But First, Shamsky's Up At-Bat!
By David Rubin
I knew that there would be at least a few books documenting the legendary 1969 Mets championship season released this year, the 50th Anniversary of their still-astounding achievement.
I wasn’t prepared for 4 of them, but thankfully they’re being released over a 3-month period (from late March to mid-June) and so far, I’m happy to say, neither of the first two releases are merely rehashes of what has come before.
I wasn’t prepared for 4 of them, but thankfully they’re being released over a 3-month period (from late March to mid-June) and so far, I’m happy to say, neither of the first two releases are merely rehashes of what has come before.
The first release came from former ’69 Met first baseman/outfielder, Art Shamsky, ably helped by (multiple Mets-author) Erik Sherman (the excellent co-author of biographies with Mets legends Mookie Wilson & Davey Johnson, as well as former Pirate Steve Blass, AND who also wrote a great book that catches up with members of the ’86 World Champion team, “Kings of Queens.”)
This book was extra special for me, as I'm friendly (via Facebook) with Sherman for a number of years, and Shamsky was one of my early childhood heroes, the first player I was aware of as being Jewish, like my family. Learning about Koufax and Greenberg would come later- because in 1969, Shamsky was the player most relevant to this blogger, all of 5 years of age at the time! I'm happy to say, Shamsky and Sherman did NOT disappoint!
This book was extra special for me, as I'm friendly (via Facebook) with Sherman for a number of years, and Shamsky was one of my early childhood heroes, the first player I was aware of as being Jewish, like my family. Learning about Koufax and Greenberg would come later- because in 1969, Shamsky was the player most relevant to this blogger, all of 5 years of age at the time! I'm happy to say, Shamsky and Sherman did NOT disappoint!
When you hear about how a team functioned, from someone who sat outside of the team (authors, journalists, etc.) by its nature it tends to be less intimate as it would be hearing it from the horse's mouth.
Don’t get me wrong - journalists have followed teams around for a season, for years, and have a very educated point of view as to what they heard and saw, as well as often serving as the keeper of many secrets; much, if not most of the great baseball books have indeed come as the result of a hot take from either a biographer or a sports journalist.
Usually, though, when putting something into context as eventful as the nascent Mets’ first World Championship, when it’s been written about over and over across the years, hearing about it from someone who actually PLAYED on that team brings a new perspective to the table. Let’s face it- these guys are NOT getting younger, so it’s a true treat to hear about their exploits from two of the players responsible, Shamsky and, in June, Outfielder Ron Swoboda.
Don’t get me wrong - journalists have followed teams around for a season, for years, and have a very educated point of view as to what they heard and saw, as well as often serving as the keeper of many secrets; much, if not most of the great baseball books have indeed come as the result of a hot take from either a biographer or a sports journalist.
Usually, though, when putting something into context as eventful as the nascent Mets’ first World Championship, when it’s been written about over and over across the years, hearing about it from someone who actually PLAYED on that team brings a new perspective to the table. Let’s face it- these guys are NOT getting younger, so it’s a true treat to hear about their exploits from two of the players responsible, Shamsky and, in June, Outfielder Ron Swoboda.
Essentially, while having some great things to share about that team, as a true insider, Shamsky’s book took form around, and soared to its’ highest point, when he and co-author Sherman decided to visit the team’s Hall of Fame Superstar, pitcher George Thomas “Tom” Seaver at his GTS Winery in Napa Valley, California.
A born and bred Californian (Fresno), Seaver has sadly fallen onto some harder times of late, as we have learned that his nearly 30-year battle with Lyme Disease has resulted in the onset of Dementia. Not having too many good days anymore, and certainly not being able to travel across country, Shamsky and Sherman knew that it would be on them to arrange a visit with Seaver for what may have been the final time.
In order to make this a true ‘event’, the co-authors not only agreed to fly out to Northern California, but brought along fellow ’69 teammates Jerry Koosman, Ron Swoboda and Buddy Harrelson. Harrelson happens to be suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, and as Seaver’s former roommate and best friend from that team, it was truly going to take some great good fortune to reunite these teammates and hope for a single day wherein both were strong enough to make for a meaningful visit.
A born and bred Californian (Fresno), Seaver has sadly fallen onto some harder times of late, as we have learned that his nearly 30-year battle with Lyme Disease has resulted in the onset of Dementia. Not having too many good days anymore, and certainly not being able to travel across country, Shamsky and Sherman knew that it would be on them to arrange a visit with Seaver for what may have been the final time.
In order to make this a true ‘event’, the co-authors not only agreed to fly out to Northern California, but brought along fellow ’69 teammates Jerry Koosman, Ron Swoboda and Buddy Harrelson. Harrelson happens to be suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease, and as Seaver’s former roommate and best friend from that team, it was truly going to take some great good fortune to reunite these teammates and hope for a single day wherein both were strong enough to make for a meaningful visit.
Thankfully, for the book, but moreso, for these childhood heroes, they had a chance to join together one more time, quite possibly the last, and regale each other with tales from their youth, a time when so much was going wrong in the world and yet, here was baseball, once again, bringing some form of clarity to kids of all ages.
It was so much more than just the Mets winning for the first time, in any form: it was the proverbial David Vs. Goliath (Orioles) tale; it was the loveable losers becoming something far greater than the sum of their parts; it was a Get Well and Thank You card combined to the NYC fan-base who only 12 years earlier lost their own teams, the Dodgers of Brooklyn and Giants of New York, to the brash, garish West Coasters in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
It was, at last, and for so many, vindication. It was also the diametric opposite of the loveable losers that Casey Stengel had shepherded in Flushing for the first 4.5 years of their existence, a team so bad that their record of futility still hasn’t been matched some 57 years and multiple expansion teams later!
It was so much more than just the Mets winning for the first time, in any form: it was the proverbial David Vs. Goliath (Orioles) tale; it was the loveable losers becoming something far greater than the sum of their parts; it was a Get Well and Thank You card combined to the NYC fan-base who only 12 years earlier lost their own teams, the Dodgers of Brooklyn and Giants of New York, to the brash, garish West Coasters in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
It was, at last, and for so many, vindication. It was also the diametric opposite of the loveable losers that Casey Stengel had shepherded in Flushing for the first 4.5 years of their existence, a team so bad that their record of futility still hasn’t been matched some 57 years and multiple expansion teams later!
(Shamsky, L, & my best friend, Jon Elfenbein, from the recent book tour in FLA)
Rather than rehash Shamsky’s recollections (after all, you SHOULD buy this fantastic book and read them yourself) and the specifics of the games (since we all know the outcome, anyway) let me say that by simply reading the book, if you didn’t live and die with this team, you will have now, and if you had, then the memories and insights into men like Ed Charles, JC Martin and Tug McGraw were worth the price of admission on their own sake.
The band of brotherhood amongst these athlete-warriors remains as strong as it was those many summers’ ago, and what makes this book so special is the combination of Shamsky’s memories, fortified by both multiple quotes from a number of his teammates and their families, as well as the structure and form given to the manuscript by the always-excellent Sherman. I only wish that we had a chance to listen to those conversations in Napa between these heroes of our childhood, but the gift of this book is the receipt of the next best thing.
The band of brotherhood amongst these athlete-warriors remains as strong as it was those many summers’ ago, and what makes this book so special is the combination of Shamsky’s memories, fortified by both multiple quotes from a number of his teammates and their families, as well as the structure and form given to the manuscript by the always-excellent Sherman. I only wish that we had a chance to listen to those conversations in Napa between these heroes of our childhood, but the gift of this book is the receipt of the next best thing.
Of course, the biggest “headlines” from this book release all sadly involved Seaver’s updated medical condition, something many fans didn’t know (and many more didn’t WANT to know). It was the news of The Franchise’s dementia that spurred the Wilpon’s into announcing that they had, indeed, made plans to honor the team’s greatest player of all time with the long-awaited statue that fans have been clamoring for since the day of his entry into Cooperstown some 29 years ago.
Whether you want to believe the Wilpons at face value or whether you question the veracity of their claims that the plans to honor GTS were made a few years ago, the end result is that our hero is finally receiving some of the recognition he’s long deserved, and we need to pray that he’s able to have another “good day” when it comes time to unveil the dirt-stained leg and boyish, handsome smile that became the face of a generation in that legendary year. In the words of his immortal teammate, Tug McGraw, “you gotta believe!”
Whether you want to believe the Wilpons at face value or whether you question the veracity of their claims that the plans to honor GTS were made a few years ago, the end result is that our hero is finally receiving some of the recognition he’s long deserved, and we need to pray that he’s able to have another “good day” when it comes time to unveil the dirt-stained leg and boyish, handsome smile that became the face of a generation in that legendary year. In the words of his immortal teammate, Tug McGraw, “you gotta believe!”
Finally, as I mentioned in the opening paragraph, this book is but the first of 4 to be released this Spring/Summer, and I’m already half-way through the second book, legendary journalist Wayne Coffey’s “They Said it Couldn’t Be Done”.
Coffey provides a bit more detail about the circumstances that this amazing team, as well as the rest of the world, found themselves in during this tragic and triumphant year. I’m loving Coffey’s book so far, and hope to have a review up on this site within the next 2 weeks.
After Coffey, Rick Coutinho’s “The Miracle of 1969” will be released, and I have pre-ordered this title as well, which I’m sure will be filled with interesting observations.
However, right behind Art & Erik’s great work, I’m most looking forward to long-time favorite (and the previously mentioned) Ron Swoboda releasing his own take on that spectacular season, and beyond, in “After The Catch” to be released on June 11th, just in time for me to read it before I head home to NY and CitiField for the ’69 tribute games at the end of June. Swoboda is funny and charming in person (I had the pleasure of meeting him years ago, and again at Citi in 2014, during Father’s Day of my last visit to NY, but more about that in the book review once it’s released.)
So, at the very least, this should be the first of what I hope will be 4 or 5 articles about that wonderful season, the one that cemented my fandom in stone!
Coffey provides a bit more detail about the circumstances that this amazing team, as well as the rest of the world, found themselves in during this tragic and triumphant year. I’m loving Coffey’s book so far, and hope to have a review up on this site within the next 2 weeks.
After Coffey, Rick Coutinho’s “The Miracle of 1969” will be released, and I have pre-ordered this title as well, which I’m sure will be filled with interesting observations.
However, right behind Art & Erik’s great work, I’m most looking forward to long-time favorite (and the previously mentioned) Ron Swoboda releasing his own take on that spectacular season, and beyond, in “After The Catch” to be released on June 11th, just in time for me to read it before I head home to NY and CitiField for the ’69 tribute games at the end of June. Swoboda is funny and charming in person (I had the pleasure of meeting him years ago, and again at Citi in 2014, during Father’s Day of my last visit to NY, but more about that in the book review once it’s released.)
So, at the very least, this should be the first of what I hope will be 4 or 5 articles about that wonderful season, the one that cemented my fandom in stone!
AFTER THE MIRACLE:
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| 5 BASEBALLS |
(OUT OF 5)
2 comments:
Anything by Roger Angell, Roger Kahn or Jim Bouton rank at the top for me.
Somehow I have morphed over time into a non-book person - I seem to have lost patience to read books. It's odd. Maybe too much social media shortening reading attention span. This does, however, look like an awesome book, and collection of books. Good job, David.
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