50 years ago today...

[MrOrange82]

It's definitely not as easy to be a fan today, but honestly, to me these guys were never my peers, they were my heroes. Back in the old days, most of your experience with players was through things reported in the newspaper or relayed by the radio announcers. The game is actually much more intimate now, in certain ways. Every game is on TV, so you can see for yourself how they perform, then see it again in super slo-mo. There are pre-game shows and post-game shows where you see the players being interviewed and get a sense of their personalities. There is a ton of data on the strengths and weaknesses of players. The lives of these players away from the field is more detached from the average fan today due to their wealth, but I think the average fan actually knows them better today.

That's an interesting perspective, thanks. The amount/depth of information available today is inarguably greater than it was decades ago given technological improvements in broadcasting, social media, etc. I think I'd prefer less information...and less of everything else, though, without question. The absence of Twitter updates would be a small price to pay for the ability to cheer for heroes, rather than elites.

[Frobby]

That's an interesting perspective, thanks. The amount/depth of information available today is inarguably greater than it was decades ago given technological improvements in broadcasting, social media, etc. I think I'd prefer less information...and less of everything else, though, without question. The absence of Twitter updates would be a small price to pay for the ability to cheer for heroes, rather than elites.

The thing I miss the most is having many good/great players stay with one team their entire careers. Now it feels like the minute a guy has a couple of good seasons, you start to think about the fact that the guy is on a six-year clock and the relationship actually seems to be almost adversarial in a way. It really does feel, as Jerry Seinfeld said, that you're rooting for laundry, rather than the players in the uniforms. That said, the team always had the prerogative to trade away beloved players, including the guy who is the subject of this thread, who was my idol.

[DrungoHazewood]

The thing I miss the most is having many good/great players stay with one team their entire careers. Now it feels like the minute a guy has a couple of good seasons, you start to think about the fact that the guy is on a six-year clock and the relationship actually seems to be almost adversarial in a way. It really does feel, as Jerry Seinfeld said, that you're rooting for laundry, rather than the players in the uniforms. That said, the team always had the prerogative to trade away beloved players, including the guy who is the subject of this thread, who was my idol.

And it was always crappy for the player. Imagine being one of us, just with MLB talent, drafted by the Yanks and stuck with them forever.

[Frobby]

And it was always crappy for the player. Imagine being one of us, just with MLB talent, drafted by the Yanks and stuck with them forever.

I would find clever ways to sabotage the team. Put itching powder in the pitcher's jockstrap, or whatever.

[DrungoHazewood]

The thing I miss the most is having many good/great players stay with one team their entire careers. Now it feels like the minute a guy has a couple of good seasons, you start to think about the fact that the guy is on a six-year clock and the relationship actually seems to be almost adversarial in a way. It really does feel, as Jerry Seinfeld said, that you're rooting for laundry, rather than the players in the uniforms. That said, the team always had the prerogative to trade away beloved players, including the guy who is the subject of this thread, who was my idol.

I still clearly remember the day in 1981 when my Dad's boss stopped by the house for something and asked if I'd heard that the Orioles traded Doug DeCinces to the Angels for Disco Dan Ford. I was crushed. Don't tell me about player's loyalty and how it's not as good as the golden days! I wrote the Doug DeCinces fan club newsletter on notebook paper and tacked it up on the wall in my treehouse and they traded him for Disco Dan Ford!!!

[Frobby]

I still clearly remember the day in 1981 when my Dad's boss stopped by the house for something and asked if I'd heard that the Orioles traded Doug DeCinces to the Angels for Disco Dan Ford. I was crushed. Don't tell me about player's loyalty and how it's not as good as the golden days! I wrote the Doug DeCinces fan club newsletter on notebook paper and tacked it up on the wall in my treehouse and they traded him for Disco Dan Ford!!!

I'm not faulting the players at all here. I'm merely speaking about the fan experience. It was more enjoyable as a fan when players did not move around so often, and you didn't need to worry about losing your best players after six years. No question the system was one-sided and the team could still disappoint the fans by trading away some team stalwarts. But there was significantly less movement of the players the fans identify with. That's just an objective fact.

[MrOrange82]

I'm not faulting the players at all here. I'm merely speaking about the fan experience. It was more enjoyable as a fan when players did not move around so often, and you didn't need to worry about losing your best players after six years. No question the system was one-sided and the team could still disappoint the fans by trading away some team stalwarts. But there was significantly less movement of the players the fans identify with. That's just an objective fact.

And what you're talking about partially informs my inclination to ask about things like "community representation/connectedness," etc. Because, as you (and Mr. Seinfeld) said, without those things we're left cheering (and tacitly justifying monstrous salaries) for the laundry.

Put another way: who are these "Orioles," and why should I care? Because they happen to wear a uniform that looks similar to ones I grew up with? Not only is that silly, it's wasteful.

[ScottP]

My neighbors were distant relatives to Pappas and we were all bummed about the trade. Got over that pretty quickly.

[OFFNY]

o

50 Years Ago, Frank Robinson's Search for Housing in Baltimore Helped in 'Opening the Door for Others'

(By Mike Klingaman)

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/bs-sp-frank-robinson-housing-0124-20160122-story.html

[Tx Oriole]

I would find clever ways to sabotage the team. Put itching powder in the pitcher's jockstrap, or whatever.

That's funny.

[Scotto]

I am not exaggerating when I say I might never have become an Orioles fan if this trade hadn't been made. I was 9 years old in 1966, and just starting to follow baseball. I lived in the DC suburbs where nearly everyone was a Senators fan. But the O's captured my imagination that summer, with Frank leading the way, and I never looked back. If not for that, I'd probably be a Nats fan now. It's hard for me to even conceive of not being a die-hard Orioles fan, but that easily could have happened.

Frobby, I'm a bit younger than you, but you've captured almost the same exact way I became an O's fan. I pretended to still follow the Senators during that season, but the reality is by the time the season was over they weren't even on my radar any more!

[Moose Milligan]

I'd love to know the full story behind the trade. How long the negotiations lasted, who was offered before Pappas and the others or if that was all it took. Was Robinson shopped around anywhere else? I've always wondered about the behind the scenes of this trade as it was so important to this franchise and one of the biggest win/losses in baseball history. Did Dalton hang up the phone and jump around the office because he knew he got a steal or was he nervous that Robinson was a gamble? Because Pappas wasn't a bad pitcher at all, not in the least. His '67 and '68 seasons for the Reds weren't bad at all. Did the Reds GM jump around his office fist pumping because he thought he was getting an ace pitcher headed into his prime? What was his logic for thinking Robinson was an old 30?

So many questions and things I'd like to know about this deal.

[weams]

I'd love to know the full story behind the trade. How long the negotiations lasted, who was offered before Pappas and the others or if that was all it took. Was Robinson shopped around anywhere else? I've always wondered about the behind the scenes of this trade as it was so important to this franchise and one of the biggest win/losses in baseball history. Did Dalton hang up the phone and jump around the office because he knew he got a steal or was he nervous that Robinson was a gamble? Because Pappas wasn't a bad pitcher at all, not in the least. His '67 and '68 seasons for the Reds weren't bad at all. Did the Reds GM jump around his office fist pumping because he thought he was getting an ace pitcher headed into his prime? What was his logic for thinking Robinson was an old 30?

So many questions and things I'd like to know about this deal.

I would really like to know. Frank probably does. I think Jim and conversely Roy, might have some idea.

[duffaphonic]

For some reason Frank was thought of as a troublemaker. The Reds had Vada Pinson in the outfield who was much less outspoken than Frank. Sometimes management pigeonholes certain guys and it's best for both parties to separate. It certainly worked out great for the Os.When's the season start.

[weams]

For some reason Frank was thought of as a troublemaker. The Reds had Vada Pinson in the outfield who was much less outspoken than Frank. Sometimes management pigeonholes certain guys and it's best for both parties to separate. It certainly worked out great for the Os.When's the season start.

The Reds had a history of old school approaches.