[jomby]

(Note: I changed the title slightly. It has a better ring to it now.)



"Catching the A Train"


Baseball is truly a drama on the level of the most profound Greek tragedies. And the players-- the best of them-- are truly masters of the theater.

Take, for instance, Randall White. He was one steal away from breaking Tony Smithers' record at the age of 39. It was the last game of the season, bottom of the ninth, with the game deadlocked at zero. White hits a triple.

'Gordo' Giordano, who was catching the game, began staring White down-- telling him he had no chance. White, of course, was not one to be intimidated, and so he began taunting him in retaliation. Gordo-- also not one to be bullied, especially by some old, scrawny second baseman-- stood up, and vehement words were exchanged. Everyone in both dugouts got up, and it looked as though a brawl was about to break out.

The pitcher, Ruperto Negrete, was noticeably bothered. He had just pitched a shutout through 8 2/3 innings, and now it seemed that this melee was going to break his karma, knock him out of "the zone." And so, out of sheer frustration, he lowered his face into his mitt. And White was gone.



Then there was Francisco Rodriguez, who pitched 5 perfect games and 7 no-hitters-- in one season! He retired at the age of 33 because, as he said, " Right now, baseball is not ready for me. I'll be back when I am sixty." In game 7 of the 1937 World Series, Rodriguez walked 3 straight batters in the ninth inning with nobody out, and the manager came out to the mound to relieve him. No words were spoken-- Rodriguez just stared at him with his icy blue eyes, and the manager turned around and walked back to the dugout. He pitched only nine more pitches that game. That's all he needed.

What was it about Randall White and Francisco Rodriguez? What thing did they have that made them so great?



Even with these greats that shine in the spotlight, we mustn’t forget about those who brighten the spotlight itself-- the John Giordanos, the Omar Gonzalezes, and the Hank Joneses. White may have gotten that final steal, but John 'Gordo' Giordano made sure it was his final steal. When they collided at home plate, White had to be carried away on a stretcher; Gordo didn't even lose his mask.

And Omar Gonzalez, who you'll never find in the hall of fame or any on record book, is perhaps the greatest unsung hero in all of baseball. He caught for every single one of Rodriguez's games. It was his genius that dissected hitters, that probed their proverbial bellies looking for the soft spot, that told Francisco where and how to give them their coup de grace on every single pitch. And Rodriguez never, ever questioned his call.

And then there was Hank Jones.

Who was Hank Jones, you might ask?



Well ... that's me.