1/7/21

SAVAGE VIEWS – Ray Unfiltered

 

January 7, 2021

Here we are welcoming in a new year with the expectations that this will be a better year f0r all of us.  As an original Mets fan, it’s the first time since the Cashen years that I truly feel optimistic about the team’s future.

Thought I would start the year off by getting a few things off my chest.

MLB status granted to Negro Leagues. The decision to recognize the Negro Leagues as a Major League has been met with almost universal acclaim.  Without question, some of the best players all time played in the Negro Leagues and were sadly prevented from displaying their wares in the majors.  Thirty five former Negro League players are enshrined in the Hall of Fame.  I have no doubt that a team of barnstorming all-star Negro players was very competitive with their all-white major league counterparts.  In my view, the Negro Leagues were at best equivalent to Double A.  Seven leagues with a handful of stars generally dominating inferior competition.  Maybe the next move should be to elevate the Japanese League to major league status as well.

Under the Grapefruit Tree - Watched this documentary about the trials and tribulations faced by CC Sabathia over his long and storied career.  Being the sports fanatic that I am, I felt compelled to watch this film.  However, I’m not certain what Sabathia was hoping to accomplish by baring his soul.  Without question, he is a future hall of famer – his statistics support a first ballot selection.  What I see is a 6’6” 300 pound athlete who earned in excess of $200 million during his playing days.  He traces his addiction to alcohol to traumatic events during his lifetime.  According to him he needed a drink to celebrate good fortune and another drink when misfortune fell.  Growing up in Brooklyn in the 40’s and 50’s I was surrounded by family and friends whose main entertainment was visiting the local bar – there was one on every corner.  I’m no stranger to alcoholism. And those who were addicted would periodically go cold turkey before reverting back.

 For Sabathia to be called courageous for entering a re-hab facility and a hero for completing the program is a sham.  There was nothing courageous about doing something that he should have done decades earlier.  I do not applaud him and do not consider him a hero.  Leaving his team just before the ACL series was not a courageous act. It had to be evident to those familiar with him that Sabathia had a long-term problem.  Where was his support team ranging from ownership, managers and coaches, team-mates and family?

Tom Seaver – A Terrific Life by Bill Madden – One of my sons gifted this book to me as a Christmas present.  After reading the first 100 pages I th0ught Madden should have titled the book “St. George Thomas”.   Once past the opening pages, Madden gives us a fair portrait of a complex individual who became known as “The Franchise”.  It’s a vivid trip down memory lane.  Seaver was the product of a privileged background and he was elitist, arrogant, self-centered, etc. – generally not the nicest guy in the locker-room. But he clearly was one of the best pitchers of all time.  A true student of the game as demonstrated by his ability to control a game.  The more I read about Seaver the more I can appreciate Jacob deGrom.  Jake is the true heir apparent – a thinking man’s pitcher who can dominate the opposition even when he doesn’t have his best stuff. 

I recommend this book to all Mets fans.  It’s a reminder that, with few exceptions, ownership has allowed a toxic atmosphere to permeate the clubhouse.  Thankfully, the future looks bright.

By the way, has anyone sampled the Cabernet from GTS Vineyards?

Ray

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