All great memories Udon, George Brett, a truly great hitter, he had a brother Ken Brett, ended up playing for my team, Pittsburgh Pirates, he was a hell of a hitter for a pitcher, they used him several times to pinch hit! of course were talking of the Pirates. Think I read he may have died. Pirates also picked an outfielder from the Royals, Amos Otis, an allstar with KC, past his prime with Pitt. Also I remember a "Shortstop" 5'4" Freddie Patak, played both on Royals and Pirates.

You're correct Irish, this is from the net:

"Ken Brett, the brother of Hall of Famer George Brett and the youngest pitcher in World Series history, died on Nov. 18 in Spokane, Wash. after a long battle with brain cancer. He was 55.

In 14 seasons in the major leagues, Brett was 83-85 with a 3.93 ERA in 1,526.1 innings pitched.

He was also a pitcher who could hit, compiling a .262 average with 10 home runs and 44 RBI in 347 career at-bats. In 1973, while pitching for the Phillies, he set a record for pitchers when he hit a home run in four straight starts.

A "Walk Off" Home Run....a dramatic blast that ends the game with the home team victorious......Robert Redford gets into the act in "The Natural"...

Even the Queen likes baseball....here she makes a guest appearance in...."The Naked Gun"....a F N funny 5 minute clipdancing....

Team mascots have never really been accepted by fans in Major League Baseball.... with a couple of Big exceptions....here is IMHO, the best ever baseball mascot....the San Diego Chicken....

Nose, I confess that being a Pittsburgh Pirate fan all my baseball life has had its ups and downs (down for the last 15) I started reading about the Montreal Expos, enjoyed Rusty Staub, Steve Rogers, and the whole idea of a Canadian team (weird) I remember they had what had to be the most stupid mascot in sports, the Youppi, any memories of this?

Babe Ruth is the most famous of all sports hero's in the US....sure...Michael Jordan, Ali and Tiger Woods are or were giants in the sporting world and made/make an incredible amount of dosh in endorsements, but the biggest of the big names of sport and legend is still Babe Ruth.



They made movies about his life and he popped up in newsreels that were featured at theatres all over America during the great depression....


Ask 10 knowledgeable baseball fans "who was/is the greatest baseball player of all time?":detective:....9 of them will reply..."Babe Ruth".

Irishmic you have hit upon two of my favorite players from my youth. Freddie Patek was a hero to lots of kids in KC back in the early 70's, since most of us were about the same height. Here's a shot of Freddie leading off of first base with 6'6" Frank Howard of the Senators holding him on.



Then there was "Famous" Amos Otis, who patrolled centerfield for the Royals for most of the 70's (thanks to Amos and Willie Wilson the Royals only had 2 centerfielders over a 20 year span). The fans used to chant "A-O, A-O" when he batted. He was known for his nonchalant manner of catching fly balls with one hand. Everybody used to yell, "Two hands, Amos" when he'd catch a fly ball. A really good solid ball player who could hit for average, steal bases, and knock one out of the park when needed.



Thanks for letting me stroll down memory lane. :thumbsup:

I remember Otis and Wilson, both of them could fly around the bases. My favorite Pirate, being older than everyone on this board except figjam, was the great Roberto Clemente, who died in the off season while he was still playing, when a plane flying emergency supplies to quake victims in Nicaragua crashed with him on board. He was not only great but played with a style and flair that's rarely seen. Roberto Clemente :rip:

mack...Roberto Clemente was one of the greatest ballplayers I've ever seen play the game.

He was one of my fav players as a kid until.....he squared off with one of my all time fav's, Billy Williams of the Cubs, in a bench clearing brawl at Wigley Field in the late 60's....will never forget my two heros trading blows...they must of hated each other.

Roberto finished with exactly 3000 hits before he perished in the plane crash. A great player trying to help a ravaged country by hauling in medical supplies....a far different story than the ones we read today about selfish athletes and athletes who are/or act like thugs.

:cheers: to you Roberto.

Billy Williams had a sweet swing nose, I know Clemente had a temper so let's blame him for the fight and not your favorite Mr. Williams. :angel: :innocent:

My all-time favorite growing up in Oakland for the first 8 years of life was Willie Mays, the Say Hey Kid. The Giants moved to S.F. the year our family moved to the San Joaquin Valley but we stayed through the 1st summer the Giants were there, when they played at Seal Stadium before the Stick was finished. Then after that summer my dad would drive the 3 or so hours to see them play at Candlestick.

My father knew Bill Thompson very well, who was an announcer for a few years on the radio with his friend Lon Simmons who you will remember nose. Thompson played catcher for Simmons when they both played in the minors.

So anyway, due to that connection Lon Simmons took me as a 12 year old down to the field at the Stick to meet some of the players before a Giants-Cubs game. Nose, I was way into baseball, playing on teams and following the players, collecting cards, etc. so I was walking on air! :angel: Got to shake hands with most all the Giants...all three of the Alou brothers, Orlando Cepada who was a big fucker, and also Willie Mays who was my favorite player still to this day, although his "people skills" weren't so great since he gave me a limp hand and stared off into the distance without saying anything or making eye contact with little mack. Went into the clubhouse where a sleepy and relaxed Juan Marichal, the Dominican Dandy, was on his stomach getting a rub down from a trainer (I didn't see a happy ending thank God!) and he was very pleasant and chatted a bit and smiled.

But the topper was going behind the batting cage when the Cubs were hitting, and waiting for his turn was Ernie Banks, who was also one of my favorites. He was so personable, asking me questions, "So what position do you play...who's your favorite team, etc.?" and when I told him the Giants were my favorite he started kidding and joking around saying how I should follow the Cubs instead...just a super-nice guy who had either a pleasant personality to begin with or who understood that it really takes very little effort to make a little kid feel good. Jeez a trip down memory lane... :spam:

....that's a great story mack...thanks for sharing it:cheers:

....you never know when a foul ball is gonna find yer noggin' at a ball game...so you always have to be on the look out.

This poor f'er wasn't expecting a F N bat to the jaw when he set out for the old ballyard.......luckily the lumber didn't find one of those kids oblivious to the proceedings.

Well....being that today is the first day of Autumn.... means that the regualar baseball season is drawing to a close.:bigfinger

With only a weeks worth of games left before the playoffs begin, few divisional races have been settled. It is going down to the wire and everything is still up for grabs.



With six games left...the Cubs have a two game lead on the Brewers. The Red Sox and the Yankees are still fighting it out for the divisional crown. The Angels made mincemeat of the A's and the Indians look like the class in the Central.

Surprises this season....guess you'd have to say the Diamondbacks from Arizona....didn't see it coming meself...the Mets are choking and here come the Philles....the Brewers were a bit of a success story with there young players and the complete collapse of the White Sox was surprising as well.

The playoffs should be exciting....Go Cubs Go!