Angel Behind the Plate
By Darius Thigpen
published by Rocket Sports & Entertainment
Network
We tend to forget that
coaches and players are people, too. We forget
that they are capable of mistakes, have families
and a life outside of their sport. What about
the officials? We forget they’re human, too,
which means they won’t get every call right.
Furthermore, we forget they are also capable of
greatness in their own way.
MLB umpire has been called one of the worst by
various people throughout baseball. Texas
Rangers manager Ron Washington said “Angel is
just bad,” reported by NBC Sports. Washington
Nationals’ rookie sensation Bryce Harper got
into a full-blown argument with him during a
game. But what each of these Angel bashings
failed to mention was Hernandez’s incredible
charity work in south Florida.
Hernandez is the Chairman of the Board of the
West Pembroke Pines Miracle League. The Miracle
League was formed in 1998 to enable disabled
children to participate in little league
baseball. The Miracle League is a nationwide
group started by the Rockdale Youth Baseball
Association in Rockdale, Ga. The slogan of the
league is “Because every child deserves to play
baseball.”
“I am blessed with the opportunity of seeing
children who normally wouldn’t have the chance
to play baseball do just that,” Hernandez wrote
on the Angel Miracle League website. “[This is]
a cause very dear to my heart.”
Remember Dick Bavetta? Of course you don’t. Like
most officials he is not known—until he really
messes up. Let me jog your memory with the 2007
NBA All-Star weekend in Las Vegas. The race
against Charles Barkley on TNT was a pretty
interesting event. Ah, now you remember. Well
that little race against the Round Mound of
Rebound raised $75,000 for the Las Vegas Boys &
Girls Clubs.
Despite grumblings Bavetta is a bad referee, he
is 72 and has been an official for 37 years
without missing a game. In addition to being the
ironman of officiating, Bavetta established and
finances the Lady Bavetta Scholarships for
minority students, which he started in 1986. He
has also volunteered with the Double-H Hole in
the Woods Ranch which helps with childhood
cancer and HIV.
It’s a shame that these are the conditions it
had to come under, but Shannon Eastin is
breaking history. If we can recognize in the
great acts officials have done off the field, we
should also recognize refs need to be taken care
of financially and the NFL refs are on strike
because they’re not satisfied with the money
they’re receiving from the NFL.
Although the gloomy business side of the game
has led to replacement referees, it has opened
the door for Shannon Eastin to become the first
woman referee. Thursday during the San Diego
Chargers and Green Bay Packers preseason game
she made her debut on the NFL level. Eastin, an
official in lower level college football for
years, is one of the many replacement refs under
scrutiny during the 2012 preseason.
With the news that the replacement refs may
continue into the regular season many fans and
players are less than thrilled, but it is nice
to see these refs, like Eastin make their
personal dreams come true by refereeing at the
highest level.
I know it’s tough for us to remember, but the
officials you want to call “idiot” “blind” or
other derogatory terms are people, as well. They
can achieve great accomplishments and are
susceptible to downfalls, too. As much as we
don’t care about refs and their personal lives,
it’s nice to the human side besides the
“stripes” and the good side behind “blue".
Celebrity
Players
Tour Pictures
|
Click to view
larger image
Goose Gossage does his best Bob Marley
imitation at the Celebrity Player's Tour
event in Jamaica. West & Gossage were
part of the tournament held at the White
Witch & Half Moon Bay Golf courses in
Jamaica.
|
Click to view
larger image
Jason Scheff (bass player for Chicago)
and Joe West entertain at Rose Hall
(home of the White Witch of Jamaica)
|
Click to view
larger image
Hall of Famer
Johnny Bench and Major League Umpire Joe
West meet
at Camp LeJuene for the Marine Corps
Wounded Warriors Golf Tournament. |
September in Anaheim
- Oops, Los Angeles Angels @ Anaheim
Friends Meet - Old and New
|
From left to right Ray Hungerford
(former airport manager for Air New
Zealand, Joe
West, Fred Rodgers (Editor Baseball Gold
& Sabre Member), and Bill Slayback
(former pitcher for the Detroit Tigers) |
Longtime Baseball Umpire, Harry
Wendelstedt, dies at age 73
All Major League Umpires will be wearing a patch
in memory
of Harry Wendelstedt this
season
Long time Major League Umpire Harry
Wendelstedt passed away on Friday March 9, 2012 after a long battle with brain
cancer. He was 73.
His 33 year major league career
began in 1966 and he retired in 1998. He umpired five World Series (1973,
1980, 1986, 1991 and 1995)
serving as the Crew Chief in 1980 and 1995. He also umpired seven National
League Championship Series
(1970, 1972, 1977, 1981, 1982, 1988, 1990)
, three National League Divisional Series (1995,
1996 and 1997) and
four All- Star Games
(1968, 1976, 1983, 1992).
He ranks 11th all time in number of years umpired in the Major Leagues and 5th
all time for number of games worked with 4,500. A former President of the Major
League Umpire's Association, he was instrumental in helping start and build the
umpire's union.
Wendelstedt
called balls and strikes in 5
no-hitters, tying an NL record held
by Bill Klem.
On May 31,
1968, Wendelstedt made a famous call
that preserved Los Angeles Dodgers
pitcher Don Drysdale's consecutive
shutouts and scoreless innings
streaks. Giants catcher Dick Dietz
came to the plate in the top of the
9th inning with the bases loaded and
no outs. On a 2-2 count, Drysdale
hit Dietz on the elbow, apparently
forcing in a run that would have
ended the streaks. However,
Wendelstedt ruled that Dietz made no
attempt to avoid being struck by the
pitch, and called him back. Drysdale
retired Dietz on a short fly ball
and got out of the inning without
yielding a run, earning his fifth
(of six) consecutive shutouts.
The "Harry Wendelstedt Umpire's
School" has taught more Major League Umpires than any other school in history.
Today the majority of Major League Umpires attended the Wendelstedt School. And
no one anywhere in the world has taught more amateur umpires the skills and
techniques of umpiring than Wendelstedt.
He's survived by his daughter Amy and his son Hunter who like his father is a
Major League Umpire.... and he wears Harry's old number "21." His memorial
service was held March 13th. It was so large they had to hold it at the Ormond
Beach Fine Arts Center. He was honored by full military color guard from the
United States Marine Corps.
This 1998 file photo shows veteran Harry
Wendelstedt, left,
with his son, Hunter Wendelstedt, also an umpire.
Longtime Baseball Umpire and
Supervisor Marty Springstead dies at age 74
All Major League
Umpires will be wearing a patch in memory of
Marty Springstead this season
Martin
John Springstead
(July 9, 1937 – January 17, 2012) was a former
umpire in Major League Baseball who worked in
the American League from 1966 to 1985 and had
since worked as an umpire supervisor. He was the
youngest umpire ever to serve as crew chief in
the World Series, heading the staff for the 1973
Series at the age of 36 years and 3 months.
Springstead was born in Nyack, New York.
Springstead graduated from Mount Saint Michael
Academy in the Bronx, where he played basketball
and ran track as well as playing baseball. He
then attended Fairleigh Dickinson University in
Teaneck, New Jersey, majoring in advertising.
After a brief playing career as a catcher for
American Legion and semi-pro teams, he attended
the Al Somers umpiring school and began his
career in the Class "C" Northern League in 1960.
In 1961-1962 he served in the Army's 2nd Armored
Division at Fort Hood, Texas, where he continued
to play in and officiate baseball games. He then
worked in the Southern League (1963-65) before
joining the AL staff in 1966. Throughout his
career he lived in the communities of
Garnerville and Suffern, both near his
birthplace.
Springstead officiated in the All-Star Game in
1969, 1975, and 1982. In addition to the 1973
World Series, he also worked the 1978 and 1983
Series, again serving as crew chief in 1983.
Springstead, who became an AL crew chief in
1974, also officiated four American League
Championship Series in 1970 (Games 2-3), 1974,
1977 and 1981. He also officiated in five
no-hitters, including being the home plate
umpire for two: Clyde Wright's on July 3, 1970
and Mike Warren's on September 29, 1983.
Springstead wore uniform number 4 starting in
1980, when the AL adopted numbers. Upon his
retirement, the number was assigned to Tim
Tschida, who continues to wear No. 4 as a crew
chief on MLB's combined umpiring staff.
Springstead retired from field duties after the
1985 season and became the AL's fourth Executive
Director of Umpires on January 1, 1986,
succeeding Dick Butler. In 2000, when the
umpiring staffs of the American and National
Leagues were combined, he became a special
assistant to Major League Baseball's vice
president for umpiring.
He was a popular guest
speaker and conducted umpiring clinics for the
Japanese Professional Umpires of the Pacific
League; in addition, he taught umpiring in
Canada and for
the United States Air Force in Spain, Holland
and Germany. Springstead died of a heart attack
on January 17, 2012 while swimming near his home
in Sarasota, Florida. He was 74.
Marty's picture is
displayed in famous restaurants around the
country. At one New York establishment,
executive director of Major League Baseball,
Sandy Alderson (now with the New York Mets)
remarked after seeing Marty's picture, "Maybe
someday I'll have my picture on the wall here."
Marty snapped, "Not in your lifetime."
Marty was loved by
hundreds of people. It was not uncommon for
people that were sent to restaurants around the
country by Marty to have their meal served "on
the house"... Many times the establishments
wouldn't even let them leave a tip. All they
wanted was for them to "tell Marty we said,
'Hello.' ''
Respected by management, players, and umpires,
when news of his death reached the major league
umpires at their union meeting, the umpires
abruptly called off their meeting in respect of
him. Over 50 umpires came to pay their respects
at his funeral in Siesta Key, Florida... Sandy
Alderson was there,
