Is that from sliding, Len, or from attending another event with Mitch Williams?
Go, Mitch Williams!
These verbal smackdowns versus Lenny Dykstra give me hope the former pitcher might loosen up this year on FOX Game of the Week.
I don’t think Williams is the first to tee off on Dykstra. I wrote years ago about spending an afternoon with Hall of Famer Johnny Mize at an autograph show.
He was peeved at Dykstra’s behavior toward fans when they headlined the same event.
I’ll never forget “The Big Cat” launching a one-sentence dismissal, putting the hammer to “Nails.”
For those of you who missed it the first time, enjoy Mize at his best here:
That’s one of the moments I remember most from that 1977 movie.
Then, on Facebook, I checked out the latest news from the always-impressive Baseball Autographs group.
A moderator welcomed new member Bret Saberhagen. Yes, THAT Bret.
I checked the number of former players who are a part of that group. WOW!
Suddenly, those movie words made more sense.
It’s so inspiring that former players want to learn more about the hobby. It’s nice they can see REAL collectors showing how autographs and correspondence matter to them.
However, baseball retirees online get to see it all, even the snarky slams about a player’s career (as if we could have done better?). Hobbyists who take shots at someone’s autographing tendencies should be prepared for fallout.
Sure, tell the truth. Everyone’s entitled to their opinion. Just know that starting an online debate with the signing source could wind up putting the entire hobby on the losing side.
A hobby hero? By Keith Allison on Flickr (Originally posted to Flickr as “Caleb Joseph”) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Dear Orioles:
Your team has been through a lot this year. Your city, too!
Here’s just a friendly reminder of an opportunity you might be missing:
Caleb Joseph
The viral video shows the catcher signing imaginary autographs at that infamous game.
I’ve been looking for the media to follow up all week. Give the slow-moving journalists a hand.
Show the whole team signing real autographs for real fans.
Encourage your catcher to say why autographs matter.
Mascot, not to be confused with Randy Wehofer. The latter calls one fine game. By Scott McLeod (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Beat the crowd?
Joe Superstar needs to test his pitching arm. Is he ready to come off the DL? It’s time for a short tune-up and test in AAA first.
Why not write the in-demand signer when he’s back in the minors? Surely, the fan mail crush can’t be the same as the bigs, right?
I posed that question to Randy Wehofer, talented broadcaster and director of media relations, for the Iowa Cubs. I’m grateful for his response:
“As a front office staff, we deliver all mail addressed to players to our clubhouse when it is received. In the specific case of rehabbing players, I wouldn’t suggest sending things in the mail. Typically their stay with us is very short. By the time we announce that a player is going to join us, and someone puts a letter in the mail to Principal Park, there is a good chance that the player will be gone by the time we receive it. We do forward mail on during the season, but that is done as time allows for our staff, so it would be impossible to predict when the player may receive it. Any mail that we get for players after the season ends is typically marked “Return to Sender” since we have no idea what players may return the following year or access to their personal addresses.
In my dealings with players, I know that a self-addressed stamped envelope significantly increases – but doesn’t guarantee – your chances of getting a response. I would also never put any item in the mail to be autographed that I wasn’t willing to never see again since there are a lot of variables and steps for that item to reach the desired player and ultimately find its way back to you. It’s also hard to guarantee the condition of that item with all the hands and machines it will pass through in the process as well.”
The “rehabbing star, c/o minor league team” is not the secret it once was. And, will teams be able to handle the mail glut? As Randy hints, gamble wisely.
Here’s the former A.L. ump in 2007, as a VP of the Arkansas Travelers minor league team. By michael cossey from North Little Rock, Arkansas, United States of America (The Man Himself) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
![A hobby hero? By Keith Allison on Flickr (Originally posted to Flickr as "Caleb Joseph") [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://www.baseballbytheletters.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Caleb_Joseph_on_June_30_2014.jpg)
![Mascot, not to be confused with Randy Wehofer. The latter calls one fine game. By Scott McLeod (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://www.baseballbytheletters.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Cubbie_Bear.jpg)
![Here's the former A.L. ump in 2007, as a VP of the Arkansas Travelers minor league team. By michael cossey from North Little Rock, Arkansas, United States of America (The Man Himself) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons](https://www.baseballbytheletters.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Bill_Valentine_2007.jpg)