Join the Asterisk Party – put Ron Santo in the Hall of Fame

Tom from NobodyProudctions.com shared a great video with me this morning.  It's worth a look and certainly worth some thought.

Tom asks the question "Is it right to put players from the steriods era in the Hall of Fame without putting people like Ron Santo in the Hall of Fame?"

Tom wants the MLB fans to join him in the asterisk party.

Please let Tom, the Hall of Fame and Major League Baseball know how you feel about this issue.

The 1969 Cubs: A lasting bond

A lone Cubs fan recently stood against a fence near the players’ parking lot outside Wrigley Field, watching as attendants valet-parked luxury sedans and sport utility vehicles.

A second fence blocked any chance for autographs, but the fan seemed content to catch small glimpses of Cubs players in their casual attire. The scene stood in sharp contrast to a relationship that sprouted between players and fans in the mid-1960s and culminated 40 seasons ago with the 1969 Cubs.

“It’s a new era,” said Ron Santo, who hit .279 with 337 home runs in 14 seasons as a Cub. “It’s different because these ball players today don’t relate like we did. There are certain ones that care, and they’ll sign. But most of them now, after ballgames, they just get their briefcase and head out.”

Today’s relationship between players and fans is distant, even at the Friendly Confines. Players rarely sign autographs before games, while stadium ushers check ticket stubs before allowing fans to walk the final 10 rows toward the field during batting practice.

Want to have a conversation with a baseball player? You might have to stand in line for hours at a promotional appearance, or sign up to follow a player’s comments on “Twitter.”

White Sox second baseman Chris Getz, Yankees outfielder Nick Swisher and Giants left-hander Barry Zito are among those who send updates to their fans in messages of 140 characters or less.

“Having breakfast … getting ready to head to the field soon,” Getz wrote last month.

Many of the 1969 Cubs would talk for fans for two hours, not two sentences. The team’s clubhouse was below the left-field bleachers, and players often would emerge to chat with the “Bleacher Bums.”

“When we would come out and take batting practice, there would be people lined up, and everybody on our team signed [autographs],” Santo said. “We knew the Bleacher Bums by their first names. The relationship was fabulous – we related to the fans as much as they related to us.”

Most of today’s Cubs players still speak glowingly about their fans and show their appreciation whenever possible. But in the era of 24-hour sports networks and sports Web logs that post unflattering pictures of players enjoying the nightlife, players tend to keep a safe distance between themselves and their fans.

Amicable Cubs reserve player Micah Hoffpauir said he enjoyed interacting with fans on the field.

“If you’re in left field, you throw a ball into the stands every inning,” Hoffpauir said. “If you’re in right or center, you throw one into the stands every other inning. I’ll always tip my hat to them when I go out, give them a wave. You want to be friendly. You definitely want them on your side.”

Hoffpauir is not recognized too often in his private life.

“I can still get by under the radar,” he said. “I like that.”

Yet many of the ’69 Cubs enjoyed a bond with fans that continued on and off of the field. The Cubs finished 92-70 but wilted down the stretch as the New York Mets captured the pennant, which still stings 40 years later.

“When we didn’t win, it was very difficult,” Santo said. “We had the best club in the National League, and the Mets came out of nowhere. But because of the entertainment that we gave those fans and the closeness with those fans, they’ve never forgotten us. It’s 40-some years and you wouldn’t believe it. You would think we had won the World Series because that’s how much they remember all of us.”

Longtime Cubs shortstop Don Kessinger agreed. He fondly remembered long conversations between players and fans throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.

“We all regret very deeply that we were not able to bring a pennant to those great fans,” said Kessinger, 66, who still watches the team on WGN from his home in Mississippi. “It’s always ‘Maybe this year.’ One of these years, it will be. Obviously, I’d like to see it for the players and I’d like it for the organization, but most of all, I’d love it for the fans.”

Written by Tom Musick

Get Ron Bronzed

Ron deserves this!

Gary Meier of WGN is trying to get Ron immortalized at Wrigley Field.  Sign Mr. Meier's petition to make this happen.

Ron Santo denied entrance into the MLB Hall of Fame

It's being reported this afternoon that Ron Santo was not voted into the MLB HOF, thus continuing the injustice against this once great player.

The Chicago Tribune is saying the following:

Ron Santo's quest for the Hall of Fame remained on hold Monday when he was denied entrance by voting of the Veterans Committee.

Candidates must receive 75 percent of the vote for induction. Joe Gordon, a nine-time All-Star second baseman for the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians, was the only player elected. Gordon received 10 votes from the 12-person committee selecting candidates from 1942 or earlier.

With the 64 living Hall of Famers voting in the post-1942 portion of the ballot, candidates needed 48 votes. Santo came the closest with 39, followed by Jim Kaat (28), Tony Oliva (33), Hodges (28), Torre (19), Maury Wills (15), Luis Tiant (13), Vada Pinson (12), Al Oliver (9) and Dick Allen (7).

For his career, Santo hit .277 with 342 home runs and 1,331 runs batted in. He was a nine-time All-Star and won five Gold Gloves.

Eddie Vedder – All the way

If this does not bring a smile to your face then your heart is made of stone.

ESPN – Veterans Committee reveals 10 candidates on Hall of Fame ballot

Here is some great news for Ron Santo fans.

Joe Torre, Ron Santo and Gil Hodges are among 10 players on the latest Hall of Fame ballot for Veterans Committee voters.

Dick Allen, Jim Kaat and Luis Tiant are on the list, made up of major-leaguers whose careers began in 1943 or later. Tony Oliva, Al Oliver, Vada Pinson and Maury Wills were also were the candidates announced Tuesday.

Voting results will be announced Dec. 8 at baseball's winter meetings in Las Vegas. A player needs 75 percent to be elected -- the living 64 Hall members will vote.

...A 12-person panel that includes Hall of Famers Bobby Doerr, Ralph Kiner and newly elected Dick Williams will vote on the older players, with nine votes needed for election.

Starbucks Black Apron Club

A fun little project I'm working on is putting together a number of Coffee Passport from those folks who've made it into the Black Apron Club there. My brother-in-law works for Starbucks and passed through into the club recently and it's interesting to see the level of detail Starbucks put their employees through to know their different coffee blends. So while DD makes fun of Starbucks all the time for having so many different coffee's it's nice to know there are educated people behind the counter there too that can tell you why Starbucks has so many different types of coffee.

Check out the project if you're intersted.

ESPN the Magazine: Kerry Wood on Ron Santo

Cubs closer Kerry Wood got a chance to voice his opinion to ESPN the Magazine in a recent quote about Ron Santo's bid for the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.  ESPN reports Kerry said

"The Hall of Fame vote and Ron Santo are talked about a lot in our clubhouse. He's been denied 18 times, and after each vote we'll look at his stats and ask, 'Are these Hall of Fame numbers?' You'll get a yes from 95% of the guys. When you start digging into the numbers, I don't think there's any doubt. How can you not vote for a guy who was a nine-time All-Star, earned five Gold Gloves, had four top-10 MVP finishes, three top-10 home run finishes and four .300-plus seasons, and led the National League in walks four times? And if you look at all the third basemen who played between 1950 and 1975, Ron ranks second in HRs, third in hits, RBIs and games played, fourth in slugging, and seventh in on-base percentage. And he did it despite having diabetes. For him to play in the big leagues at that level is amazing.

This is a nice article worth reading.

Jay Cutler diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes

Another sports athlete is diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, his business manager Marty Garafalo confirmed Thursday night.

The 25-year-old Cutler found out about two weeks ago that he was diabetic and needed daily insulin injections, Garafalo told The Associated Press.

He said Cutler was managing his disease and "in no way is his football career jeopardized."Some 21 million Americans have diabetes, meaning their bodies cannot properly turn blood sugar into energy. Either they don't produce enough insulin or don't use it correctly. With the Type 1 form, the body's immune system attacks insulin-producing pancreatic cells, so that patients require insulin injections to survive.

Read the full ESPN article.

Wrigley Field name change

There are some petitions circling the Internet right now collecting signatures to let the Cubs management know their fans want the name Wrigley Field to stay.  In addition to signing the petition to let MLB know Ron Santo belongs in the Hall of Fame, please sign the Wrigley Field petition as well on KeepItWrigley.com.

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