MLB could do one better on that Asterisk, simply do not put A-Roid in any record books... Kind of like not calling his name on Opening Day...
...I thought they actually added the asterisk to Maris' "61", but someone else came along and removed it?
Speaking of Maris and asterisks, a 1985 NY Times article: Ford Frick, the commissioner, was uncomfortable with the confusion of statistics, and before Maris could break Ruth's old standard, Frick slapped the asterisk on him, allowing some fans, some reporters and some traditionalists to think somewhat less of an excellent young player. Maris finished that asterisk season by hitting his 61st homer against Tracy Stallard of the Boston Red Sox. He scored 132 runs, drove in 142 and batted .269, a superb season. Today there are hockey players outscoring Rocket Richard, basketball players outscoring George Mikan, football quarterbacks throwing for more yardage than Sammy Baugh, but none of them get asterisks tied to them. Beyond the statistics, there is the matter of winning games. Consider the 1962 World Series: Third game, Series tied, Maris drove in the first two runs with a single and took second on the throw home. Elston Howard hit a moderate fly to center and Maris noticed that the fielder, fellow named Mays, was nonchalanting it, so Maris took third after the catch. And scored on an infield out. Yankees won, 3-2. Seventh game, Yankees leading, 1-0, in the ninth. With a runner on first and two out, Mays slashed a hit into right field, where Maris cut it off and fired the ball into the infield, holding the runners at first and third. The next batter, Willie McCovey, hit a screamer at Bobby Richardson, making Ralph Terry the most valuable player of the Series, but Maris's feet and Maris's glove and Maris's arm had saved two of the victories, and nobody put an asterisk on that. http://www.nytimes.com/1985/12/16/sports/roger-maris-no-asterisk.html[/I]
Maris was a damn good ballplayer no question, he made his marks during his tenure but for some reason is a forgotten man. I'm probably as guilty of that as anyone. When I think of number 9 it Graig Nettles. I've see all Yankee Right Fielders from Bauer forward but my Yankee All Star pick for Right would be O'Neil. Another guy in the vein with me is Bobby Richardson, one hell of a ball player. I've seen all Yankee 2nd Basemen from Billy Martin forward but my 2nd Base Yankee is Willie Randolph. I was a big Dave Winfield fan as well, he'd be one of my all-star outfielders, seen that guy play some damn good baseball in his Yankee time but the '81 World Series seemed to cook his goose.
______________________________ I always associate #9 with Maris..along with Nettles. Maris put #9 on the Yankee map! lol Roger was also a dam good baserunner- you couldn't get many smarter harder baserunners than Maris especially breaking up the DP at 2b. Randolph was an excellent 2b and Richardson turned the DP as quickly as anyone...anyone (I've seen). Here's my opinion of Winfield as a defensive RF- He was ABSOLUTELY one the greatest all around RF I've ever seen. Very athletic and at 6'6"...he would eat up many balls headed for the top of the fence or over and MAKE IT LOOK EASY. He ran very very well and could cut off those hits before they rolled to the wall...his throwing arm was outstanding and accurate. He was as good a RF as I've ever seen..and you could include the great Clemente. I think Winfield is generally underrated as a RF..and he didn't miss a beat when he played LF! Never forget him making an all-out dive at full speed for a blooper during a lopsided game score. And Rickey Henderson's back to back seasons for the Yanks when he hit at least 20HRs and stole at least 80 bases are utterly fantastic!
...if y'all are old enough to remember the HR race in '61, you may remember that virtually no one other than Maris himself wanted Maris to break Ruth's record. Most everyone else, including the press and yours truly, thought that privilege should belong to Mantle alone. ...after receiving a flu shot Mantle developed a festering hole in his hip where the needle went in, he fell out of the chase. He tried to play through it but ended up in the hospital and encouraged Roger through phone calls and watched from his hospital bed as Maris broke the record off of Tracy Stollard (sp?) ...even Yankee fans didn't care as much about the race anymore once The Mick was out of it. Only 23000 showed up for the final game of the season to see Maris do it...pretty disgraceful. Roger never got the recognition and adoration he truly deserved...he got screwed. ...but as far as I'm concerned, he's still the single season HR king.
And as I've mentioned a dozen times over the years, I was one of them. My older brother took me to my 1st game. I was 7 years old at the time & I had no idea why everyone was cheering until my brother told me. And yeah looking back 23000 fans in that stadium was a joke & an insult. BTW: Even as a Giant fan I also think of him as the single season HR record holder & Ruth as the all time HR leader.
Maris made a point of it to appreciate and THANK Stallard for not pitching around him and challenging him. Such a good down to earth regular guy. We loved Roger Maris and of course The Mick was like a royal God. lol Still remember looking at his autograph on those baseball cards and such... ...how he wrote the two "M"s of his first and last name.
...I ran into Mickey, Whitey, Yogi, Billy Martin, Charlie Keller, and Gene Michael down in Fla several years ago....I got 5 of the 6 to give me their autograph on a paper place mat...guess which one I didn't get? ...yes, I still have the autographs framed.
Good stuff, these are the moments (like yours 59) which we all live for....!!! A true thrill that day had to be, with the best of those Yankee Greats....!!!
Maris made some nice contributions to the St Louis Cardinals 67' World Series, and '68 National League Champ Teams as well. August of '67 found me arriving at Fort Devens Mass back from 3+ years across the pond, and wondering what the hell happened to baseball. The Yankees were in their 3rd consecutive season of no World Series, Maris was a Cardinal, Elston Howard was a Boston. I was in Boston the day the Red Sox clinched the pennant which to me was really strange. Good World Series though, there was really some bad blood between the Red Sox and Cardinal Teams.
Yep, I remember reading way back then in 67-68, how Red Schoendienst said of Maris on those great Cards Teams, "Maris tho' no longer a HR threat or Hitter, did all the little things perfectly. Like executing the hit and run, or laying down a drag bunt to move the baserunner(s) over a base, into scoring position".... Man I loved Bob Gibson as a kid, as far as a NL Team goes....not the earlier 60s Yanx, but still a damn good team. Gibson's 1.12 ERA, will perhaps never be broken, even if MLB raised the mound back.
Gibson pitched on short rest in that series as did Lonborg with Boston getting the wrong end of the stick. We were on a FTX on game day but our Officer and Sergeant In charge were baseball fans so we plugged up a portable TV to the generators and watched the game.
Rick, concerning this Posts OP, what is the milestone with your ass, that 50 year old Hemorrhoid??? Prep H, is predominantly Shark Oil base, but you can use Valvoline 10 W 40.... I wouldn't know, I read as much somewhere other than the Proctologist Office...
