For Better or Worse, They Were the Greats

The Baltimore Sun’s Tim Kurkjian saluted the greats of the ’89 season. Among his choices:

“Owner: Marge Schott, Cincinnati Reds. She asked her team, which was in a hitting slump, if prayer would help. Third baseman Chris Sabo said, ‘I don’t think God cares that we’re not hitting. If he did, then Billy Graham would be hitting .400.’

“Manager: Pete Rose, Cincinnati Reds. A shame, really. And the most amazing thing is, he thinks he will be back in baseball in a year. No way. Is he a Hall of Famer? Yes, said Jim Dwyer of the Montreal Expos, who said, ‘The Hall of Fame is for baseball . . . heaven is for good guys.’

“Pitching coach: Ray Miller, Pirates. When asked about Houston Astros infielder Craig Reynolds pitching poorly after not pitching for three years, Miller said, ‘Reynolds just isn’t as effective going on 1,000 days’ rest.’

“Outfielder: Deion Sanders, New York Yankees. What a jerk. He had dollar signs, not his number, on the knob of his bats. He has dollar signs on his socks. He hit a homer against the Milwaukee Brewers, took an hour to circle the bases, then stood on the plate and tied his shoes.

“Outfielder: John Kruk, Phillies. He forgot how many outs there were in one game, caught a fly ball, put his head down and ran in to the infield. Bobby Bonilla tagged up from second and scored. After that, Phillies coach Larry Bowa gave Kruk three pieces of gum and told him to chew a piece after each out of the inning. ‘When the gum is all gone,’ said Bowa, ‘you know it’s time to come in.’ ”

Home isn’t always sweet: From Moss Klein of the Sporting News: “Carney Lansford’s bid for the batting title was especially impressive because he plays his home games at Oakland Coliseum, the league’s toughest ballpark. The wide areas in foul territory take away a lot of extra chances because foul balls that would go in the stands most anywhere else become outs. (Boston’s Wade) Boggs and Minnesota’s Kirby Puckett . . . play their home games at Fenway Park and the Metrodome, respectively, two of the best hitting sites in the majors.”

Add ballparks: Cardinal outfielder Tom Brunansky, who has hit at least 20 home runs in the last eight seasons, on playing in St. Louis’ Busch Stadium: “I keep saying the only negative thing is the size of the ballpark. If they would bring it in by about half a mile, Pete (Pedro Guerrero) and I would be real happy.”

They left their hearts: What was the beginning of the end for the New York Mets this season? Third baseman Howard Johnson told Steve Jacobson of Newsday: “We had battled back after getting swept in San Diego. We swept the Dodgers to get back in it. We had three games in San Francisco before we came home and got a chance to play Chicago.

“We got swept in San Francisco.”

Add beginnings of the end: The St. Louis Cardinals were one-half game out on Sept. 8, then scored nine runs in their next six games.

Trivia time: When Roger Maris hit 61 home runs for the New York Yankees in 1961, against which team did he hit the fewest homers?

In perspective: Manager Sparky Anderson, quoted by Bill Tanton of the Baltimore Evening Sun on the Tigers’ first losing season since he came to Detroit in 1979: “Losing a baseball game ain’t a tragedy. Having a bad year is not a tragedy. Those things are disappointments, not tragedies.

“What happened to Pete Rose is a tragedy. The commissioner dying--that was a tragedy. Somebody having cancer, that’s a tragedy. But not losing a ballgame.

“(A few) days from now, every ballplayer in our clubhouse will be fishing, hunting, remodeling the house, playing golf. For the next six months they’ll basically do nothing. No, this ain’t a tragedy.”

Trivia answer: The Baltimore Orioles, three.

Quotebook: Brewer Manager Tom Trebelhorn on getting lost in a Milwaukee cemetery while jogging before a game: “The worst thing was that there was a funeral going on.”