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Pondering the Greats...
"Shoeless" Joe Jackson
There has never been a ball player who lacked more life skills then Shoeless Joe. He lacked education, judgement and yes character. While he had extraordinary skills as a ball player, his lack of integrity finally caught up with him in the Black Sox Scandal which barred him from baseball for life.
While many point to his .375 average during the Series as proof of his playing his heart out, there is no doubt that he indeed did take a $5,000.00 bribe to fix the World Series.
After he was banned he returned to Greenville South Carolina and opened a dry cleaning business and a liquor store. He occasionally played in outlaw games and sandlots... He was a pathetic figure yet was remembered warmly in the south when he died, alone and defeated by his own faults.
Hank Aaron
My most impressionable exposure to the ugliness of racism came through Hank Aaron, who to me, is one of the greatest ball players to ever live.
He snuck up on the game, and was once described as someone who was looking for a place to sleep as he approached the batter's box. Robin Roberts (who was the pitcher to give up Hank's first of 755 dingers) once described Hank as a player who could fall asleep between pitches and still wake up in time to knock it out of the park.
I will never forget all of the disgusting and racist remarks I heard during the season that Hank broke the Babe's home run record, and all I can say is "Hank is the home run King, and yes he is black. If you don't like it, well you can kiss my Jewish ass.
Tris Speaker
Every now and then, baseball will make a very good understatement. On Tris Speaker's Hall of Fame plaque, it reads:
"The greatest center fielder of his day"
That is one of the greatest understatements ever made. Tris was, and is, the greatest centerfielder to play the game, period. I know because my grandfather told me so many times as a child in Fenway Park, and my grandfather was incapable of telling a lie about the game of baseball.
From 1910 to 1915, Tris was the centerpiece to the greatest outfield the game has ever known. It was him, Duffy Lewis, and Harry Hooper who still hold the record of 455 assists of which Tris had 161. In those 5 years, no one in the Red Sox outfield ever collided; it was nothing more than a well oiled machine that put you out if you didn't knock it out.
Tris Speaker was and is and will always be the greatest centerfielder to ever play the game...I know, my grandfather told me so.
Lou Gehrig
Having been raised in New England, I am genetically pre-disposed to hate the Yankees. Dipstick Numbnuts like George Steinbrenner make that task easy, while gentleman with the grace and class of Lou Gehrig make it difficult.
On June 1, 1925, Wally Pipp sat out a game for the Yankees and the greatest first baseman of the game took the field for the start of 2,130 consecutive starts. This was a record many believed would be impossible to beat, until another of baseball's greatest gentlemen did, Cal Ripken.
The way that Mr. Gehrig played both the game and life, makes it difficult to be a Red Sox fan. I hate the Yankees, but I sure do admire some of them and at the top of that admiration list is Lou.
Joe DiMaggio
I am not really sure why I have added Joltin Joe to my greats list. I have never really admired the guy that much. I mean, yes, he is one of the greatest players of all time, and after his retirement, became one of the greatest ambassadors of the game, but he had and lost Marilyn Monroe?... Oh well, maybe I am being too harsh...
After all, as Yogi Berra said when he heard that divorce proceedings had been filed against Joe by Monroe: "It just goes to show no man can be great at 2 national pastimes".
Josh Gibson
In 1930, Josh Gibson was a fan attending a game between the Homestead Grays and the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro League. The game was historical due to the fact it was the first night game ever played in Pittsburg.
The Monarchs had brought along their home made lighting system which was less than adequate. During the game, pitcher Smokey Joe Williams and catcher Buck Ewing got their signals crossed and Buck tore up his hand. The game was delayed while Grays Manager Judy Johnson who knew of Josh's qualities as a semi-pro catcher asked and signed Josh to play the rest of the game.
In the next next 31 games, Gibson hit 20 home runs. One of baseball's most shameful secrets is that Josh Gibson hit far more home runs than Babe Ruth, who himself acknowledges that Josh Gibson was indeed the greater home run hitter. It is tragic, that Josh never recieved the recognition that he deserved as the greatest power hitter to ever play the game.
Cy Young
Where does one begin to explain either the greatness or the importance of Cy Young to the game of baseball?
Cy played for both the National and American Leagues, splitting his 511 wins almost perfectly between the two. He pitched in the first World Series in 1903, giving two wins to the victorious Red Sox, (yes the Red Sox won the first World Series ever).
Cy's record of 511 wins is in all likelihood baseball's only unbeatable record and it is fitting that every year Cy is remembered with the annual Cy Young award.
Roy Camp
When Branch Rickey decided to break the Major League's color barrier, he signed 5 black players to contracts with the Dodgers. One of those 5, was Campy, who was the first black catcher in the history of the Major League.
He was a damn fine choice. He was MVP in 1951, 1953 and 1955. He led the league in RBI's in 1953 and was an all star from 1949 through 1956. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1969.
Campy would probably have been known as the greatest catcher the game had, if his career had not been cut short by an automobile accident that left him paralyzed in January 1958. Being the class act that he was, he continued to do wonderful community service work even after the accident, and is certain to have rewards in heaven.
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