Yaz is a sore loser.

[weams]

July 26, 2009 --

A BOSTON Red Sox legend is being feted as one of the world's biggest baseball jerks. Carl Yastrzemski, who grew up in Southampton but gained fame in Beantown, "is the Hall of Fame's most infamous living misanthrope. Collectors, dealers and even baseball executives regard him as unfriendly and unpleasant," writes Zev Chafets of the famed outfielder in "Cooperstown Confidential," out from Bloomsbury. Chafets quotes a fan who bought an autograph from Yastrzemski, as fuming, " asked him who the best hitter he ever saw was. He didn't even bother looking up, much less answer. That hurts." Yastrzemski's rep didn't get back to us.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/07262009/gossip/pagesix/nasty_to_fans_181436.htm

[Mark Carver]

What? A New York tabloid paper bemoaning a Boston Red Sox HOF'er...

... who'd ever thunked it!

[DrungoHazewood]

I once ran into Yaz in an alley on a dark and rainy night. I said to him "I saw you play in the first game my Dad ever too me to." He stabbed me. As I fell to the ground, I cried out "Why?!?" And Yaz said "I just wanted to watch a man bleed."

[bobmc]

I once ran into Yaz in an alley on a dark and rainy night. I said to him "I saw you play in the first game my Dad ever too me to." He stabbed me. As I fell to the ground, I cried out "Why?!?" And Yaz said "I just wanted to watch a man bleed."

That's what I love about the HOF'er! :clap3:

[TGO]

Lots of guys are not very nice at paid autograph shows. I went to some of these when I was a kid. I don't blame most of the guys who are surly for being that way. Half of them are only doing it because the pay was crap when they played. The events are usually pretty dreary and depressing, and I'm sure the players know they're enabling an industry where people make a profit off of them but they do it anyway. While my father and I were not there to make a profit but to collect, most of the others there seemed to be practiced professionals.

Besides, the ticket you buy is for an autograph, not a pleasant conversation with your hero.

The nicest I have ever seen players at an autograph event are at Fanfests and especially at the All Star Fanfest in 93. At those events you just pay to get in the door and not for individual autographs, and I think that makes a big difference.

[Migrant Redbird]

Lots of guys are not very nice at paid autograph shows. I went to some of these when I was a kid. I don't blame most of the guys who are surly for being that way.

I would. It doesn't take that much to be civil, especially when you're in a service industry and the customer is contributing to your pay check.

Half of them are only doing it because the pay was crap when they played.

The ballplayers from the era of impoverishment are mostly dead. If you were a big enough star to be a draw at autograph shows, then you were a big enough star to get decently paid and you would be comfortably well off if that money was properly invested.

If not, well you should be grateful that your name is still worth something to baseball fans and treat them more nicely.

... The events are usually pretty dreary and depressing,...

Because of all those surly ex-ballplayers?

and I'm sure the players know they're enabling an industry where people make a profit off of them but they do it anyway.

And someone put a gun to their head and forced them to sign autographs? Sorry, but there are other ways to make a living, and signing autographs takes less skill and commitment than most.

... While my father and I were not there to make a profit but to collect, most of the others there seemed to be practiced professionals.

Doesn't justify them being treated with surliness.

... Besides, the ticket you buy is for an autograph, not a pleasant conversation with your hero.

If he's that surly, he's not one of my heroes. If I purchased autographs, which I never have, I wouldn't expect an extended conversation but I would expect a reasonable level of cordiality.

That being said, I don't care if Yastremski is surly with his fans or not. That's between him and them.

[TGO]

I don't mean to suggest that players have no responsibility to be decent human beings at autograph shows. What I (probably inarticulately) was trying to say was that you shouldn't judge someone based on one quote from one guy who met him at one autograph show, and that is all the NYPost relayed. Now, if the book they're talking about has all the evidence the Post claims it does, then fine, maybe he's a jerk. Much like you, I don't really care.

[Migrant Redbird]

... you shouldn't judge someone based on one quote from one guy who met him at one autograph show, and that is all the NYPost relayed.

I give little or no credibility to the anonymous fan quotation. That's irrelevant to the larger issue -- whether baseball players and ex-players have some obligation to the fans who make it possible for them to be paid good salaries for playing a child's game.

[Frobby]

And his Triple Crown was cheap, too. He only tied Killebrew in HRs, and he wouldn't have won any of the three legs if Frank Robinson hasn't gotten hurt in mid-June at a time when he was ahead of Yaz in at least 2, and maybe all three, of the Triple Crown categories.

At least that is how I felt as a 10-year old kid who idolized Frank Robinson and didn't want to see his Triple Crown achievement seem routine. I've gotten over it since then.

[TGO]

And his Triple Crown was cheap, too. He only tied Killebrew in HRs, and he wouldn't have won any of the three legs if Frank Robinson hasn't gotten hurt in mid-June at a time when he was ahead of Yaz in at least 2, and maybe all three, of the Triple Crown categories.

At least that is how I felt as a 10-year old kid who idolized Frank Robinson and didn't want to see his Triple Crown achievement seem routine. I've gotten over it since then.

Hard to hold it against the last guy to ever accomplish it, eh?

[RShack]

And his Triple Crown was cheap, too. He only tied Killebrew in HRs, and he wouldn't have won any of the three legs if Frank Robinson hasn't gotten hurt in mid-June at a time when he was ahead of Yaz in at least 2, and maybe all three, of the Triple Crown categories.

At least that is how I felt as a 10-year old kid who idolized Frank Robinson and didn't want to see his Triple Crown achievement seem routine. I've gotten over it since then.

I can tell ;-)

Frank left in the middle of the game on June 27th vs. the White Sox. After Frank singled, it was a force play at 2nd on a GB by Brooks. The 2B-man left the game too. Frank missed a tad more than a month.

At the time he left the lineup, Frank was hitting .337 (1.109 OPS) with 21 HR, 59 RBI.

After his game on the same day, Yaz was hitting .336 (1.075 OPS) with 18 HR, 53 RBI.

On the same date, Harmon Killebrew was hitting .270 (1.007 OPS) with 22 HR, 57 RBI.

So, Frank was indeed leading Yaz by a tad in all 3 categories, but not the league.

Frank's '66 Triple Crown: .316 (1.047), 49 HR, 122 RBI (367 TB)

Yaz's '67 Triple Crown: .326 (1.040), 44 HR, 121 RBI (360 TB)

ps: This is the first time I ever heard anybody describe a freakin' Triple Crown as "cheap". Even in jest. (Not that I think you're kidding ;-)

[JimDH]

I give little or no credibility to the anonymous fan quotation. That's irrelevant to the larger issue -- whether baseball players and ex-players have some obligation to the fans who make it possible for them to be paid good salaries for playing a child's game.

And the answer is no they do not. Not really. The problem arises when fans think they are owed something and then they don't get it. Now instead of being respected for what they can do they are denegrated for what they cant or perhaps wont do. The world is full of anti-social people and they are what they are. Just because they are well paid for being exceptional at something doesnt mean they can turn themselves into what Cal became.

BTW it isnt a childs game. Children may mimic it but they can't perform at a level that people will pay to see. Professional Baseball has always been a mans game.

[TonySoprano]

I give little or no credibility to the anonymous fan quotation. That's irrelevant to the larger issue -- whether baseball players and ex-players have some obligation to the fans who make it possible for them to be paid good salaries for playing a child's game.

If you don't want to interact with the fans, then stay in the back room and sign until your wallet is full for the dealers at the shows. That's how they all start their days at the shows anyway. Dealers first, fans second. A player doesn't have to be your best friend, but they should at least acknowledge the fans in a cordial manner.

I've met my share of the so-called misanthropes over the years. After the experience, you feel stupid for bothering to collect the person's signature. Warren Spahn, Willie Mays, Yogi Berra, Gaylord Perry, Tommy Lasorda, Pete Rose, Enos Slaughter are a few such names. I caught them on bad days I suppose.

Some guys who I've met more than once and were night and day each time were Johnny Bench, Earl Weaver, Frank Robinson.

There are others who are truly appreciative that people take the time to meet them, such as Jim Palmer, Boog Powell, Stan Musial, Al Kaline, Cal Ripken, Ernie Banks.

I've said it before, the number one gentleman of them all is Brooks Robinson. Over the years, I've collected my fill of items with his signature on several occasions. I still make a point of seeing him when he's making an appearance in the area, because he's so genuine to be around.

[Migrant Redbird]

And the answer is no they do not. Not really.

And I would disagree. But then, I'm not the one who's buying autographs from misanthropes. I don't patronize folks who act as though they don't want my business, unless it's a government office where I have no alternative.

The problem arises when fans think they are owed something...

The customer is always right. Businesses who can't agree aren't obligated to remain in business. That's the principle, although there are always a few customers too obnoxious to tolerate.

BTW it isnt a childs game. Children may mimic it but they can't perform at a level that people will pay to see.

I've paid to watch kids play, and I've often enjoyed it more than I do professional games. Yes, the pros can accomplish things of which kids can only dream, but it is the competition and watching players enjoy themselves which makes it all fun.

I've reached the point where the "live experience" isn't enough to compensate for paying exorbitantly high ticket prices, walking long distances in the heat, standing in lines to buy tickets, get through the gates, buy overpriced concessions, and use the bathroom. I'd rather go to a minor league game where I can often find more comfortable seats up close to the field and where I can actually talk to a player and get him to sign an autograph, all at an affordable price that allows me to take my grandkids and introduce them to the game. As long as you don't get caught up in the hero worship of the stars, you don't really need to go to major league games -- they're much more accessible and enjoyable on television.

Professional Baseball has always been a mans game.

Most of them are just overgrown kids anyhow.

[Migrant Redbird]

... There are others who are truly appreciative that people take the time to meet them, such as Jim Palmer, Boog Powell, Stan Musial, Al Kaline, Cal Ripken, Ernie Banks.

Musial and Ripken are a couple of the few ballplayers whose autographs I'd cherish, but the prices charged are higher than I would value them.

... I've said it before, the number one gentleman of them all is Brooks Robinson. Over the years, I've collected my fill of items with his signature on several occasions. I still make a point of seeing him when he's making an appearance in the area, because he's so genuine to be around.

Good!