“HAS ALL THE TOOLS + LIKES TO PLAY. A REAL GOOD LOOKING PROSPECT!”
Roberto Clemente’s high school scouting report.
The scout was the Dodgers’ Al Campanis…for whom it did not end well.
(H/t @MLBFanCave)
Last Mets Walk-Off Grand Slam…
Kevin McReynolds, June 25, 1991 vs. Montreal Expos
Scott Ruskin was pitching for the ‘Spos.
On base for the Mets: Keith Miller, Daryl Boston, Dave Magadan
retrosheet.org
Apparently if you by tickets in the suite behind home plate at a Diamondbacks’ game ($2500-$3500 thank you very much) you are not allowed to wear the opposing teams apparel. Some Dodger fans found that out last night and the team asked that they changed into D’Back shirts - provided by the team. Or they would have to move.
The fans bit the bullet and threw on the red and black.
Although the stadium was publicly funded it is privately owned - so no free speech allowed.
In this exclusive for Memories & Dreams subscribers, the Hall of Fame digs into its vast film and video archive to show you an excerpt from an interview with Clyde Sukeforth. Sukeforth was the Brooklyn Dodgers scout sent by Branch Rickey to see Jackie Robinson and bring him back to New York to meet with Rickey.
The Baseball Hall of Fame is the best museum ever.
In case you hadn’t heard Zach Greinke fractured his collarbone in a bench-clearing brawl started when Carlos Quentin rushed the mound after being hit by Greinke pitch in the arm.
April 10, 1947: Jackie Robinson Signs with the Brooklyn Dodgers
On this day in 1947, Baseball Hall of Famer Jackie Robinson was signed to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers, becoming the first African American to play for Major League Baseball. He smashed records and knocked down major social barriers on his way to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
Test your knowledge of Jackie Robinson and his contributions off the field with PBS Black Culture Connection’s Jackie Robinson quiz.Photo Credit: National Baseball Hall of Fame Library, Cooperstown, NY.
Clayton Kershaw is the first pitcher in Modern Era to hit go-ahead home run in 8th inning or later of an Opening Day game. via @EliasSports
life:
Brooklyn Dodger rookies and prospects do calisthenics as part of a daily training routine at the “Dodgertown” complex in Vero Beach, Fla., in 1948: http://ti.me/VhRkEX
(George Silk—Time & Life Pictures/Getty Images)
Here, as an early Christmas, late Hanukkah, and any other time gift, is the Dodgers 1959 season as viewed through the lens of Vin Scully. The above recording is side one of the record and here’s the link to listen to the side two. I also didn’t bother trying to clean up any of the vinyl scratches and pops as I thought it gave it a warm, authentic feeling. Maybe you’ll enjoy them.
And if you’re a person who wants to listen to both on the go, here is the album available for download to your personal computer or on-the-go device product. Now don’t say I never did anything for you.
Have a great holiday filled with music, laughter, and plenty of Egg Nog!
Have a Scully Vinmas.
Yeah, don’t do it.
“
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I mean, sure, he said a whole bunch more stuff too, but being glib is just more fun, right? And it takes so much less time to read. (h/t HBT) (via oldtimefamilybaseball) |
Obit of the Day (Historical): Jackie Robinson (1972)
October 24, 2012 marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Jackie Robinson, who broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball in 1947. There are myriad sources telling of Mr. Robinson’s career and legacy. Obit of the Day will, instead, share some little known facts:
- Jack Roosevelt Robinson was born on January 31, 1919. He was named for President Theodore Roosevelt who died on January 6 of that year.
- Jackie attended UCLA and was the first student to letter in four sports: baseball, football, basketball, and track.
- He won the NCAA Long Jump championship in 1940.
- While at UCLA his worst sport was baseball.
- During World War II Robinson enlisted in the Army. In 1944 while serving at Ft. Hood in Waco, Texas he was court martialled for refusing an order to move to the back of a bus because of his race. He was found not guilty.
- Robinson would play one season in the Negro Leagues for the Kansas City Monarchs. According to Robinson, if Branch Rickey of the Dodgers hadn’t recruited him for the majors, he would have quit playing baseball and become a coach at Sam Houston College.
- Robinson was 28 years old when he stepped on the field on April 15, 1947 as the first African American major leaguer in over 60 years. He won the Rookie of the Year award, which is now named for him.
- Here are his stats for his career with the Brooklyn Dodgers which included the 1949 MVP Award as well Brooklyn’s only World Series victory in 1955.
- Jackie played himself in The Jackie Robinson Story (1950), his wife was played by Ruby Dee.
- He was traded to the New York Giants, the Dodgers NL rival, after the 1957 season. He never played for the Giants having already signed a contract to work for Chock Full O’ Nuts - a coffee company.
- In 1965 Robinson became the first African Americans sports analyst when he worked on ABC’s Game of the Week.
- Robinson was a Republican, supporting Richard Nixon in the 1960 election as well as Nelson Rockefeller’s presidential and gubernatorial bids. He left the party in 1968 after they failed to support civil rights legislation in the 1960s.
- Robinson’s last public appearance was at game 2 of the 1972 World Series (October 15) where he threw out the first pitch in honor of the 25th anniversary of the integration of baseball. The Cincinnati Reds were playing the Oakland A’s.
- He died at the age of 53 from a heart attack in his home. His eulogy was given by the Reverend Jesse Jackson.
- In 1997 Jackie Robinson became the first, and so far only, player to have his uniform number retired throughout all of baseball. (Wayne Gretzky is the only other professional athlete to earn that honor.)
Family notes:
- Jackie’s brother, Mack Robinson, won the silver medal at the 1936 Berlin Olympics in the 100 meter sprint. Jesse Owens finished first.
- Jackie’s wife, Rachel, was an associate professor of psychiatric nursing at Yale University at the time of Jackie’s death.
- Jackie’s son, Jackie Jr., died in a car accident in 1971. He was only 27.
Sources: NYTimes, jackierobinson.com, Wikipedia, IMDB, The National Archives, baseball-reference.com
(Image is copyright of the Associated Press and courtesy of nabnyc.blogspot.com )
And here’s the trailer for the April 2013 release of the film 42. Yes that’s Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey and Chadwick Boseman as Jackie. Music by Jay-Z.
Baseball unwritten rule #10,351:
Must post video of Bobby Thomson’s home run every October 3rd.
And for a added bit of film/baseball trivia…Russ Hodges is calling the game on the radio in this scene from The Godfather.
On September 24, 1957, the Brooklyn Dodgers played their last game at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn, New York, before moving to Los Angeles.
In 2001, Ebbets Field was included on the Legendary Playing Fields pane.
Well when Hoss Radbourn threw an average of 475 innings per season that helps explain some things. Oh, and in 1884 he was 59-12. And the man has one heckuva twitter account.
