Results tagged ‘ Juan Marichal ’
Jeter’s 3K jersey in Yankees Museum
The jersey Derek Jeter wore when he became the 28th player in history – and the first Yankee – to get 3,000 hits in a major-league career will go on display Tuesday through the remainder of the 2011 calendar year at the New York Yankees Museum Presented by Bank of America.
The Captain reached the plateau in the third inning July 9 at Yankee Stadium with a home run off Tampa Bay lefthander David Price as part of a 5-for-5 game that included a game-winning, RBI single in the eighth inning of the Yankees’ 5-4 victory over the Rays.
Jeter joined former teammate Wade Boggs as the only players whose 3,000th hit was a home run. The five-hit game also matched the achievement of the previous player to reach 3,000 hits: Craig Biggio, in 2007 for the Houston Astros.
In addition to the historic Jeter jersey, fans should also check out the newly added “Latino Living Legends” exhibit. Constructed in partnership with the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame, the exhibit pays homage to the six living Hall of Famers of Latino descent currently enshrined in Cooperstown – Roberto Alomar, Luis Aparicio, Rod Carew, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal and Tony Pérez. The exhibit features player jerseys, trophies, collectible merchandise and autographed memorabilia.
The New York Yankees Museum presented by Bank of America is located on the Main Level of the Stadium near Gate 6. Guests can access the museum on game days from the time gates open until the end of the eighth inning, and on non-game days as part of the Yankee Stadium tours.
‘Latino Living Legends’ at Yankees Museum
A special exhibit displaying artifacts from the six living Hispanic players in the National Baseball Hall of Fame was unveiled Thursday night at the New York Yankees Museum Presented by Bank of America inside Yankee Stadium.
Former National League Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Orlando Cepeda, one of the “Latino Living Legends,” as the exhibit is titled, was a special guest at the opening ceremony, along with Gabriel “Tito” Avila, the founder and president of the Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame.
“I say thank you to the Yankees,” Cepeda said. “I am proud to be a part of this exhibit with these great players.”
Also featured in the exhibit that was designed by curator Brian Richards and will be on display for the remainder of the season are Cepeda’s fellow Puerto Rican, Roberto Alomar, who was inducted into the Hall Sunday; his former Giants teammate, Juan Marichal (Dominican Republic); Luis Aparicio (Venezuela); Rod Carew (Panama) and Tony Perez (Cuba).
Cepeda, who was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee in 1999, donated a signed San Francisco Giants jersey and helmet and a replica of his 1967 MVP Award. There are also signature jerseys and caps by the other five players.
“It is a true honor to have the ‘Latino Living Legends’ exhibit at Yankee Stadium and for it to be associated with such a prestigious organization”, said Avila, a Bronx native who now lives in San Francisco. “We would like to thank the New York Yankees and Eventus for their efforts in helping us pay tribute to these great players in bringing this exhibit to the fans. This is another step forward towards our goal of having a permanent home for the museum to commemorate Hispanic baseball history.”
Eventus is recognized throughout the industry for developing successful consumer-brand relationships and experiences.
“The New York Yankees are honored to host this exhibit in our iconic Yankee Stadium,” said Manuel Garcia, the Yankees Director of Latino Affairs. “Taking pride in the history of our national pastime is important to us, and being able to highlight the contributions of these Latino Hall of Famers in our Museum is very exciting. The Hispanic Heritage Baseball Museum Hall of Fame and Eventus have done a fantastic job with this important exhibit, and we know our fans will truly enjoy it.”
One of the coolest aspects of the exhibit is a time line of Hispanics’ contribution to baseball over the years featuring Martin Dihigo, Minnie Minoso, Roberto Clemente and Ted Williams, among others. Ted Williams? How many fans know that his mother was of Mexican descent?
Memories of Giants in the World Series
The last time the Giants were in the World Series was in 2002. I covered that Series as the national baseball writer for the Hartford Courant newspaper and suffered one of my biggest disappointments.
It had nothing to do with the Giants losing. Baseball writers learn early on in their careers that the only thing worth rooting for is your story. Because of deadlines, writers work on their copy throughout the game. At times a certain storyline appears that you pursue and hope doesn’t get ruined by a turn of events.
The Giants had a 3-2 lead in games over the Angels heading into Game 6 at Anaheim. In the fifth inning, Shawon Dunston hit a two-run home run that broke a scoreless game. Two innings later, the Giants’ lead was up to 5-0 as they were on the verge of winning their first World Series since 1954 when they still played in New York at the Polo Grounds.
I thought back to that Series and knew the hero was a part-time outfielder named Dusty Rhodes, who came off the bench to get some huge hits for the Giants in their sweep of the Indians. Rhodes was 4-for-6 in that Series with two home runs and seven RBI.
Dunston, who had been a regular shortstop during his prime, was a bench player on those 2002 Giants. He was the designated hitter batting ninth in Game 6. A thought came to me, and I quickly typed out this lede:
ANAHEIM, Calif. – Move over, Dusty Rhodes, and make room for Shawon Dunston.
Just then, my pal Mark Whicker of the Orange County Register came over to me to chat about something. He looked at the sentence on my laptop screen and said, “Hey, that’s pretty good. I hope it holds up.”
The words were barely out of his mouth when Scott Spiezio belted a three-run home run to get the Angels to 5-3. The lede is still good, I told myself. An inning later, Darin Erstad homered and Troy Glaus doubled in two runs. There went my lede, and there went the Giants. The Angels won that game and the next one, too.
My other two experiences with the Giants in the World Series were in 1989 and 1962. In ’89, while typing early notes prior to Game 3 at Candlestick Park, the building started shaking. I saw the guys in the front row, all Bay Area writers, bolt for the exits. “This might be the big one,” one of them said.
It was big all right, an earthquake that registered 6.9 and shut down the World Series for 10 days. The people in San Francisco and Oakland were remarkable in the aftermath over the next two weeks as the area recovered not only from the quake but also the fires it caused in both cities, including the Presidio district where Yankees Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio was among those whose home was severely damaged.
On a more light-hearted note, there was 1962, the only year I ever played hooky from school – and I did it twice. The first time was in February to see the ticker-tape parade for John Glenn, the astronaut who had orbited Earth three times. The second time was Oct. 8, a Monday for Game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium between the Yankees and the Giants, Whitey Ford versus Juan Marichal.
A friend of mine had gotten tickets from a business associate of his father. I had never been to a World Series game, but I knew my parents would not let me out of school for something like that. I was going to a Catholic high school in Nassau County, Long Island. We didn’t wear uniforms, but we had to wear jackets, ties and leather shoes. I left the house that way but instead of taking the bus to school I walked to the nearest LIRR station and took the train to Penn Station and the subway to the Bronx.
It was worth it. The Stadium was all dressed up with the red, white and blue bunting I had never before seen in color and on the field were Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, the central figures although neither one had a big Series. Marichal had to leave the game early because of an injury. The score was 2-2 in the seventh when Giants second baseman Chuck Hiller homered with the bases loaded. I didn’t find out until reading the paper the next day that it was the first grand slam hit by a National League player in World Series history.
It felt neat to have witnessed some history, but for most of my life I had to keep that day a secret. In fact, it was only a year ago that I finally told my mother and father what I had done. My father, who had been a Giants fan before switching to the Mets in the 1960s, said, “I wish I could have gone with you.”
Jack O'Connell
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