Stevens Point Journal from Stevens Point, Wisconsin • Page 21

teuens Joint Journal mm NEWS AND TV GUIDE LARGEST CIRCULATION elbows diamond Rubbing id it, Tim Sullivan poses with former Cub star Ron Santo. (Jeff Wenndorf photo) IN THIS TRADING AREA with he did until we started telling him what was coming. Sammy White was our catcher, and he'd say, 'Slider coming on outside corner fastball down the Cepeda didn't want to know what pitch was coming, and we started getting him out easier. He used to kill me." Were you ever impressed with anything Bob Uecker did on the field? Burdette: "No." He continued, "I was more impressed with a lot of things he did off the field. Bob was a great guy to have around." Burdette walked over to talk to some of the Braves, and Bill Mazeroski sat down next to me.

Mazeroski's dramatic ninth-inning homer off Ralph Terry in Forbes Field won the World Series for the Pirates against New York in 1960. You probably get this all the time, but did you ever touch home plate? Mazeroski: "Do you mean in 1960? Sure I touched the plate." Do you have any special memories about County Stadium? Mazeroski: "Outside of playing, I'll always remember the first World Series between the Braves and the Yankees in '57. The fans in this ballpark were absolutely crazy. "Also, I don't think anybody on the Pirates could think about County Stadium and not remember Harvey Haddix's 12 perfect innings against the Braves in 1959. Our pitcher gave us 12 perfect innings and we still lost the game." Other than beating the Yankees, what was your biggest thrill in baseball? Mazeroski: "The '60 Series was the best.

We were also in the '71 Series, but I didn't play much. My next biggest thrill was just playing in the big leagues. I always stars imi.ii.iu lujimuiwii Mpili 7''' Vi fX. i of the dreamed of being in the major leagues." Who were your heroes when you were a kid? Mazeroski: "Lou Boudreau, Bob Feller, Kenny Keltner, Joe Gordon. I was a big Cleveland Indians fan." Who was the toughest pitcher you had to face? Mazeroski: "Sandy Koufax.

And that guy watching television over there, Bob Gibson, was a close second." Do you remember your first hit? Mazeroski: "It was my first time at bat in the majors in 1956. A single to center against Johnny Antonelli of the Giants. It was at the Polo Grounds in New York." At this point, Keltner walked over. Does County Stadium bring back any great memories for you? Keltner: "I don't know about memories, but it's a great feeling just being here today. It's a thrill just looking around this room and seeing all these great players." Kenny, you're also one of the great players.

You stopped Joe Di-Maggio's hitting streak in 1941 (July 17). That had to be a thrill. Keltner: "That's not totally correct. We had nine fellows out there. Everyone on our team stopped Joe's streak.

I just made two plays." I asked Keltner if he'd pose for a picture out on the field. "It'll be my pleasure," he said. "Thank you for our talk, and if I can help out anymore, just let me know." It seems like Keltner invented the word "class." If you asked him about a certain hbme run he hit, Keltner would probably say he was lucky that the wind was blowing out. He had 1,570 hits during his illustrious career, and 163 of them were homers. Johnny Logan seemed like the easiest player to try next.

What is your greatest memory about County Stadium? Logan: "Beating the Yankees in the '57 World Series. The enthusiasm of the fans was unbelievable. I mean the fans in Milwaukee and the fans in the whole state and even the bordering states. It was a very exciting time." Who were the toughest pitchers you had toJace? Logan: "Drysdale. Koufax.

And a really good reliever, Elroy Face. He had a beautiful forkball." Were you impressed with any- 1 thing Bob Uecker did on the field? Logan: "Uecker was an outstanding defensive catcher. He just never had a chance to play much because he was behind two great catchers. Bob was the team comedian in the clubhouse. There was a great camaraderie on the Braves, and Uecker was a big part of it.

We were a very loose team." Do you remember your first hit in the majors? Logan: "It was in '51 against Larry Jansen in Boston. I went 1-for-3 and the hit was a single up the middle. Does any one thrill stand out In your career? Logan: "Sure. I hit a home run in Yankee Stadium in the '57 By TIM SULLIVAN June 7 was a day to remember. The Milwaukee Brewer Old-Timers took on the Equitable Old-Timers at County Stadium prior to the Brewers' game against Boston.

It was the first time the Brewers had ever staged an Old-Timers' affair, and I had the privilege of being on the scene. The Equitable Old-Timers gathered in a small dressing room under the stands prior to batting practice, and it was a sight to be- hold. The room might have been small, but the talent inside was enormous. A total of 16,889 major league hits and 2,259 big league home runs were represented by the 12 position players in the room, and the totals didn't include those of Hank Aaron because he arrived a bit late. The four pitchers inside those cramped walls had a combined total of 937 major league wins and 9,604 strikeouts during their careers.

After looking around the room, you had the impression that a big closet full of baseball cards suddenly came alive. The first person I saw was Bob Gibson, the winning pitcher in 251 games. He was sitting on a sofa watching "The Game of the Week" on television. You couldn't miss the bright red No. 45 on the back of his cream-colored jersey.

St. Louis always had classy uniforms, and the block letters spelling GIBSON stood out impressively. The ex-Cardinal pitcher is in the Hall of Fame. Bob Uecker was relaxing next to Gibson. It was "Front row Bob" himself, the Brewer announcer and, frequent "Tonight Show" guest.

"Mr. Belvedere" had about 30 baseballs in front of him, and his pen was in high gear. Somebody took a sip out of a paper cup and said, "Tastes great, Bob." Uecker winked at him. Two players were quietly talking at the end of a small table. One of them was showing a throwing technique to the other.

He bent down to tie his shoe, and the No. 19 came into view on his Cleveland Indian uniform. The guy was Bob Feller who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1962. "Rapid Robert" was probably telling ex-teammate Kenny Keltner how he threw an opening day no-hitter against the White Sox in 1940. Gibson, Uecker, Feller, Keltner.

You couldn't look three feet in any direction without being in complete awe of the baseball personalities gathered in that one small room. The stars of baseball's past were everywhere. Lew Burdette was sharing a joke with Frank Torre. Burdette's three complete game victories against the dreaded Yankees in the 1957 World Series won the MVP award, and his Brave teammate Torre chipped in with two homers. Johnny Logan joined them in their conversation.

Mickey Lolich was putting on his socks, and Eddie Mathews walked by to get a drink of water. The Braves No. 41,, who smashed 512 home runs during his career, was inducted at Cooperstown in 1978. What was your feeling when Joe Adcock hit four homers in one game? Logan: "I was really happy for Joe. He was my roommate then.

Adcock did it at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn and he almost had five homers. He hit a double that hit the wall and just missed going out." Frank Torre was also on my mind. He hit the first major league homer I ever saw, and I wanted to tell him that I remembered. However, Torre seemed to be in the middle of telling a story, so I sat down next to No. 10 of the Cubs, Ron Santo.

What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about County Stadium? Santo: "The first thing I think about was the fight!" The Cub slugger laughed. Uecker overheard his answer and turned around on the sofa. He smiled at Santo and asked, "You talking about the one with Curtis?" Santo nodded, and they both laughed again. Santo: "Here's what happened. We were playing the Braves, and I'm on third base.

(Pointing to Uecker) We're really pounding these guys. The score's about 14-0. Our pitcher is Glen Hobbie, and he's at the plate. "Charlie Metro is the third base coach, and Jack Curtis is pitching for Milwaukee. He was my roomie the year before in Chicago.

Now, Hobbie gets up there to bat and Metro hears Birdie Tebbetts yell to Curtis, 'I want Hobbie flat on his Santo continued, "Well, we knew Hobbie was about to go down and, sure enough, Curtis threw a fastball right behind him. Hobbie hit the deck and Uecker ran after the ball. I took off for home and just when I got there, here comes Curtis, "He kicked me in the leg and the next thing I knew, there was a big brawl. Hobbie's still on the ground, I'm trying to slide into home, Mathews comes charging in and jumped into the pile Curtis is steaming all I tried to do was score from third and all of a sudden the whole ballpark was going crazy at home plate." Santo said County Stadium reminds him a lot of Wrigley Field. "The fans really get up for the he aid.

"This is a good ballpark to bit in, just like Wrigley." The clubhouse emptied following Santo's journey into the past as the players made their way to the field for batting practice. You couldn't help cheering for the Equitable Old-Timers, and I was hoping my short talks wouldn't be too much of a jinx. Things looked good as the game began. Logan led off with a single to left. The old guys were on the move, but Mazeroski followed by bouncing into a double play.

And then, the roof fell in. Uecker, with a lifetime .200 batting average, pinch-hit for Mathews. It brought the house down, and you knew the end was in sight. The Brewer Old-Timer's shelled 67-year old Bob Feller and won going away, 7-0. Thank goodness nobody got hurt.

The author is a Stevens Point free-lance writer and sports buff. He says getting to interview fabled baseball stars from the past in Milwaukee was one heck of an experience "I didn't come down from that for a week." At the far end of the sofa, Tony Oliva was having a casual chat with Felix Mantilla. Mike Hegan and Ron Santo were leaning against a locker talking about golf. Bill Mazeroski said something funny to another player, and Moose Skowron let out a big chuckle. I wanted the day to last forever.

Unfortunately, someone stuck his head in the door and said, "Okay, guys, batting practice in 30 minutes." The message was clear to me. If I wanted to get any interviews, the time was now. But where do you start? Who do you approach first? And, betted yet, what do you ask these guys? These questions were on my mind as I walked up to Lew Burdette. As it turned out, every player that I approached was very cordial and willing to give me a few' minutes. What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you think about County Stadium? Burdette: "Nothing but good thoughts.

I had an awful lot of good times here. The good times were far more than the bad." What was your biggest thrill in baseball? (Dumb question.) Burdette smiled. He said, "The final game of the '57 World Series." What bitter gave yon the most trouble? Burdette: "Orlando Cepeda hit me better than anyone. At least,.