Posted on 06/09/2010 6:52:06 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
You're looking at an X-ray of a Mizuno PR4192 bat, commissioned by Pete Rose specifically for his 1985 chase of baseball's all-time hits record. Inside, clear as day, is a piece of foreign material, about 6 inches long, and the diameter of a nickel. This is the story of that bat. * * *
In 1985, over the July Fourth long weekend, Rose and the Cincinnati Reds headed to Veterans Stadium for a four-game series with the Phillies. Rose was on the last legs of his career and had been traded from the Expos back to the Reds the previous season. Permanently playing first base now, and serving as the last player-manager in baseball, Rose was in hot pursuit of Ty Cobb's iconic record of 4,191 hits. It was the only reason he was still playing baseball.
Before the season, Rose had a box of about 30 black Mizuno bats specially made for him. His trademark quick swing not nearly as quick as it used to be, Rose ordered his bats a little lighter than usual to shorten up his motion. The bats were 34 inches long, and weighed 31.6 ounces. In honor of his quest for 4,192 hits, they were dubbed the PR4192.
He used one of those bats — the bat you see in the X-ray — in the Philadelphia series. It was captured forever by a photographer's camera: Rose, waiting in the on-deck circle, bat resting on his left shoulder.
Pete Rose went 1-for-8 that weekend. He was 37 hits away from breaking the record. * * *
Steve Wolter was a huge Pete Rose fan.
"He idolized Pete, his hard work, the effort he put forward," his son Adam says.
(Excerpt) Read more at deadspin.com ...
MacGregor was based in Cincinnati and Rose was with the Reds. He was on his first marriage at the time. He was having an affair with a MacGregor secretary who looked like a young Mary Tyler Moore at the time and a less attractive woman who was a secretary in the Advertising Department.
Kills me when you look at Ted Williams stats with no cheatin or steroids plus a hitch in WW2 and Korean as a fighter pilot.
Ted was the real deal and the scum sports writers in Boston made him miserable.
“posing for a picture with his girlfriend (who is young enough to be his daughter).”
If she’s legal, who cares?
or d.newcombe or d.drysdale! (2 name JUST two) what a load of horses&it huh!!!??? they would have halted their walk to the dugout and made a u-turn back to that little party at the plate and kicked some tail and the rest of their teammates would have been right there with ‘em!!!!!
I grew up listening to Ernie Harwell call Tiger games, and Al Kaline was my favorite player. My mother, a visiting nurse, had a patient who had a nephew who was a bigwig with the Tigers, and he got us (my brothers and I) a baseball signed by the entire Tiger team. Al Kaline's autograph was right there, in my hand!
A few years later, my brother lost the ball. :)
just a bunch of miserable old jealous men of a young man who had the world at his feet. ‘My Turn at Bat’ by Ted is still one of my favorite MLB books among my to many to count. there are a few other good Teddy Ballgame, (of the MFL...heh!) books out their also. I have ‘em all. he was a man’s man.
I bet you know my cousin Kenneth.
I am surprised how many people are Kaline fans. He was my favorite growing up.
I have a baseball signed by the entire Panama City, Fliers team of 1953. The baseball is a Spaulding, official Alabama-Florida League ball. It was class D but pretty good baseball. One player playing for that league, at Pensacola I think, was Cal Ripkin Sr.
One of the guys who signed my baseball was Chase Riddle who was something of a minor league legend. After he retired as a scout for St. Louis, he coached Troy to a couple of national championships.
I have two 1965 Pete Rose baseball cards. Are they worth more or less because of all his foolishness?
I’m sure you remember ‘68 then. Brock popin’ up to Freehan to end game seven.......I think I went thru the roof! YES!!!Mayo dumpin’ no bat Ray Oyler to get Mickey S. in at short to open up an outfield spot for a deserving Al K. I still have the 2 Sports Illustrated issues, among many other old ones and “Sport’ mags of those and earlier times, that covered that series. one of the best ever. I HATED the Cards then, ‘specially after what they did to the Yanks in ‘64.
Terrific site! Thank you!! Lots of fun indeed.
I would advise going to the card sites on the net. I was never a collector as such, I had many, but was not dedicated to the hobby. without looking I think Pete’s first year was ‘63 so depending on the condition of your ‘65 cards, they might be worth enough to you to let them go.
Oh gosh... how I remember that. Stanley to short... People thought Mayo was crazy!
thanks! sure is huh? I keep it on my desktop. I’m bored? well, okay lets check out some MLB stats then.....how did Ted vrs. say Joe D. stack up IF they each went 162 with no WW2 interups. for either? how about Reggie vrs. Mickey over 163? fun stuff!!!
The best thing that can happen is for the Fans of professional Sports to walk away..
I have more respect for the Young Man with a wife and kids working the Parts Counter at NAPA than any professional sports figure.
W
BTW Ask yourself: Would those Prima Donna’s show up if they knew with certainty many of them would be blown to pieces, dead, missing limbs, blided, burned every time they practiced or played a game? Oh and for a few thousand a month.
Can you think of some people for whom that is a daily reality.. Thought so..
To heck with “Proffesional Sports”..
Mayo was slammed later in more than a few MLB books for how he operated but DAMN, that Oyler/Stanley move was voted as one of the most ballsie moves in MLB history. can you imagine with good field, no stick Ray Oyler, who I played slow pitch with in the seventies, on the pine and Mickey clangin’ up 6 or 7 GB’s!!!?? and costing the tigers the series? oh my God they would have torn Smith to pieces in the motor city!!!! thank God it worked out. Curt Flood staggering around out in center, I think in the seventh or eighth inning of seven! TIGERS ROCKED in ‘68!!!!
The informal polling of living Hall of Fame voters has always been more anti-Pete than the sportswriters have been. If it were a vote of the players, he’d lose big time.
The Hall of Fame has a real problem when it can’t admit the all-time hits leader and the all-time home run leader because they were both known cheats who dishonored the game.
I’ve felt the solution has been to create a “notables” wing that acknowledges some of the bad apples without giving them the full plaque routine. Otherwise, the Hall will soon become a joke.
reg. your second sentence. there was a time in this country when those MLB players also worked the NAPA type jobs, among many others. they served our country during wartime. things have changed. It does make this old boy ill to see what goes on now in pro sports. I can view MLB now......but that is it, any other ‘sports’.....hard. and yeah, I jurt over that to...knowing what some of these kids pull. a long lifetime devotion to something like MLB is hard to just toss away tho.
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