It’s Time for Pete Rose to Enter the Hall

Pete Rose

It’s time for Pete Rose to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Finally Andre Dawson made it this year, though it seemed he would be forever overlooked. There will be some who will forever try to keep Rose out of the Hall, but are they really baseball fans?

Rose gave his all everytime he stepped on the field.He’s the all time leader in base hits with an amazing career leading 4,256 hits in 24 years spread out over the Reds.Phillies and Expos. He gave his body up for his team, being hit by pitches 107 times. He played 2b,lf,1b,cf,rf, and 3b, wherever his team needed him.  His lifetime batting average was an impressive .303.

He was Charlie Hustle to the fans. He was Rookie of the Year in 1963, a Gold Glove award winner, MVP in 1973, and World Series MVP in 1975. And clearly Rose was a fan favourite throughout his 24 year career.

It’s a shame that the game continues to deny him what he rightfully earned. It’s time to forgive and forget if that’s needed, and elect Pete Rose to Major League Baseball’s Hall of Fame where he rightfully belongs. It’s been 25 years since Pete Rose retired as an active MLB player.

For more on Pete Rose, check out the book On the Brink a tale of two sportscasters,by Larry Resnitzky which is available online at http://www.retromedia.ca.

On the Brink, the untold story Continues to Sell

I had the pleasure yesterday of walking by the giftshop at Red Shores  Racetrack and Casino in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island and seeing a lady from Ontario about to buy the book, On the Brink, the untold story, which I wrote. This was a quite an honour for me, so I offered to sign her book. 

The book was purchased as a gift for her son, and she seemed pleased about the purchase. She was interested in the references to Toronto Blue Jay stars of the ’80s and ’90s, which included Mookie Wilson, Joe Carter, and Tom Henke. There’s a lot more about the sports stars of that era in this book, and about the business of doing a national sports talk show on radio.

 It’s not often that two regular “Joes” get to rub shoulders with the stars on a daily basis for a decade. That’s what this book is about. I hope that lady’s son will enjoy reading On the Brink, the untold story.

The book is avaialble online at http://retromedia.ca.

Andre Dawson a Hall of Famer

Former Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox, and Florida Marlins player Andre Dawson will enter the Baseball Hall of Fame Sunday, July 25th, as a Montreal Expos. The classy Dawson  need not wonder why he wasn’t selected earlier.  He is only the 203rd player to receive this honour,and he was overlooked eight times before making it on the ninth try.

Andre Dawson in his Expos years

Dawson hit 438 homers and had 314 stolen bases to go with his 2,744 hits and 1591 RBIs. He was  a Gold Glover eight times as an outfielder. In his heyday, he was the best defensive outfielder I ever saw, with the exception of Willie Mays.  He made almost impossible catches seem routine and he had a solid throwing arm.

Dawson was a quiet leader and popular with the fans. Postie Connolly and I (Larry Resnitzky), had the pleasure of interviewing him and had him as a guest several times on our national sports talk show on radio in the ’80s and early ’90s called SportsRap.

I make reference to Dawson in books that I wrote too, On the Brink, a tale of two sportscasters, and On the Brink, the untold story.  These are available at http://retromedia.ca.

Dawson was appreciative of his former manager and mentor in the Expos farm system, Jim Fanning, by sending Fanning four tickets for the Hall of Fame ceremony in Cooperstown, New York. Fanning and his family will attend the Hawk’s (Andre Dawson) Induction Ceremony. It will be quite an emotional day for both Dawson and Fanning. Congratulations Andre!

Ex-Expos Vladimir Guerrero an All Star Again

Texas Rangers Vladimir Guerrero

It was great to see Vladimir Guerrero as an all star again.  The Ex-Expos is one of several former Montreal Expos players of character who once gave  Expos fans lots to cheer about.  Canada’s first major league ball team, born in 1969, saw the likes of Ron Hunt, Pete Rose, Woodie Fryman, Gary Carter,Andre Dawson, Bob Bailey, Bill Lee, Terry Francona. Tony Perez,Andres Gallaraga, UL Washington Ellis Valentine, Ken Singleton, and Tim Raines entertain their fans in Montreal. Sadly the club is just a memory now, but Guerrero helps to  keep that memory alive. Did we miss your favourite Expos?

You can still get Expos caps at www.retromedia.ca, and at a great price for this Cooperstown collection item.

 

Henderson Jersey Sale- National Pride at a Price

 When Paul Hendersons 1972 Team Canada jersey sold for over 1.2 million dollars last month to a Canadian who purchased it from an American the people of this country breathed a collective sigh of relief. The jersey that helps to define our great country will now be displayed in Canada. Imagine if the Liberty Bell was owned by a Canadian . That would not be right. Sports play an important role in the makeup of a country as they help to display a national pride amongst its inhabitants ie. the 2010 Winter olympics in Vancouver and the success of our Canadian athletes . We, the people of Canada feel like we are part of the victory. We remember events such as this as if they had happened yesterday. Another example of an event that many people will remember is Blue Monday when Rick Monday of the Dodgers hit a game winning home run off of Steve Rogers knocking the Expos out of the playoffs in 1981. Thanks to Mr. Jim Fanning , Retro Media, is fortunate to have Jims complete managers uniform from 1981 along with Bill Lees torn uniform from the day he quit the Expos.

Dallas Braden Sticks it to A- Rod for Grandma on Mothers Day

  Dallas Braden pitched the 2nd perfect game in Oakland Athletics history on Mothers day with his grandmother watching from the stands. The Athletics defeated the Tampa Bay Rays 4-0 as Braden , who pitched the first complete game of his majoe league career , was flawless. A perfect game is very rare and this represents only the 19th in Major League history.

     Bradens mother unfortunately passed away when he was a high school senior in Stockton, California but I am sure that she watched from above with great pride as he mowed down the Rays in order. Braden threw 109 pitches with 77 of them strikes while improving his 2010 record to 4 wins against 2 losses.

      Earlier this season while pitching against the Yankees Braden made news for a different reason. Alex Rodriguez ran through the mound area while returning to first base after a foul ball. Braden was very upset and words were exchanged. This is not kosher with the way the game is played but A- Rod has a large ego and when questioned later said that he did not want to extend Bradens 15 minutes of fame. I know that Braden has extended his fame and to have his Grandma at the game and giving her a celebratory hug is quite touching. Supposedly Grandma was interviewed after the game  and she stated ” Stick it , A-Rod”. This is true according to San Francisco Chronicle reporter Susan Slurrers Twitter account posting. Looks like if you are going to take on Dallas Braden you have to pass through Grandma first. This is why we celebrate Mothers day because Mom is always there for us. Congratulatons to the Braden family!

Blue jays Attendance

Toronto is usually a town that supports its team win or lose, case in point the Leafs who despite not winning the Stanley Cup since 1967 continually sell out the Air Canada Center. As a matter of fact I tell my friends that I was in diapers when the Leafs won the Cup in 1967( I was 1 year old) and I will likely be in diapers the next time that they win.
The Blue Jays on the other hand have fielded a scrappy, hard working team, not necessarily rich in talent but possessing a great work ethic.Players like Ricky Romero and Travis Snider mixed in with veterans like Vernon Wells and Aaron Hill give fans something to cheer about . The only problem is no one and I mean no one is going to their games as they averaged around 10,000 for a 3 game series against the Royals this week. Come on fans , get out and support Canada’s baseball team. Where is BJ Birdy when you need him? Maybe BJ Ryan can earn his salary and put on the mascots uniform instead

Blue Jays Hot Start

The Toronto Blue Jays are off to a surprisingly fast start. The Blue Jays are receiving timely hitting from Vernon Wells who has adjusted his hitting stance making his stride more compact and to date adding power. Young star Travis Snyder is belting the ball with power to all fields and the starting pitching has been great. i am a little nervous with Jason Frasor as a closer but there is nothing like a good start to the baseball season to breathe some life into a stagnant franchise. Go Jays Go!

montreal Expos All Time Team

Here are my picks for the All time Expos Team- feel free to agree or disagree

C- Gary Carter-3 Gold Gloves. 7 time All star. The Face of the Franchise

1st base- Andres  “Big Cat” Gallaraga- 2 Gold Gloves. Power,average, and defence

Shortstop- Hubie Brooks- acquired for Carter. Responded with back to back Silver Slugger awards.

3rd Base Tim Wallach- 3 Gold Gloves and 905 RBIs which are the most of any Expo.

2nd Base- Jose Vidro- close battle with Ron LeFlore and Delino DeShields. Hit for high average.

Outfield- Andre Dawson- Great speed and grace interspersed with power. 6 straight Gold Gloves as an Expo.Expo HR king with 225.2010 Hall of Fame inductee

Outfield- Tim Raines- Expos Career steals leader- 635. Set the table for Dawson, Wallach, and Carter. 7 straight All Star appearances

Outfield- Vladimir Guererro- The last Expo superstar. Hit234 home Runs as an Expo and only Expo to hit 40 dingers in a season

Pitcher- Steve Rogers-Expos career leader in wins with 158. Complete games with 129, and shutouts with 37. Forget about Blue Monday.

 So their you go. What do you think?

I’ve been hearing lately that some people are picking the Chicago Black Hawks to win the Stanley Cup again in this year’s edition of the Stanley Cup Finals. Do you think the Hawks can repeat the 1961 feat? It’s been a while,but would you say that it was worth the wait? If you’re a Chicago fan, imagine this- Former Chicago Cub Andre Dawson makes it into the Baseball Hall of Fame after a ridiculously long wait in the same year the Chicago Black Hawks win it all, after a ridiculously long wait.