the mick....

[CockofEarle]

one of the joys n life was seein' him wear those pinstripes...."baseball, apple pie & chevrolet"...

http://www.sportscollectorsdaily.com/ramblings-mantles-youth-lives-on-through-cardboard/

 

[stevestrat2]

Mick in stripes- thought you were going here...

 

[SportsSuites1]

ol mick wuz a POS drunkard hoo stole a livr

MM was a 17-year old kid 1000 miles from Oklahoma surrounded by grown men who made a substantial portion of their own drinking money off his God-given skills ... he never had a chance to find his path once escorted down the wrong one.

You post ignores the huge 'positive' impact Mantle had on millions of kids in the 1950's-60's ... there was no 'social media' back then thus, we only knew what we read and saw for ourselves ... Mickey Mantle was one of the greatest ballplayers of any generation,one of the greatest ballplayers in history.

I was a VERY lucky grade and middle-schooler ... with teacher's who thought it not just OK but un-American NOT to plug a 17"-19" 'portable' B&W ('bout big as they made back then) into a socket up on a stand in the front corner by the door so we could all see those afternoon World Series games; the sunlight streaming through those huge tall windows still not long enough even in the late afternoon to blot out our grainy picture.

Your comments don't surprise me or bother me ... we've had various renditions of Pontius Pilate-esque characters throughout history. Mick wasn't perfect ... but you ain't the Jury - like all sports hero's we're all our own Judges 'bout this stuff.

Stored away somewhere I've still got a molded-rubber Mickey Mantle batting from 1955; I've got Yogi Berra squatting down catching behind him stored in the same place. It's a trunk that hasn't been opened in a long time ... so I sincerely appreciate the OP's reminder of what MM meant to my youth. May he continue to RIP.

 

[lesangdecoq]

MM was a 17-year old kid 1000 miles from Oklahoma surrounded by grown men who made a substantial portion of their own drinking money off his God-given skills ... he never had a chance to find his path once escorted down the wrong one.

You post ignores the huge 'positive' impact Mantle had on millions of kids in the 1950's-60's ... there was no 'social media' back then thus, we only knew what we read and saw for ourselves ... Mickey Mantle was one of the greatest ballplayers of any generation,one of the greatest ballplayers in history.

I was a VERY lucky grade and middle-schooler ... with teacher's who thought it not just OK but un-American NOT to plug a 17"-19" 'portable' B&W ('bout big as they made back then) into a socket up on a stand in the front corner by the door so we could all see those afternoon World Series games; the sunlight streaming through those huge tall windows still not long enough even in the late afternoon to blot out our grainy picture.

Your comments don't surprise me or bother me ... we've had various renditions of Pontius Pilate-esque characters throughout history. Mick wasn't perfect ... but you ain't the Jury - like all sports hero's we're all our own Judges 'bout this stuff.

Stored away somewhere I've still got a molded-rubber Mickey Mantle batting from 1955; I've got Yogi Berra squatting down catching behind him stored in the same place. It's a truck that hasn't been opened in a long time ... so I sincerely appreciate the OP's reminder of what MM meant to my youth. May he continue to RIP.

Good post, but you must be getting on in years .

 

[RayGilda]

ol mick wuz a POS drunkard hoo stole a livr

But at least he could spell..!!!

 

[SportsSuites1]

Good post, but you must be getting on in years .

Yea, true ... and there's good and bad in that. The bad news yesterday was just putting on my newest Tommy Bahama shirt was almost like arm-wrestling with myself. The good news is my latest 'TB' shirt doesn't have his name embroidered all over the back and I don't care!!! - I bought it for its quality, not its 'social' value.

That MUST have SOMETHING to do with age 'cause when I WAS young I bought a 'Benz I could barely afford and clearly remember SLOWING DOWN when I approached stop lights HOPING the light would 'catch me' so whoever was driving the car stopped in the next lane could 'look my way' and see ME sitting behind the wheel of that Mercedes coupe.

Life really is an evolution. In many ways (in my own mind) and sometimes even in the way I act I'm still 19. But that ain't saying I look it.

 

[MANAFOLD]

Mantle was my all time favorite ballplayer. Perfect blend of power and speed. I was eleven years old at Griffith stadium in Washington and saw Mantle crush the 564 Ft homer into centerfield that day. Our seats were down the third base line and once Mantle was on third so I got a close up view of him and to me it was like looking at a baseball god. I am very fortunate to have his autograph on a baseball.

 

[pisgah]

Ted Williams was my favorite, probably the best hitter of all time. Missed almost 5 years of his peak serving in two wars.Mays and DiMaggio probably better all round players, with Ruth and Mantle right up there with the best of them.

 

[MANAFOLD]

All mentioned were truly great players each exceeding the other in at least one aspect of the game, however ,Mantle was the purest athlete in my opinion. Could lay down a drag bunt from the left side of the plate and reach first base in 3.1 seconds. Mantle could rival anyone for raw power.

 

[CockofEarle]

MM was a 17-year old kid 1000 miles from Oklahoma surrounded by grown men who made a substantial portion of their own drinking money off his God-given skills ... he never had a chance to find his path once escorted down the wrong one.

You post ignores the huge 'positive' impact Mantle had on millions of kids in the 1950's-60's ... there was no 'social media' back then thus, we only knew what we read and saw for ourselves ... Mickey Mantle was one of the greatest ballplayers of any generation,one of the greatest ballplayers in history.

I was a VERY lucky grade and middle-schooler ... with teacher's who thought it not just OK but un-American NOT to plug a 17"-19" 'portable' B&W ('bout big as they made back then) into a socket up on a stand in the front corner by the door so we could all see those afternoon World Series games; the sunlight streaming through those huge tall windows still not long enough even in the late afternoon to blot out our grainy picture.

Your comments don't surprise me or bother me ... we've had various renditions of Pontius Pilate-esque characters throughout history. Mick wasn't perfect ... but you ain't the Jury - like all sports hero's we're all our own Judges 'bout this stuff.

Stored away somewhere I've still got a molded-rubber Mickey Mantle batting from 1955; I've got Yogi Berra squatting down catching behind him stored in the same place. It's a trunk that hasn't been opened in a long time ... so I sincerely appreciate the OP's reminder of what MM meant to my youth. May he continue to RIP.

 

[Gamecockalypse325]

Being from Sumter SC and having the chance to have had a few afternoons spent in the home of Coach Bobby Richardson, I have heard my fair share of stories from those Yankee years, and to be fair to mr. Mantle, From the first hand account of a very honest man in Coach Richardson, it wasn't just one or two guys getting into that business, it was a majority.
On a different note, Coach has hanging in "his personal stuff room" mr Mantles jersey from one of those World Series runs with all the teams signatures on it. Very cool sight.