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Roberto Clemente was one of my favorite baseball players, and it was a sad day in sports when his plane went down all those years ago.

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  1. TripplerDecember 31, 2009 at 6:26 PM

    Nicaragua had just suffered an earthquake and was in need of foodstuffs and medicines. Clemente was on an overloaded airplane bound for that state when it crashed into the Caribbean Sea. One of my Mother's best friends was in a San Juan hotel and saw the crash from her window. She, like the rest of the people in PR, was in deep shock thereafter.

    Pitcher Steve Blass was one of Clemente's best friends. Up to this time he was considered among the best pitchers in the National League. After the tragedy, he lost all drive and intensity so that his career went downhill. Despite their great lineup it took years for the Pirates to go back to the top in the Major Leagues.

    In his honor, many Puerto Rican baseball players used number 21 when they play in the ML.

    ReplyDelete
  2. avrdsJanuary 1, 2010 at 2:40 AM

    They don't make sports heroes like that anymore. Happy New Year everyone!

    ReplyDelete
  3. TripplerJanuary 2, 2010 at 3:01 AM

    And a wonderful New Year to you!

    ReplyDelete
  4. MartiJanuary 2, 2010 at 9:13 AM

    Happy New Year!

    I received Zeitoun (Eggers) and J.K. Galbraith's The Great Crash of 1929 for Christmas.

    ReplyDelete
  5. James FergusonJanuary 2, 2010 at 11:35 AM

    Happy reading!

    ReplyDelete
  6. James FergusonJanuary 3, 2010 at 12:05 PM

    Baseball is filled with much interesting lore, but the curse of the Bambino and the Sox finally winning the World Series in 2004 has to be one of the greatest stories in the sport.

    ReplyDelete
  7. James FergusonJanuary 5, 2010 at 2:23 PM

    Seeing the history note on Jackie Robinson brought to mind a book I read on Satchel Paige and the Negro leagues not so long ago, "Don't Look Book," which has him sitting in a rocking chair on the cover. Great book.

    ReplyDelete

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