The Year of the "Bulldog"

Another beautiful evening in Sarasota, Florida gave me the opportunity to walk my dog (our five year old shetland sheepdog named Winnie) around the block and enjoy the dark blue sky with millions of stars. Upon our walk, we met a new neighbor who also had a puppy, a bulldog puppy. Now I can not honestly say that I like bulldogs but this puppy was cute.

When we got home, Winnie got her cookie and like any good dog owner I left her alone and went back to my baseball card collection, it was there I came across another "Bulldog", named Orel Hershiser.

Hershiser was given this nickname by manager Tommy Lasorda and lived up to that toughness. As most of my usual posts are directed to baseball and cards from the 60's and 70's I must take this time to acknowledge Hershiser.

To go back a few years, many would consider 1968 "the year of the pitcher" with Gibson' year ending ERA of 1.12, McClain winning 3 games and Louis Tiant having batters hit only .168 against all year. This was also the year that Yaz won the AL batting title with an anemic .301 BA. Throughout the sixties, pitchers were gaining the advantage over hitters and it was the year 1969 that MLB lowered the pitchers mound (from 15" down to 10") and restored the strikeout zone to the larger pre-1963 area. Hitters were now the focus of baseball . . . but here came Orel Hershiser and his glorious year of 1988 "the year of the bulldog".

Hershiser went 23 and 8, had a .226 ERA and pitched 267 innings. He was voted to the All-Star team, earned a gold glove and won the Cy Young award. Though that was just the beginning.

He ended the year with 59 (yes, fifty nine) consecutive scoreless innings (eventually broken on opening day 1989). Behind Hershisers pitching, the Los Angeles Dodgers went on to win the National League Pennant and World Series, crowning Hershiser MVP of both. Hershiser went 42 2/3 innings allowed only 5 earned runs, went 3-0, with 3 CG and 1 save in the postseason. 1968 may have been the end of an era favoring pitchers but 1988 was certainly the year of this pitcher, the "bulldog".

Maybe tomorrows walk I will come across a penguin, ryno, snake or a goose ?

'Men at Work"

I just finished re-reading the book titled "Men at Work" by George Will (copy written 1990). I read this book when it first came out, almost twenty years ago, and now that I have this avenue (blog) I thought I would share my thoughts.

First of all I recommend this read to all baseball fans, it is a book written to helps us all (even cardboard collectors) understand the details and beauty, the hardwork and dedication it takes to be “great” at the game we all love. This passage from the books front flap sums it up: “Being an informed, observant baseball fan is a form of participation in that complex, subtle game. Baseball . . . is indeed a game, but one at which men work with admirable seriousness”.

The book has only four chapters yet over 300 pages packed with statistics and memories from the era of the eighties. The four chapters are titled simply:

Chapter One: The Manager (Tony LaRussa)
Chapter Two: The Pitcher (Orel Hershiser)
Chapter Three: The Batter (Tony Gwynn)
Chapter Four: The Defense (Cal Ripken Jr.).

LaRussa is the only one still “active” and all four truly symbolize the work ethic, character and “greatness” of baseball in the 1980’s.

So I got to wondering . . . if the same book was written in 1970 (the 1960’s were my favorite decade of baseball), who would have been chosen for these four chapters ? For me it might look like:

Chapter One: Manager Walter Alston
Chapter Two: Pitcher Sandy Koufax
Chapter Three: Batter Frank Robinson
Chapter Four: Defense Roberto Clemente


Pick a decade and come up with your four “great” players, keeping in mind that “greatness” is more than just numbers, it incorporates work ethic, character and excellence. I would be interested in knowing what you think . . . as we approach the end of this decade, who would the “great” four chapters be of for the 2000’s ? It is not as easy as you think.