her talent,” the friend was quoted as saying. “Watching him on the set watching her, from his seat by the camera, was to see a man transformed: his brave face taken all unawares, his lips parted in amazement, his eyes brimming with tears that never fell. It was a brief window into a man in perpetual love.”
In 1982, Newman and his Westport, Conn., neighbor, writer A.E. Hotchner, started a company to market Newman’s original oil-and-vinegar dressing, though it was Christmas 1980 when Newman and Hotchner first made a batch of the dressing in a bathtub to bottle for friends; the extras distributed to local stores, and the rest was history.
[Newman was a perfectionist. As Lynn Smith of the L.A. Times writes, “In restaurants, Newman was known to ask for olive oil, vinegar, chopped celery, salt, pepper and mustard to make his own dressing. On one occasion, when waiters at the Beverly Hills restaurant Chasen’s wouldn’t comply, he took the salad into the men’s room and washed their dressing off.” They then brought the components he wanted and he made his own.]
When it became clear his dressing could make a profitable business, he started Newman’s Own, which grew into a multimillion-dollar business selling the dressing, popcorn, spaghetti sauce and other foods for which he donated the profits. He abhorred what he called “noisy philanthropy” (readers of my “Week in Review” column know how much I do too).
When asked why he started the “Hole in the Wall” camps, Newman spoke of luck: “I wanted to acknowledge luck: the chance and benevolence of it in my life, and the brutality of it in the lives of others, who might not be allowed the good fortune of a lifetime to correct it.”
To friends, as reported by Lynn Smith, “Newman was open, if vague, about not always having lived an exemplary life. Exceptionally tolerant of others’ foibles, he explained, ‘I used to be a fool myself.’”
He was also a fanatic about fitness. He did push ups and ran up and down stairs until he was 80. He soaked his face in ice water or would swim in a cold lake when he could.
But as Jeff B. told us in his 9/1/08 story for Bar Chat, Newman was also passionate about his beer. In December 1994, about a month before his 70th birthday, he told Newsweek magazine he had changed little with age.
“I’m not mellower, I’m not less angry, I’m not less self-critical, I’m not less tenacious,” he said. “Maybe the best part is that your liver can’t handle those beers at noon anymore,” he said.
And so the legends continue to die off, the stars of an era those of us of a certain age loved. Oh, sure, we didn’t know all that was going on behind the scenes. For you younger folks out there; just understand that People, US Weekly, and all the other tabloid magazines and television shows are of a fairly recent vintage. There was a mystery about our stars, and it was probably better that way. But, sadly, as Johnny Mac noted this weekend, the legends die off and we aren’t replacing them.
What a week, starting with Thursday night’s stunning upset of #1 USC by Oregon State. [Steve G. wrote that in all his years, he never saw a team more unprepared than the Trojans were that night.]
#3 Georgia fell to #8 Alabama, 41-30.
#4 Florida fell to Mississippi, 31-30, at Gainesville.
#9 Wisconsin fell to Michigan, 27-25.
Florida State, bouncing back from a loss to Wake Forest, defeated a solid Colorado team.
Virginia Tech beat Nebraska.
Houston defeated #23 East Carolina, as any remaining on the ECU bus fell off in a heap along the road (though no one was hurt!).
Duke, suddenly 3-1, beat Virginia.
North Carolina, in dramatic fashion, defeated Miami 28-24 as the Tar Heels’ program continues its resurgence.
Northwestern is now 5-0 after defeating Iowa.
UConn is 5-0, after defeating Louisville, Friday night.
But then there was my #16 Wake Forest Demon Deacons, at home against Navy. What a freakin’ disaster and embarrassment, as Navy won 24-17; its first victory over a ranked team in 23 years. Now don’t get me wrong. I, like every American, love to see the service academies do well, and Navy’s program has been an impressive one over the years, given the odds it’s up against in trying to compete with the big boys.
But Wake committed five turnovers in the first half! Six for the game. Our normally reliable quarterback Riley Skinner was responsible for five of them…four interceptions and a fumble.
I mean this is the same Wake team that shut down Florida State the week before and defeated an Ole Miss squad that just defeated Florida. Now, Wake doesn’t play until Oct. 9, a national TV date against Clemson, themselves an upset loser to Maryland this weekend. [At the start of the season, ESPN was licking its chops over this match-up. No longer.] Oh well. Wake’s men’s soccer remains #1, and undefeated, whipping #2 Maryland in College Park on Friday, 4-2.
7. Texas Tech
17. Boise State
25. Wake Forest
Lastly, there’s the issue of week one for my football bets. Hot off my 24-13 record in 2007, I started ’08 by taking 2 of 3.
I had Minnesota and 17 ½ against Ohio State and won, as the Gophers lost by 13, 34-21.
And I had Oklahoma, giving 17 ½ to TCU. The Sooners won 35-10.
Kids, take your $47,000 in winnings and bury it in coffee cans in the backyard until the banking situation stabilizes.
–I’ve long called Shea Stadium a dump, as has everyone else. Here are the thoughts of Mike Vaccaro / New York Post.
“Shea? When it rains – as we’ve discovered, one final time this weekend – it doesn’t merely rain, it monsoons; it renders corridors unwalkable and the field virtually unplayable. And in deference to the fact that you may well be eating breakfast as you read this, I’ll spare you a diatribe on the usual state of the restrooms about which old Casey Stengel was so proud back in 1964.
“Shea? A dump, I’ve said longer and louder than I can even remember. Blow it up. Tear it down. But whatever you do, get rid of it before it inflicts one more aesthetic atrocity on even one more pair of eyes.”
But then Vaccaro remembers the times with his father, who taught him the game.
“Dad’s been gone for five years now. After so many years of cracking wise about this magnificent dump, I’d forgotten how many of the greatest days and nights of my childhood were spent here, in good seats and cheap seats, seats we were given and seats I saved my allowance for and seats that came because we saved enough Borden’s milk cartons to get Uecker seats.
“I probably saw games here from age 7 to age 22 from 200 different seats, and the last 10 years I’ve seen another couple of hundred from the press box. But the view I wanted to go out on was this one: from Section 21, Row C, Seat 5. I wanted 41-year-old eyes to get one last look at what 7-year-old eyes saw – and to remember who they saw it all with.
Ah yes, as we all say Shea is a dump, but it was our dump. Or as Mike Piazza noted this weekend, when the team would return at 2 a.m. from a road trip and head to the stadium to get their cars or whatever, teammate Todd Pratt would say as they approached Shea, “It’s not much, boys, but it’s home.”
–Another Shea story, this one concerning the longest homer ever hit there by Tommie Agee on April 10, 1969, as told by Jesse Spector of the New York Daily News.
“On a Wednesday afternoon, Tommie Agee made history in the second inning against the Montreal Expos, and there were only 8,608 fans in attendance to see it. The game wasn’t televised, so there’s no video footage of the blast – only the vivid memories of those who were there for the only upper deck home run ever hit at Shea….
“The pitcher was Larry Jaster, a lefthander who was 4-1 with a 2.65 ERA in eight career games at Shea Stadium. The year before with the Cardinals, he had taken a perfect game into the eighth inning, outdueling Tom Seaver at Shea. But Jaster never could figure out Agee, who was 5-for-8 with four career homers against him.
“ ‘It was a low fastball, kind of in, and he hit it almost like a golf ball,’ Jaster recalls. ‘A lot of times, you don’t watch ‘em. That one I had to watch because I knew it was hit pretty good.’
“Ron Swoboda, the Mets’ left fielder, was quoted in the following day’s Daily News saying Agee’s homer would have ‘hit the bus in the parking lot if it hadn’t hit the seats.’ As he remembers it now, ‘it just seemed to hang up there so long.’
“Shortstop Bud Harrelson isn’t sure how far it would have gone if the upper deck hadn’t gotten in the way, but does know how far it went.
“ ‘It wasn’t coming down when it hit those seats – it was just a line drive that kept on going,’ Harrelson says. ‘A few years ago, they were celebrating something, and we went up and stood by that seat and took a picture…and I remember saying, ‘Man, this is high.’ And looking down, it was scary.’”
It’s truly incredible that in all the time since, especially with the juicers in recent years, that no one else has ever hit the upper deck. And, separately, anytime you mention Agee’s name it draws smiles. Agee, who died in 2001, was one of the most beloved Mets of all time.
–Mickey Vernon died. The two-time American League batting champion for the Washington Senators was 90. Vernon won his titles in 1946 and ’53, hitting .353 and .337, respectively, and was a seven-time All-Star who finished his career with 2,495 hits, 172 home runs and a .286 batting average.
Vernon is interesting on a number of levels. For starters his career began in 1939 and ended in 1960, so he is one of just a few to play in four decades. He also had some mediocre seasons sandwiched in between the batting titles which is something that has kept him out of the Hall of Fame, though once again he is on the Veterans Committee ballot. Bill James has called Vernon “the most inconsistent player ever to play the game.” In fact, between 1946 and 53, he didn’t hit .300. One factor that can’t be discounted, though, is that he lost 1944 and 45 to the war, so he would have finished his career with at least 2,800 hits, one can assume.
Playing most of his time in Washington, on some truly dreadful teams, Vernon nonetheless became a favorite of President Dwight D. Eisenhower. In his obituary, Richard Goldstein had the following.
On opening day in 1954, President Eisenhower presented Mickey with a silver bat for winning the ’53 title, “then watched Vernon hit a game-winning homer in the 10th inning off Allie Reynolds of the Yankees.
“ ‘As I rounded third, I saw some of the players waiting at the plate to congratulate me, and there was one civilian there,’ Vernon told Donald Honig in his oral history ‘Baseball Between the Lines.’’
“ ‘As I crossed the plate, he grabbed my arm. ‘It’s O.K.,’ he said. ‘I’m a Secret Service man. The president wants to see you over at his box.’ Mr. Eisenhower was standing up with a big grin on his face and his hand outstretched. ‘Nice going,’ he said.’”
And speaking of 1953, Vernon, in hitting .337, deprived Cleveland’s Al Rosen of the Triple Crown by one percentage point. Here’s the story, from “The Biographical Encyclopedia of Baseball.”
Vernon was at .336 and Rosen .333 as the final day of the season began. Rosen then went 3-for-5, ending his season at .336. Vernon went 2-for-4 to take the title at .337.
“When his teammates realized that Vernon might have to bat again in the ninth they took steps to ensure that he would win the title. Mickey Grasso doubled with two out in the eighth but wandered far enough from second to make sure he got picked off. In the ninth, Kite Thomas led off with a single and tried unsuccessfully to stretch it into a double; his effort was described as ‘leisurely.’ The next batter, Eddie Yost – known for his incredible batting eye – swung at a third strike over his head. Pete Runnels then struck out on an ‘excuse me’ half-swing. The eminently likable Vernon didn’t have to bat and captured his somewhat tainted title.”
Vernon was a helluva first baseman and still holds many fielding records, including participating in 10 double plays in a 23-inning game. Nonetheless, the Hall of Fame Veterans Committee meets in December but I’ve got to say no.
–The Sporting News had an interesting bit by Jeff D’Alessio titled “The Way We Were.”
“Imagine something going wrong, calling for a repairman, greeting him at the door – and seeing Alex Rodriguez, hammer in hand.
“In the 1940s and 50s, that’s the way things were around this time of year for baseball players – even the stars – who were on teams that missed the postseason. Once their summer jobs ended, their winter ones began.
“ ‘We worked for a living so we could enjoy Christmas,’ says Yankees legend Don Larsen, who did something new just about every offseason.
“It was a time before Scott Boras and signing bonuses, when men were men and future Hall of Famers were selling sneakers at sporting goods stores.”
Larsen, 1953-67, for example, would go back to his home in San Diego every offseason and sold insurance, farmed and worked at the post office, earning $35 to $40 a week.
Bill Mazeroski, 1956-72, was a roofing/siding salesman, getting $400 a month. “I assisted a salesman who knew what he was talking about,” says the Hall of Famer, who didn’t.
Al Kaline, 1953-74, worked at a sporting goods store for $150 a week.
Elroy Face, 1953-69, was a union carpenter at $2 to $4 an hour.
Vern Law, 1950-67, hauled milk from farmers to the dairy processing plant in Meridian, Idaho. Later, he was a bank teller, picking up $350 a month for the latter job.
Monte Irvin, 1949-56, had it made. He was signed as a representative for Rheingold Beer, earning $5,000 for a gig that lasted from October 1 to February 1 from 1951-55.
Dick Groat, 1952-67, was a salesman at Jessop Steel Co., Washington, Pa. Groat loved this business, earned good money, and was with Jessop long after he retired.
There is no doubt the majority of today’s players don’t understand just how good they have it. And the backlash, owing to today’s tough economic times for the rest of us, is about to begin in earnest. Watch what happens next season. Fans will no longer be patient with some of the overpaid stars and it won’t just be in New York.
–Former New York Giants great Dick Lynch passed away. He was 72. Lynch, who starred at Notre Dame and was drafted by Washington in 1958, played with the Giants from 1959-1966 and intercepted 37 passes for his career, including nine in both 1961 and ‘63, returning three for touchdowns in the latter. Lynch then spent 40 years broadcasting for New York.
Sadly, his Giants teams played in four championship games, 1959-1963, but lost them all; in ’59 to the Colts, in ’61 and ’62 to the Packers, and in ’63 to the Bears.
–The Feds say they have the goods on Barry Bonds and will prove at his trial, slated to begin March 2, that personal trainer Greg Anderson supplied Barry with the steroids that led to a positive test in November 2000, the offseason before Barry hit 73 home runs. Prosecutors said they have two documents showing Bonds tested positive for anabolic steroids.
“The broken arm and collarbone have healed, but the broken wrist continues to give me some trouble. However, my knees are worn out, and I am too old – 98 – to have them replaced.” [Sporting News]
98?! What a national treasure he is.
–In defense of Nick Faldo, Europe’s Ryder Cup captain.
I know it’s a week after the fact but I’ve been amazed at how much crap Faldo received in the British press for Europe’s Ryder Cup performance, so for the record I have to pass on the thoughts of Sports Illustrated’s John Garrity.
The Euro’s Paul Casey: “I’ve seen a side of Nick I’ve never seen before. He’s pouring it out, all the stuff he’s stored up during the years. I think he’s been a great captain.”
“I thought so too, but apparently I was wrong. A great captain would have thrown (Sergio) Garcia under the bus for asking to sit out (one match), as U.S. captain Hal Sutton did four years ago to a naïve Chris Riley. A great captain would have blamed his team’s defeat on the boorish behavior of the opposing team’s fans, as European captain Mark James did nine years ago at Brookline. A great captain, watching his team fall to the Americans on Sunday, would have snarled, sobbed, lashed out and then left in a huff. Faldo merely raced around Valhalla in a golf cart, handing out encouragement to his players and praise for the U.S. team and their captain, Paul Azinger. ‘Twenty-four guys have given their hearts and souls in this event, and Europe has come up short,’ Faldo said on Sunday evening. ‘But the golf was fantastic.’”
Euro Robert Karlsson said “At the end of the day, it’s very easy to criticize, but he’s been an excellent captain.”
“A losing captain, the Faldo haters pointed out with relish. One bomb thrower among the journos ended the European team’s final press conference on a sour note by telling Faldo that ‘under your leadership the European team has changed from a winning team to a losing team. How hard is that for you to take?’ Jose Maria Olazabal, Faldo’s vice captain, shook his head in anger. ‘That question,’ he said, ‘doesn’t deserve an answer.’
“But one – two, actually – had already been provided. ‘We hold the golf clubs, and we hit the shots,’ said (Lee) Westwood, who pointed out that the foursomes session he and Garcia had missed was the only one that Europe won. ‘So Nick was right to do that.’ Then Garcia, not known for being a gracious loser, put it even more bluntly: ‘If I would have played better and won my match, maybe we would be talking and writing a different story. It had nothing to do with Nick.’
–Tony P. passed along the following item while vacationing up in Maine. [Hey, Tony. Hope you got out of there before the storm.]
“Moove over, Holsteins. PETA wants world-famous Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Ice Cream to tap nursing moms, rather than cows, for the milk used in its ice cream….saying it would reduce the suffering of cows and calves and give ice cream lovers a healthier product.
“The idea got a cool reception Thursday from Ben & Jerry’s officials, the company’s customers and even La Leche League International, the world’s oldest breast-feeding support organization, which promotes the practice – for babies, anyway.”
I’d comment, but I’m afraid I would lose my International Web Site Association license. So discuss amongst yourselves.
–The PGA Tour is rightfully concerned about the crisis in the financial community. But in terms of current commitments among the sponsors, there are no imminent departures. Here’s the list…Barclays, Deutsche Bank, FBR, Morgan Stanley, Northern Trust, Royal Bank of Canada, Stanford Financial, Travelers, UBS, U.S. Bank, Wachovia and Zurich. Merrill Lynch, sponsor of the Greg Norman / Merrill Lynch Shootout, is still on board.
As you can see from the list, the tour has dodged a bullet thus far, though we’ll learn more about Wachovia’s fate this week, I imagine. At least there are no Washington Mutual’s, AIG’s, or Lehman Brothers, for starters.
–Speaking of AIG, when I was over in Europe last year I picked up a Manchester United jersey, being a closet ManU fan, but there is a big AIG on the front, the insurance giant being the team’s sponsor. I haven’t seen a definitive word on what happens from here, but I’m uncomfortable wearing it. I may send it to my friends on the island of Yap in Micronesia where it won’t be as impactful.
–My favorite baseball player, Ichiro, has been catching some bad press. From a wire report, “Things got so bad in the Seattle Mariners clubhouse during this discouraging season that one player reportedly threatened to knock out outfielder Ichiro Suzuki, the team’s highest-profile player. A ‘clubhouse insider’ quoted in Thursday’s edition of The Seattle Times said, ‘I just can’t believe the number of guys who really dislike him. It got to a point early on when I thought they were going to get together and go after him.’”
–Haile Gebrselassie broke his own marathon record in becoming the first runner to finish under 2 hours 4 minutes; 2:03:59 to win his third straight Berlin Marathon, a very flat course. Gebrselassie, you’ll recall, skipped the Beijing Olympics’ marathon because of the pollution, though he ran in the 10,000 and finished 6th. Personally, I find 2:04 hard to believe since the last time I ran a half marathon, Prince Edward Island 2 or 3 years ago, that was about my time. [Then again, Pete and I had mega beers the night before in Charlottetown, one of the better places to party that I’ve been to recently.]
“In terms of foreign wildlife species invading North America, the Asian swamp eel is about as ugly as it gets.
“Snake-like and aquatic, it can change its sex – a convenient quality when trying to breed and infest new turf. It’s a deadly predator, gobbling up all manner of aquatic life. Yet, in times of drought, the slippery creature also can remain burrowed in mud for weeks without food or crawl ashore and move to a more suitable environment….
“Believed to have been let loose in Hawaii about 100 years ago, the eels first turned up on the mainland in a Georgia pond in 1994. By 1997, they were in parts of Florida where they are now approaching the Everglades National Park….In New Jersey and Georgia, amateur aquarium owners are getting the blame.”
It’s the sex change issue that is most disturbing, don’t you think? Lord knows what has happened to drivers picking them up on Interstate 95. They’re never heard from again.
–The Dodgers’ Greg Maddux earned victory number 355 this weekend.
–I hardly followed the NFL this weekend with everything else going on. But it was pretty amazing that the Jets’ Brett Favre threw a personal, and club, record six touchdown passes in New York’s 56-35 win over Arizona.
–Actor Wilford Brimley turned 74 on Saturday. I always thought he would have been the ideal running mate for John McCain.
–We note the passing of Connie Haines, 87, former big band singer who performed alongside Sinatra in the Harry James and Tommy Dorsey orchestras. Haines was best known as a singer with a knack for rhythm and had 25 tunes that sold 50,000 or more records.
Sinatra discovered her at Frank Dailey’s Meadowbrook, New Jersey’s temple of big band music, where he supposedly asked, “Hey, little girl, where’d you learn to swing like that? And when can you join my band?”
Top 3 songs for the week 9/25/65: #1 “Eve Of Destruction” (Barry McGuire) #2 “Hang On Sloopy” (The McCoys) #3 “You Were On My Mind” (We Five)…and…#4 “Catch Us If You Can” (The Dave Clark Five) #5 “Help!” (The Beatles) #6 “The ‘In’ Crowd” (Ramsey Lewis Trio) #7 “Like A Rolling Stone” (Bob Dylan) #8 “It Ain’t Me Babe” (The Turtles) #9 “Heart Full Of Soul” (The Yardbirds) #10 “Laugh At Me” (Sonny)
2008…Jake Long, T, Michigan…by Miami
2007…JaMarcus Russell, QB, LSU…Oakland
2006…Mario Williams, DE, North Carolina State…Houston
2005…Alex Smith, QB, Utah…San Francisco
2004…Eli Manning, QB, Mississippi…San Diego
It’s Sunday p.m. and there is so much to write, but you’ll have to understand that Thursday there will be much more after I devour all the upcoming articles and editorials.
I’ve been a diehard Mets fan since 1967, age 9, and these last two September collapses, both ending the last day of the season, have been brutal. Last year they blew a 7 ½ game lead and went 5-12 the last 17 games. This year they were 3 ½ up with 17 to go, went 7-10, and proceeded to not only lose to Philadelphia for a second time but blew the wild card. It is absolutely crushing.
It’s also not just the dreadful bullpen that was to blame, a pen without its closer the last month.
It’s about a freakin’ lack of clutch hitting. We had three players with 110 RBI, but collectively it was the softest 350 or so total you ever saw in your life. More on this when I get the final season stats.
What was equally depressing was how the Mets finished up at Shea Stadium, soon to be demolished after 45 years. For the record, by the way, while the first homer at Shea was hit by Willie Stargell, the last was clubbed by Florida’s Dan Uggla. How appropriate.
For Mets fans, and for the archives, after the brutal 4-2 defeat today, that, combined with the Brewers’ and C.C. Sabathia’s 3-1 win over the Cubs eliminated the Metsies from the playoffs, the organization threw a celebration for the closing of the ballpark.
At first I was in no mood to see anything involving the Mets, but I hung with the broadcast and was rewarded.
So for you fans out there who didn’t get to see it, picture this all took place right after the game. The crowd, 56,000+, was incredibly depressed and deflated, but some 50,000 appear to have stayed. And what a treat.
We were told beforehand some players had returned who hadn’t been seen in years and this proved to be the case. Following is the order in which they were introduced.
Jack Fisher (who was the Mets’ starter the first game at Shea in April 1964), Ron Hunt (my brother’s favorite player), Al Jackson, Frank Thomas, Jim McAndrew, Craig Swan, George “Stork” Theodore, Doug Flynn, Ed Charles, Art Shamsky, Wayne Garrett, Dave Kingman (one of my all-time favorites and I was shocked he showed…he’s known to be a total recluse), Felix Millan (another big time favorite), George Foster (shocked he showed…he was never a favorite…but it was great he was there), Tim Teufel, Todd Zeile, Ron Swoboda, Lee Mazzilli (a Mets broadcaster today who would love to be manager but it appears, from what we heard this afternoon, that the Mets will sign interim manager Jerry Manuel….should this be the case, Manuel deserves it), Wally Backman, Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez (haven’t seen him since he pitched for New York), Howard Johnson (particularly poignant since Ho Jo is the Mets’ current batting coach and they had just flamed out…scoring 5 runs in 3 games this weekend…Howard was on the verge of tears, knowing his job is in jeopardy), Bobby Ojeda, Robin Ventura (still just exudes class), Al Leiter (a smattering of boos, and deservedly so), Ed Kranepool (as I like to say, the other #7 in New York), Cleon Jones (super seeing him), Bud Harrelson, Jesse Orosco (could still pitch for the Mets…and should be signed to a long-term contract taking him to age 64), Edgardo Alfonzo, John Franco, Rusty Staub, Lenny Dykstra (could lose a lot of weight), Gary Carter, Jerry Koosman (it’s easy to forget just how great he was, being overshadowed by Seaver), Yogi Berra (God bless him…a national treasure), Keith Hernandez (I love “Mex”), Darryl Strawberry (it’s good to see he’s a survivor despite all his problems…he’s trying awful hard to be a good person), Doc Gooden (got an absolutely enormous ovation as he doesn’t show his face anymore), Willie Mays (now having trouble walking), Mike Piazza (has become a folk hero of sorts and it will be interesting what uniform he dons for the Hall of Fame, or rather what his plaque shows), and…Tom Seaver, “the franchise.”
Friends, the Mets did it up right and being in this business a bit (my experiences with Willie Wilson and his promotions), I would have liked to be a fly on the wall for the negotiations as to some of the players’ appearance fees. But with few exceptions (like Nolan Ryan…though he had family members present), every key player, especially from the two World Series champions, 1969 and 1986, was there. And, personally, it was also great to see Ralph Kiner, introduced beforehand, get as big an ovation as anyone except Doc, Piazza and Seaver. We love you, Ralph!!!
But the ceremony wasn’t over. All of the above players then took turns touching home plate one last time.
And then Tom Seaver threw the last pitch at Shea with Piazza behind the plate. It was tremendous (even as Seaver bounced it).
But what was the last image? After Seaver threw the pitch, Piazza and Tom Terrific walked together out to center field as Louis Armstrong’s “What a Wonderful World” and the Beatles’ “There Are Places I Remember” played. Then Piazza and Seaver walked through the center field gate and closed it. Aaron Copeland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man” played as a brief round of fireworks went off, then Billy Joel’s “New York State of Mind.” It was over. Only our memories of the Mets (and Jets) at Shea will endure as it’s demolished to make way for the new park next door, Citi Field.
Mets announcer Gary Cohen came on after and said he lost it twice; when Gooden was introduced and when Seaver and Piazza walked out together. Me? Oh, I lost it a few times as well.
So it was an emotional day for us Mets fans. After the ceremony, SNY, the Mets’ network, then showed all the post-game interviews in the clubhouse after another amazing choke job. Pedro Martinez admitted for the first time “I was never there” the whole season, Pedro having had to deal with injuries and the death of his father which he is still trying to cope with. Alas, Pedro wants to come back but the contract is up and I’d be shocked if the Mets give him a deal. The others, such as Wright, Beltran, Delgado and Reyes, all stood before the microphones but what could they say? This team is now part of the history of the sport, and for all the wrong reasons.
There’s always been something special about baseball. Other sports can be more dramatic, such as an NCAA basketball title game, or the Super Bowl (though I’d put up a good World Series game with any of the others).
But what makes baseball special is the totality of an entire season, 162 games, where the good fan is literally investing about 150 or so days out of each year into their club. For the non-fan it’s hard to describe. Most baseball fans, though, understand what us Mets supporters are going through these days. It sucks, on so many different levels.
