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Doug Gladstone

Get An Autograph Later! Today, Write To Keep Baseball’s Overlooked Players In the Spotlight

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Just 27 days short of
a pension? Amazing
that Clyde still signs
for fans!

Author Doug Gladstone sees the beginning of real change, real hope.

Gladstone’s book A Bitter Cup of Coffee detailed the plight of the gap players, those pension-less men with less than four years of Major League service through 1979.

On Thursday, MLB and the Players Association took a first step to restoring those rights. Lump sum payments will be made in the next two years, up to $10,000 yearly (depending on quarters of service).

Pay special attention to Gladstone’s words to the Associated Press:

“What was announced today doesn’t provide health insurance coverage, nor will any player’s spouse or loved one receive a designated beneficiary payment after the man passes,” Gladstone said. “Today’s announcement is a step in the right direction, but if commissioner Selig and Mr. Weiner really want to do right by these men, they ought to retroactively restore them back into pension coverage.”

In 2010, Gladstone shared with this blog tips on contacting the decision makers who could give these slighted players a real pension, real insurance — real recognition. He urged fans to e-mail those power brokers.

I e-mailed the author congratulations for writing a book that helped empower these scorned players. I asked if:

1. Did the e-mails make a difference in the recent concession to unvested players?
2. Could future e-mails help provide full benefits to these men in future negotiations?

Gladstone replied:

“Absolutely a “yes” to both of your questions….if you can continue urging them to keep up the pressure on both the league and the union, that would be wonderful.”

Therefore, call up the 2010 BBTL blog post. Get those e-mail addresses for all sides. Please, write soon. The retirees are facing a “beat the clock” defense by baseball. A dead unvested player’s family gets nothing. These players mattered. Let baseball show that they honor all service.

 

Dear Fergie Jenkins: Dust Him Off!

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Dear Fergie,

I’ve written you twice before, the last being my blog post on Sept. 26.

I just received word from Doug Gladstone, author of A Bitter Cup of Coffee. He’s gone to bat for the 874 “gap” players, those playing between 1947-79, shunned for pensions and health insurance simply because they played less than four seasons. All who came later hit the jackpot with just a day on a major league roster.

Doug has posted an update on your willingness to help your baseball brethren. He blew the whistle on Dan Foster, the big cheese of the MLB Players Association. Supposedly, the director called you to ask for your silence?

What did you do with such guys during your career, Fergie? Those who hung over the plate, crowding you?

You never backed down. You answered with chin music, dusting the dudes off.

Reclaim the inside part of the plate. Flex your Hall of Fame muscle. Please, make baseball history AGAIN. Speak out, for those who have no voice.

Still your fan,
Tom

An Open Letter to HOFer Fergie Jenkins

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Dear Fergie Jenkins:

I forgave you twice. In 1972, I sent you a Topps card and a SASE c/o the Cubs. No go. When P. K. Wrigley banished you to Texas, I sent a letter of support, along with one more card and a SASE. I wound up with a postcard of you as a Ranger, complete with a preprint facsimile signature.

I know you’ve had an autograph pricelist for more than a decade. Sorry, but $25 is a bit much for me these days.

Please, don’t disappoint me a third time. I cheered when I read news of your possible pitch for justice from author Doug Gladstone. Gladstone is the author of the courageous A Bitter Cup of Coffee, the book that tells how MLB and the Players Association froze 874 former players out of pension eligibility.

You top my list of heroic Hall of Famers. Your dedication to charity has been inspiring. The first African-Canadian member of the Hall, you are an eternal league leader. Your voice can turn heads and open hearts. Better than that “when E.F. Hutton talks, everybody listens” commercial. You are not a mop-up reliever. You are a STARTER. Start a new chapter in baseball history.

I’ve been writing a letter a day for seven months. I’m collecting stories from baseball retirees. Those responses have taught me that men who were benched, overlooked and mistreated still love this game. Good letters make a difference. I feel like I’m saving endangered stories from baseball’s past. Your letter will matter to the 874 who would feel a pension acknowledges their existence.

Make you a deal. I’ve read your fine biography. I believed every page. I’m telling everyone to buy Fergie: My Life from the Cubs to Cooperstown.

 More royalties for you. But that means more fans are buying your reputation for fearlessness.

Please, don’t back down now. Reverse one of baseball’s saddest hours of the last 30 years. All it takes is one letter. One more autograph. No one will take away your Cooperstown enshrinement. In fact, I think the 874 might go in on a second plaque for you.

Still your fan,
Tom Owens