Whitey loads and leads with his hip. Perfection. NOTE: Check out Ford’s post foot hooked on the front edge of the rubber, a trademark of Sandy Koufax.
I met Whitey Ford when he came to Vancouver with Roger “61” Maris and Don “Perfect Game” Larsen. They were here to promote an MLB spring exhibition game at B.C. Place, which is about as suited for baseball as a senior’s home is for Super Mario.
Ford was a classy dude who truly loved his life. I didn’t get a chance to tell him he was my boyhood idol and my nickname on the hill was Whitey.
I was the sports editor, columnist, reporter and photog with a weekly paper at the time and I interviewed Maris with Archie McDonald from The Sun. It went extremely well, which was an enigma because Roger’s rep proclaimed he was somewhat shy, somewhat withdrawn, and somewhat difficult.
Nothing could have been further from the truth. Maris was open, relaxed, interesting, and expressive. This was really Archie’s interview but he asked me to join him because of my baseball background. I think Roger was so easy because he was talking to someone who actually knew something about the game, as compared to a lot of sportswriters who are as erudite as a junk yard dog writing about women’s fashion.
I don’t remember much of the details but one thing stands out. When Maris and Mickey Mantle zeroed in on The Babe’s sacred 60 jacks the scribes tried desperately to create a soap opera controversy. They don’t get along, they can’t stand each other, they want the record for themselves.
“We were best friends,” Maris told us. “We roomed together. Mickey was idolized by Yankee fans everywhere. I wanted him to hit 61 even more than me.”
Roger’s classic swing with solid rotation, firm front side, beautiful extension.
Maris was never voted into the Hall of Fame, which is as ridiculous as claiming Jeff Bezos needs food stamps. He simply had no use for the media invading his privacy off the field and it created a tension a lot of the voters couldn’t get past.
Is it any wonder he didn’t trust a lot of the media?
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“I’ll leave the Hall of Fame to the geniuses that vote on it. I will never get in. I’ve always known that. I will not argue about why or why not I should be elected.”
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I exchanged very few words with Larsen, the iconic no wind-up righthander who threw the only no-hitter ever in the World Series. In fact, it was perfect, 27 up, 27 gonzo. Try that in your dreams. I had long hair then, down to my shoulders, and Larsen showed obvious disdain for us hippies.
Not so Whitey. He was affable and friendly, as open as a window in July.
Whitey Ford on the hill was money. There are winners and there are Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzy, LeBron, Ronaldo, Tiger, MJ…and Whitey Ford. Hand him the ball in game 7 and start celebrating your World Series victory. Casey Stengel might even doze off.
He was The Chairman of the Board, matching Sinatra, and, along with Mantle, he was the engine of six world championships. Six. It would have been seven but he only took the hill twice in 1960 against the Pirates when he fired off two shutout wins.
His real name was Edward Charles but his Triple A manager, Lefty Gomez, saw his blond hair and kept calling him Whitey. It stuck. All the way into the Hall of Fame.
Sadly…
Roger Maris passed at age 51 in 1985, not long after he talked to us. He was a decent, private man and a tremendous all around outfielder and hitter.
For my money Mickey Mantle was the greatest player of that era or any era for that matter, but Willie Mays and Mike Trout fans will definitely disagree. After 40 years of excessive alcohol he left us in 1995 at age 63.
Don Larsen, who was perfect in the 1956 Series, died on New Year’s Day this year. He was 90.
If I had to win one game I’d give the ball to Sandy Koufax, Nolan Ryan, Bob Gibson, Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez or Whitey Ford. Whitey went home again this past week at age 91.
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Dave Talks Baseball 