Several MLB greats died in 2023
(along with one of our dearest friends - A.D.)
Here is a commemorative lineup.
C- Tim McCarver
1B- Nate Colbert
2B- Eddie Bressoud
3B- Brooks Robinson
SS- Dick Groat
OF- Alex Cole
OF- Frank (Joseph) Thomas
OF- Frank Howard
DH- Sal Bando
PH: Vic Davalillo
Starting Pitcher: Vida Blue
Reliever: Tim Wakefield
Closer: Willie Hernandez
R.I.P.
"That final upflare of stubborn and dying summer upon which autumn, the dawning of halfdeath, had come unawares"
- Faulkner, Light in August
Breathe through your eyelids and take it all in. Those melancholic moods triggered by an ever-paling midday sunlight struggling to shine through gathering grey clouds as thin and wispy as the yellowing leaves of birch trees auguring another halfdeath, another decline.
A reminder of what the fall used to feel like back home, full of brisk bright crispy air ripe for running with the ball, back to school, new classes, new friends, new teachers to tease, new tunes to play on a tape deck in need of repair, sleeping in on weekends, free from the summer job, dwelling on getting that girlfriend, getting laid, breaking free while still broke, learning to toke, dance, and party. Having fun.
Forget about baseball. The dog days of August long gone, college football's pageantry and the patriotic pull of the NFL now take precedence on weekends.
You tried to fight it once, fight the oncoming fall. Clutching on to the summer pastime long past its prime, your oldest friend going along with your hardball glee agreeing to play catch in the park downtown after sharing in some shrooms. Having a catch in the waning daylight, menacing clouds started to swirl in the distance and along comes a father and son to play with the pigskin on your grounds, on their terms; it is their season. You sense this. Yet, you resist the transition from baseball's gentle summer ease to the tough and rough rituals of a toxic masculinity, refusing to give ground to the brutish game and its aggressive acolytes. Flinging flyballs to my friend, chasing down the return throw and flicking the glove out at the last second to feel it plummet right into the pocket. A playful grace, effortless; short sprints and soft hands...long, bounding strides belie a stylish elegance and perfect timing. Side-arm throws. Grounders. Backhand stabs. The shoestring catch. Shagging flies with a crow's hop thrown in for good measure.
We're staying right here and we're playing baseball. The father and son and football encroach further upon our sacred ground. Menacing looks are exchanged.
The ominous clouds overhead portended confrontation, conflict, disaster.
But then the magic of the mushrooms sends us peacefully on our way, to a Jamaican jerk party, where we bestowed an entire case of Hercules IPA upon the party guests, much to their delight.
Only 74 times in history!
*since 1947 (minimum 502 PA)
1949: Jackie Robinson (Brooklyn Dodgers)
PA: 704
SB: 37
SO: 27
1951: Nellie Fox (NYY)
PA: 706
SB: 16
SO: 12
1970: Matty Alou (PIT)
PA: 718
SB: 19
SO: 18
1984: Tony Gwynn (SD)
PA: 675
SB: 33
SO: 23
1986: Tony Gwynn (SD)
PA: 701
SB: 37
SO: 35
1987: Tony Gwynn (SD)
PA: 680
SB: 56
SO: 35
1989: Tony Gwynn (SD)
PA: 679
SB: 40
SO: 30
1995: Tony Gwynn (SD)
PA: 577
SB: 17
SO: 15
1980: Rickey Henderson (OAK)
PA: 722
SB: 100
SO: 54
1982: Rickey Henderson (OAK)
PA: 656
SB: 130
SO: 94
1983: Rickey Henderson (OAK)
PA: 622
SB: 108
SO: 80
1985: Rickey Henderson (NYY)
PA: 654
SB: 80
SO: 65
1986: Rickey Henderson (NYY)
PA: 608
SB: 87
SO: 81
1988: Rickey Henderson (NYY)
PA: 647
SB: 93
SO: 54
1989: Rickey Henderson (NYY/OAK)
PA: 674
SB: 77
SO: 68
1990: Rickey Henderson (OAK)
PA: 594
SB: 65
SO: 60
1974: Lou Brock (STL)
PA: 702
SB: 118
SO: 88
1986: Vince Coleman (STL)
PA: 670
SB: 107
SO: 98
1960: Maury Wills (LAD)
PA: 559
SB: 50
SO: 47
1962: Maury Wills (LAD)
PA: 759
SB: 104
SO: 57
1965: Maury Wills (LAD)
PA: 711
SB: 94
SO: 64
1983: Tim Raines (MTL)
PA: 720
SB: 90
SO: 70
1984: Tim Raines (MTL)
PA: 718
SB: 75
SO: 69
1985: Tim Raines (MTL)
PA: 665
SB: 70
SO: 60
1986: Tim Raines (MTL)
PA: 664
SB: 70
SO: 60
1990: Tim Raines (MTL)
PA: 538
SB: 49
SO: 43
1980: Dave Collins (CIN)
PA: 613
SB: 79
SO: 68
1983: Rudy Law (CHW)
PA: 551
SB: 77
SO: 36
1992: Kenny Lofton (CLE)
PA: 651
SB: 66
SO: 54
1994: Kenny Lofton (CLE)
PA: 523
SB: 60
SO: 56
1995: Kenny Lofton (CLE)
PA: 529
SB: 54
SO: 49
1999: Tony Womack (ARI)
PA: 684
SB: 72
SO: 68
1975: Mickey Rivers (CAL)
PA: 672
SB: 70
SO: 42
1983: Alan Wiggins (SD)
PA: 585
SB: 66
SO: 43
1984: Alan Wiggins (SD)
PA: 692
SB: 70
SO: 57
2001: Juan Pierre (COL)
PA: 683
SB: 46
SO: 29
2003: Juan Pierre (FLA)
PA: 747
SB: 65
SO: 35
2004: Juan Pierre (FLA)
PA: 748
SB: 45
SO: 35
2005: Juan Pierre (FLA)
PA: 719
SB: 57
SO: 45
2006: Juan Pierre (CHC)
PA: 750
SB: 58
SO: 38
2007: Juan Pierre (LAD)
PA: 729
SB: 64
SO: 37
2010: Juan Pierre (CHW)
PA: 734
SB: 68
SO: 47
1972: Joe Morgan (CIN)
PA: 680
SB: 58
SO: 44
1973: Joe Morgan (CIN)
PA: 698
SB: 67
SO: 61
1975: Joe Morgan (CIN)
PA: 639
SB: 67
SO: 52
1976: Joe Morgain (CIN)
PA: 599
SB: 60
SO: 41
1976: César Cedeño (HOU)
PA: 635
SB: 58
SO: 51
1977: César Cedeño (HOU)
PA: 598
SB: 61
SO: 50
1980: Miguel Diloné (CLE)
PA: 566
SB: 61
SO: 45
1987: Harold Reynolds (SEA)
PA: 584
SB: 60
SO: 34
1959: Luis Aparicio (CHW)
1960: Luis Aparicio (CHW)
1961: Luis Aparicio (CHW)
1963: Luis Aparicio (BAL)
1964: Luis Aparicio (BAL)
1980: Ozzie Smith (SD)
1985: Ozzie Smith (STL)
1986: Ozzie Smith (STL)
1987: Ozzie Smith (STL)
1988: Ozzie Smith (STL)
1992: Ozzie Smith (STL)
1988: Barry Larkin (CIN)
1995: Barry Larkin (CIN)
1992: Lance Johnson (CHW)
1993: Lance Johnson (CHW)
1995: Lance Johnson (CHW)
1996: Lance Johnson (NYM)
2014: Jose Altuve (HOU)
2001: Ichiro Suzuki (SEA)
1993: Luis Polonia (CAL)
1985: Brett Butler (CLE)
1982: Damaso Garcia (TOR)
1996: Eric Young Sr. (COL)
Dave Cash - 2B
PIT/PHI/MTL/SD
1976 Phillies
PA: 727
SO: 13
3B: 12
SB: 10
CS: 12
2B: 14
GIDP: 16
Tony Fernandez - SS
Damaso Garcia - 2B
Lou Brock - CF
Bob Gibson - P
Tom Seaver - P
Don Larsen - P
Al Kaline - RF
Angel Echevarria - OF
Oscar Brown - OF
Biff Porcoroba - C
Dick Allen - 1B/3B/OF
