Roberto Clemente

ArlJim78 · #1 07-12-2006, 12:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ddthetide

the GREAT #21 !!
i was 8 years old during the 1971 world series. i rooted for baltimore because that was my dad's team but the o's were playing the pirates and they had this rightfielder name clemente and a left fielder name stargell. i knew them from my baseball cards but that was all. clemente, the all-star rf, was ALL over the papers and tv.

if i remember correctly the o's had the buc's down 3 games to 1 in the series and clemente had just played ok and had taken the blame for being behind in the series. he sat in front on his locker after the 4th game and told the world that the bucs would win ! if he had win it himself!

the next 3 games were the CLEMETE SHOW!! and he got some help from his mates too. game 5 he went something like 3-4 ,drove in all the runs, stole bases and even had 2 put-outs from rf !!..... i was a Pirate fan but most of all a CLEMETE fan from that point on!( embarressed to say i'm still a bucs fan) bucs won the WS and Clemete was MVP.

maybe the best RF every to play. no one today to compare him too. clemete had power when needed, always hit for average, stole base when needed, even bunted. played GREAT defense and a howitzer for an arm! (OH GEEZZ what an arm!!) he did whatever the bucs needed him to do at that time in any game.
if you were a kid during the 71 WS , you ran out to practice what you saw clemete do. if you were righthanded chasing a ball to your left. when you caught the ball you planted your right foot, pivoted with your back to the infield and tried to throw the runner out at second or third or hit the cut-off man.
he had class! won and lost with grace!
sorry for the rant but you asked about one of my childhood heros.

Oh man did you bring back the memories dd,
I was 12 at the time and was really starting to pay attention. I had a pretty good arm myself so I know exactly what you mean about imitating a great Clemente catch, pivot, and throw. No telling how many times i practiced that.

But I also loved the Orioles. they had four twenty game winners!! can you imagine that today? hah. McNally, Cuellar, Palmer, Dobson. I also used to imitate McNally's delivery because I liked the way he held the mitt up in front of his face. Other favorites Boog Powell, Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, davey Johnson, Mark belanger. Oh man those were the days. I loved the game back then.

onebadbeast · #2 07-12-2006, 01:18 AM

Only One Of The Greatest To Ever Play The Game. I Watched Him Throw A Guy Out At Home Plate On A Line From Right Field Wall. I No Longer Care To Watch The Game As All The Best Have Left The Building!!

SentToStud · #3 07-12-2006, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by onebadbeast

Only One Of The Greatest To Ever Play The Game. I Watched Him Throw A Guy Out At Home Plate On A Line From Right Field Wall. I No Longer Care To Watch The Game As All The Best Have Left The Building!!

No doubt one of the very best ever. True 5-tool player. Nobody played rightfield as well as Clemente though Kaline in his prime was close. And nobody ran the bases like Clemente. Mantle and Mays were close but the sight of Clemente on the basepath was extrordinary. With more Gold Gloves than any other outfielder ever, arguably the best ever to play any outfield position.

ddthetide · #4 07-12-2006, 06:32 AM

the last strike lost me as a fan. i check once a week to see how far out my once mighty pirates are. it's rare i even watch the highlights.

Kasept · #5 07-12-2006, 08:12 AM

Scav,

The closest thing you can see today that owns shades of Clemente is Vlad Guerrero... Saw Clemente many, many times at Shea as part of matchups like Steve Blass v. Tom Seaver and Dock Ellis v. Jerry Koosman... Clemente was utterly dominant on a team of GREAT players...

stevepopyak · #6 07-12-2006, 08:28 AM

In addition to his laser like throws from right field, I always loved when he would smack a triple and turn on the jets between first and second base. By the time he was half way to third you would see his legs going in every which direction !!!! The good ol' days of Bucco baseball !!!!

Kasept · #7 07-12-2006, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevepopyak

The good ol' days of Bucco baseball !!!!

Steve..

Surprised the 'burg fans here have yet to bring up Bob Prince...

"Pirates win... And there was no doubt about it...."

stevepopyak · #8 07-12-2006, 09:05 AM

Oh, don't get me started on the Gunner .... "You can kiss it goodbye" .... "Babushka Power" for the ladies and of course "Chicken on the Hill" when Stargell would blast one .... Bob Prince, a true broadcasting legend ... I could go on and on.

2 Dollar Bill · #9 07-12-2006, 09:08 AM

First off Im not here to sell books....lol
But I know of a good book about #21... which deals with his life, the stuff like not being able to eat with the white ballplayers @ spring training in florida to the events that ended his life, and how he was Told NOT to get on that plane.. Im not sure of the title but I know it was released this year and well written, I plan on picking it up to bring back some memories. Just wanted to chime in and let everyone know about this book.