During lunch last week a longtime friend who is a big baseball buff told me that, of all of the striking major-leaguers, he felt the most sorry for Paul Molitor and Eddie Murray.
Why was that?
He explained that the stoppage could deny Molitor joining the exclusive 3,000-hit club.
Molitor needs 353 more hits, the equivalent of two seasons’ work. Murray is much closer, only 70 short.
Both are 39 and have been among the best players of their time, potential Hall of Famers.
“The strike will hurt their stats,” my friend said.
I agreed and then it occurred to me that Molitor and Murray are among the most militant of the striking players. They have attended many of the negotiation sessions and have done more than their share of knocking the owners.
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I asked my friend if he had similar regrets for Hank Greenberg, Bob Feller and Ted Williams. Their career statistics were also diminished by the loss of playing time during World War II. They went into the armed forces without a whimper.
Greenberg, then at the peak of his career, enlisted in the Army before Pearl Harbor and was gone for four years. Feller put in almost four years in the Navy. Williams, a Marine Corps pilot who also served in the Korean War, lost the equivalent of five seasons.
And they didn’t have a vote.
– Steve Howe, the Yankees’ veteran relief pitcher who has been suspended seven times for drug abuse, has joined the small list of players who have indicated they are giving thought to crossing the so-called picket line.
In a New York Daily News interview, Howe said: “Do you think I can ever say anything about George Steinbrenner? No way. And I wouldn’t say anything bad about the New York Yankees. They’ve stood behind me. They’ve been there for my wife and children.”
It seems to me that Howe should be equally grateful for union chief Don Fehr and the Players Association, which has consistently fought for his reinstatement and his right to play ball. Whatever, I assume that, if a big-name player abandons the union, the owners would prefer someone else to break ranks. Howe isn’t likely to have much of a following.
In the same interview, Howe also said:
“We better start caring about public sentiment. I’ll never forget a guy like Mickey Lolich, who was my hero as a kid. My dad took three hours off from work and took me to Tiger Stadium to watch batting practice and I sat there crying because Lolich blew me off.”
It seems to me that perhaps the only benefit from the strike may be a new appreciation for the fans. The players are likely to be more accommodating than in the past.
As for the owners, they have shown more concern for the fans because, despite their broadcasting revenue, their income at the gate is still sizeable. The players are paid regardless of attendance.
– As soon as the strike ends, Bill Bartholomay, the Chicago insurance tycoon, will begin focusing his attention on the selection of a permanent commissioner. The long-time chairman of the Atlanta Braves, Bartholomay heads the owners’ commissioner search committee.
Prior to the committee’s adjournment in January, 1994, Bartholomay had personally interviewed more than 50 candidates. “Once we put humpty-dumpty back together again,” Bartholomay said, the committee will re-assemble.
Asked if Bud Selig, the acting czar, is the No. 1 candidate, Bartholomay said, “I expect he would be. He has the respect of all the owners and certainly has a feel for it.”
Bartholomay also conceded it would be beneficial if the new czar “knew the system,” because “we can’t afford to waste any more time” training an outsider.
By this time, Selig should have considerably more than “a feel for it.”
Surprising as it may seem, Selig, on Sunday, will have been in the commissioner’s chair for 928 days, six times longer than the late Bart Giamatti and almost as long as the terms of General William Eckert and Fay Vincent.
But does Selig want to continue?
“I don’t think so,” said a National League mogul who is among Selig’s closest confidantes. “He doesn’t like being in the national spotlight. The commissioner’s job is not a day at the beach. Personally, it’s my belief he would prefer to resume as the full-time owner of the Milwaukee Brewers.”
– Recommended reading: “Gil Hodges, The Quiet Man,” by Marino Amoruso ; and “Strikeout, A Celebration of the Art of Pitching,” by William Curran .