Though he had been dead for 13 years (perhaps an unlucky #), 1961 was deemed a bad year for the Babe (Ruth).
Mr. Ruth, in my book, though flawed as we all are, is not only baseball’s greatest player, but this hemisphere’s greatest sports figure, had two records broken, a week apart in ’61.
He held the one season record with 59 home runs in 1921.
The “Babe” hit 60 home runs in 1927, the last on Sunday September 30th.
Thirty four years and one day later, also on a Sunday, Roger Maris hit his 61st home run.
One reason Ruth is in my book, the greatest, was that he was a tremendous pitcher, in addition to being the game’s preeminent slugger.
Ruth held the World Series record of 29 and two thirds innings of scoreless pitching (13 straight in a 14 inning win for Babe’s Red Sox in the 1916 World Series) until another great, Edward “Whitey” Ford broke that mark.
Ford set the record when he got Elio Chacon (the next year, an original New York Mets player) on a Bobby Richardson to Bill “Moose” Skowron groundout, to end the third inning on Sunday October 8th. (Don Larsen authored a perfect game for the Yankees five years earlier on that date).
The great pitcher Edward “Whitey” Ford, pictured above.
Bobby Joe Morrow, who won three gold medals in the 1956 Olympics, contested in Melbourne, Australia, died yesterday, at the age of 84.
He won the 100 meters, 200 and anchored the 4 X 100 relay sprints to achieve a status matched only by three better known Olympic greats, Jesse Owens in 1936, Carl Lewis in 1984 and Usain Bolt in both 2012 and 2016.
Mr. Morrow is shown winning the 100 meters race yielding a gold medal, in the ’56 Olympics. He also reflects on the priceless moment, a sentiment perhaps, so appropriate now.
The narrator is David Perry, whose real name was David Greenspan, the brother of Bud Greenspan, on whose Olympic documentaries, Mr. Perry/Greenspan often worked.
In the upcoming days, there will be more posts and notes on the great 1961 World Series winning, New York Yankees.
Today I cite former great Yankees pitcher, Waite Hoyt was on the first game (if not the entire Series broadcast) and he is a link between the great 1927 and 1961 Yankees.
Hoyt was a broadcaster for the ’61 National League Pennant winning, Cincinnati Reds.
Waite Hoyt, among other things a vaudevillian in his career, pictured above cited the fact he pitched in 6 World Series for the Yankees and that “it was good to be back.”
He did so, introducing game 1, before “turning things over,” to Bob Wolff.
Today a fantastic 500th episode of the iconic television show, “What’s My Line?” It aired originally, in February, 1960.
Julie Andrews is the mystery guest.
Panelists are Dorothy Kilgallen, Martyn Green (a great Gilbert & Sullivan player), Arlene Francis and Martin Gabel.
John Charles Daly is the show’s host.
Enjoy viewing this historic episode.
Pete (do I have to tell you (Rob) Manfred and his ilk will attempt a shortened season, further diminishing baseball’s greatest feature, that of development over a long, true, regular season, but still deny Pete Rose entry into baseball’s “hall”) had asked the name of the only player to pinch hit for him.
It is part of what made/makes Pete a “with flaws (we all have them) great,” that made him scoff at my answer of Mike Lum.
See, while Mike was a nice addition to the eventual title winning ’76 Reds, he was far from a big league great.
“Mike Lum,” Pete Rose repeated, as he sat, while I stood, saying I thought it was to be a tough question.
The player was a Hall of Fame player, Mr. Rose intoned and I knew immediately it was Frank Robinson.
All was “forgiven,” as Pete “slapped me five,” and an Albany writer wanted my story.
He wrote it, but never sent me a copy.
Alas, Pete Rose is still not in that place, where he belongs. On we go.
In 1997, outside, but near the baseball “hall,” Pete Rose and some other members of the great Cincinnati Reds’ (Big Red Machine) teams were sitting and likely signing materials.
I was effusive in my praise for the great team and Pete decided to ask me a trivia type question.
Who is the only player to pinch hit for me, he asked. Now, I will ask a question as well, who is the only player to pinch hit for the great player, Johnny Bench?
Know the answer? If not, guess by writing in the comments.
Later this week, more, on that day in 1997.
Cesar Geronomo, of those great “Cincy” teams, is pictured above. He is not the answer to either question.
I do not believe in shorter seasons, certainly not ones that would manifest, if games return in baseball, basketball or hockey.
That does not mean I do not appreciate or in some cases did appreciate, the meaning involved in those games/sports.
Seeking perspective and nice writing, I offer the post below written in September 2017, by a guest writer/friend named Anne, about hockey.
Guest Post by Anne “The Only Sport I Willingly Watch on Television is Hockey” on September 7, 2017
A great player, Bryan Trottier was an integral part of 4 consecutive New York Islanders’ title teams (1980-1983).
It is fairly (ode to Ron (Fairly), who we lost recently and was a member of 3 L.A. Dodgers’ title teams) well known, that Sandy Koufax did not pitch in game 1 of the 1965 World Series because of his observance of the Jewish holiday, Yom Kippur.
In reviewing Sandy’s World Series starts and for that matter, his appearances (he pitched 2 scoreless innings in relief in game 1 of the ’59 World Series) it manifests that Sandy did not pitch in any Friday or Saturday/The Jewish Sabbath World Series games.
He would have, but as it turned out, he never did.
Sandy started seven World Series games, pitching on all days but Friday and Saturday. Three of those starts were on a Thursday.
Bob Shaw, from Garden City, New York pictured above, in Sandy’s words to me, “pitched a good game,” to win (1-0) vs Sandy and the Dodgers in game 5 of the 1959 World Series. Sandy was still living in Brooklyn, New York, where he was born.
Dick Donavan was brilliant in relief and I will have some notes on that game and series, in posts this week.
Buddy Parker was a part of three of the four Detroit Lions’ teams, that won the NFL Championship. He also has a bit of a link to the other one.
He was a player on the 1935 title team and coached the Bobby Layne led Detroit teams that beat the Cleveland Browns to win the 1952 and 1953 crowns.
In their third clash, the Browns won vs the Lions in the 1954 title game.
Before beating the Browns to win the 1957 title (teams called the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns, have won but one title since, that by the Browns in 1964, this after the Lions and Browns combined to win 6 of the 8 contested from (’50-’57), each team winning it all three times.
Before beating the Browns to win the 1957 NFL crown, the Lions beat the 49ers on the road, at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco to win a Western Conference playoff game and qualify for the subsequent title game in Detroit.
As noted in a recent post, research showed Buddy Parker’s Steelers played a “meaningless” game at Comiskey Park that same day as the Western Conference playoff (December 22nd) defeating the then Chicago Cardinals (27-2).
Click above to view the ad, narrated by Chris Schenkel. It was Jim Doran, who gathered in Layne’s winning touchdown pass in the 1953 title game, a play remembered and shown in the ad.
Andy B Sports 