Happy for Dillon
Good Morning, all! I hope your week is going well.
I was so happy to hear the news that former Colorado Rockies prospect Dillon Thomas was called up to the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday. It is his first crack at the major leagues.
I will always remember the night Thomas belted a walk-off home run to give the Hartford Yard Goats a victory in their new ballpark, Dunkin’ Donuts Park. It was early in the 2017 season in front of a packed house on a Friday night. That was when Thomas provided an electric moment, belting a game-winning homer into the upper deck in right field. The crowd went wild and I remember leaving the park that night, the fans still buzzing as they departed, saying to a couple of Yard Goats front office people, “this is the kind of night, we all envisioned, when the plan to build a ballpark and return professional baseball to Hartford was floated.” It was a special night.
And Thomas is a special person. Cut loose by the Rockies organization, he latched on with an independent league team, continued to work hard, earned his way back into organized baseball and persisted. Now he is in the major leagues. His story is an inspirational one and congratulations are in order.
Remembering Mickey
Yesterday marked the 52nd anniversary of Mickey Mantle’s retirement ceremony at Yankee Stadium. June 8, 1969; I remember it like yesterday, watching the event on television in between games of a doubleheader. At this point, the Yankees had fallen on hard times, their dominance of the sport a distant memory. But there was the Stadium, on this day, packed like the old days. There was DiMaggio, Ford, Rizzuto, Berra, Howard, McDougald and many other ex-teammates on hand to salute Mickey. Even the “Voice of the Yankees,” Mel Allen, unceremoniously dumped by previous ownership, returned to introduce Mantle. Fortunately, the video record of this memorable occasion is there for all to see on You Tube. You can watch it below.
Dialing it back
My friends, I have been producing this newsletter weekly for nearly three years and publishing it three days per week for nine months. After this latest piece, I am going to dial it back, somewhat, producing a weekly newsletter most weeks. There will be weeks, when I won’t produce one. The newsletter will be emailed to subscribers on most Tuesdays. The plan is to also produce a podcast episode or two on occasion and also a video commentary, when time permits. If you remain a subscriber, this too will also be delivered to your inbox. In other words, I am not completely disappearing, just stepping back a bit. There is nothing serious going on here, just looking to free up some time in my “semi-retirement.”
In the meantime, thank you for your continuous support. It means so much.
SPORTSCASTER DAN
We had a record of Mickey Mantle Day (I think it might have even been 78 speed) that we would play when I was growing up...it was pretty much just The Mick's speech from that day.