Number 41

[Daffy]

Joltin' Joe is incorrect...sorry...although I did like Marylyn...

There was a song a few years ago and one line went "Willie, Mickie, and the Duke"...I think the song name was "Talking Baseball" (or something like that). Might have just been popular in the US.

First line of my trivia is the major clue...

That's probably too many clues...lol...

the dUck

[johnsteed]

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Bill Buckner.


Unfairly put on him though. Why?


a) He shouldn't have been in the game, he was injured at the time.

b) Others were making critical mistakes, as well.


Poor 'ol Billy Buckner (a very solid player for a good number of years) will forever be dubbed a loser.


Do I get that free dinner again?


Steed


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[spearmaster]

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Bill Buckner.


Unfairly put on him though. Why?


a) He shouldn't have been in the game, he was injured at the time.

b) Others were making critical mistakes, as well.


Poor 'ol Billy Buckner (a very solid player for a good number of years) will forever be dubbed a loser.


Do I get that free dinner again?


Steed


***

I'm not so sure it was unfairly pinned on him, though he definitely didn't belong in the field at the time. And I felt really, really sorry for him, and even more so for the Red Sox... which is why I was actually elated when they finally claimed the Series.

Buckner was definitely a solid player and surely does not deserve his "loser" tag however. It's sad that this one moment will define his career - but he, in good grace, has even signed a whole bunch of pictures of that moment

Daffy, surely you aren't talking the Bambino, are you?

Simmo - nice one... LOL... must admit he was a definite character - but that's the REDS, not the METS

Macgyver - once upon a time, New Jersey was the playground of the East Coast - keep that in mind everytime you get an "Advance to Boardwalk" Chance card in Monopoly But since 1977, the year I left, it has gone nothing but downhill, save for when Bill Bradley was senator.

[johnsteed]

***


Guess I've been in Korea for too long.


There was a song a few years ago and one line went "Willie, Mickie, and the Duke"...I think the song name was "Talking Baseball" (or something like that). Might have just been popular in the US.



(Steed is thinking to himself...) "Okay, my guesses are off. I'm down to my last few poker chips here..."


(...still thinking...) "Duke Snider, naw only a select few would take him first. Wait, he... naw. It ain't him."


(...narrowing down the final two in his head...) "Hmmm, Mickey or Willie. Willie? Everybody loves Willie Mays. But... The "Mick" and what could have been if he weren't always injured? The "Say Hey Kid" could do it all, but so could Mickey. Mickey was a winner, but Mantle was a Champion... what-to-do... what-to-do...


Okay duck, I'm all in. I'm pushing all my chips forward, because I'm not going to go 3-and-0 in this thread. It's the "Commerce Comet"...

"Mickey Mantle!!!"

What's the verdict, do I win the Jeep Cherokee or what?


To be continued...


Steed



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[johnsteed]

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Wait! If Spearmaster is right, the Bambino, I'm going to throw a "hissy-fit". I don't think Babe Ruth played any other positions BUT right-field or left-field
(AND he also pitched). I'd think that while Ruth was more agile than people give him credit for, but I can't see how he was able to man center.


Hmmm, if you're as "finely-aged" as much as I think you are, could it be one of the following...


- Zack Wheat

- George Burns (not the comedian)

- Duffy Lewis

- Earle Combs

- Edd Roush

- Max Carey


Whew... I'm out of people.


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Spearmaster

Macgyver - once upon a time, New Jersey was the playground of the East Coast - keep that in mind everytime you get an "Advance to Boardwalk" Chance card in Monopoly

Now, you see... Why can't they turn make that a casino game? And someone has GOT to make "'UNO" a casino game as well.


Spearmaster

But since 1977, the year I left, it has gone nothing but downhill, save for when Bill Bradley was governor.

Hmmm, "Knicks" fan by any chance "Spearmaster"?


Steed


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[Daffy]

Spear posted...
"Ryan - same - going to Anaheim ruined his career."

Won 20 games twice and 19 twice with Anaheim.

7 no-hitters...12 one-hitters...

All-time strikeout leader...

3.19 lifetime era...

27 years in the majors...

I believe he had a decent career after leaving the Mazing Mets...lol.

I will admit he pitched two extra unsuccessful years in Texas 'cause the Rangers begged him to stay. He was their gate...an automatic sellout. They even gave him a life time service contract at one million per year. (He opted out of this contract just last year...his choice.)

I remember when he was in Anaheim pitching those twi-light games (sunlight to shadow)...he was untouchable...bookies wouldn't even put a line on the game.

the dUck

[spearmaster]

Won 20 games twice and 19 twice with Anaheim.

And what kind of teams did he face? Leaving the National League at that time was like going to an inferior league... LOL...

Ryan is a Hall of Famer for a reason - no questions about his qualifications either And don't forget he never had to lift a bat again... and Terrific Tom hit a few homers in his heyday!

As for the Bambino, I'm not entirely certain either - but did he not at one time man the deep end?

Monopoly is a favorite slot in Vegas... just ask the Meister... but can't recall having seen Uno yet.

Need I mention who my favorite basketball player of all time is? Or team, for that matter?

As for football - 12, and Navy. No more clues.

[Daffy]

As a child in the 50's, my primary form of entertainment was baseball...

Only tv was black and white...just three available channels...

Only baseball available was on Saturday afternoon...Dizzy Dean and Peewee Reese...Game of the Week...Hamms beer was the sponser(loved those little bears)...

I hated the YANKEES...

I said my favorite player played centerfield in New York...not for New York...

That leaves Willie and the Duke...last chance John Steed.
************************************************** *****
I believe the bambino played right and pitched as JS has posted.

the dUck

[Daffy]

As for football - 12, and Navy. No more clues.


Captain America-Roger Staubach


the dUck

[johnsteed]

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Wow, I'm loving this.

It's been a LONG time since having a "real" baseball discussion without having to talk about Chan Ho Park or Byung-Yun Kim.

Spear posted...
"Ryan - same - going to Anaheim ruined his career."

In some ways though, it did hurt him for a while. While I'll agree that he needed to get out of New York (pitching behind Seaver), he played on a lot of bad Anaheim teams.

Great points about his accomplishments, and they're all great, but, you know what, if you look at every team he's been on, he's never "clearly" been the teams best pitcher.

- Seaver with the Mets.

- Frank Tanana is not a HOFer, but, he was considered better than Ryan while both were pitching with the Angels (say for Ryan's first year or two... which would coincide with Tanana learning the ropes...). That is, gradually through the '70s.


- Joe Niekro with the Astros.


- Bobby Witt/Kevin Brown with the Rangers.

Sure, he's had a greater career than these other pitchers, but they were generally his equal in the years that he played with them (say for Seaver... who was so much better at that time).

It's odd though, that Ryan never did win a Cy Young Award, and only led the league in ERA twice. He struck-out the most players in the history of baseball, AND he also walked the most players in the history of baseball. For every brilliant thing he did, there was an equally unimpressive flaw that got overlooked.


Nevertheless Daffy, great points (and prompt)!


Steed

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