Thank you, Herm Starrette.
I love the movie Bull Durham (20th Anniversary Edition)
. I love the interaction on the mound, those conferences and pep talks.
I had to ask a real coach what a real mound meeting is like. What might be the funniest thing ever said — even if you don’t laugh until returning to the bench.
Starrette proved the movie might be more real than we imagined, replying:
“Little Latin kid. Bases load, no outs. can’t tell you his name. He said to me, ‘No problem.’ I said, ‘Yes, there IS a problem.'”
Starrette received World Series rings as Baltimore’s minor league pitching coordinator in 1970, and as Philadelphia’s pitching coach in 1980.
Now, he’s facing the ultimate challenge:
“I appreciate your letter. May God bless you and your family. I’ve had a hard time with prostate cancer. It’s a long haul taking radiation. Thanks. Your friend, Herm Starrette.”
Write to Herm. Remember him. He concluded with:
“Don’t have time to write you the whole story, but a beautiful career and quite educational. Learn a lot from different people.”
I just got a response from Mr. Starrette. He’s still battling cancer. He seems like an awesome guy and is very proud of his career. He asked me if I could make him a batch of custom index cards for him to sign for his doctors and nurses. I sent them out a couple of days ago and told him to let me know if he needs more. He’ll be in my thoughts.
I played in the Orioles organization when Herm was the roving minor league pitching instructor. He is one of the funniest guys I met in baseball. Once, while in the bullpen early in a game, Herm had us all turn our hats sideways so the manager would think we were looking on the filed, while we were actually checking out the hot women in the stands. Oh how I miss the life in the minor leagues. Bill Siebler, Miami Orioles 1973.