Homecoming
May 31, 1974. My Dad called home from work that afternoon. He had blue seats (field level) for the Reds game against the Pirates that evening. I was pumped; we usually sat in the red (upper grandstand) or green (lower grandstand) seats at Riverfront Stadium. This night I could see the players up close. Our seats were down the third base line, not that far from the visitors’ bullpen in foul territory. Late in the game an awkward looking Pirates pitcher with a funky delivery started to warm up. About five rows behind us fans started to applaud. It made me curious. The applause turned into wild cheering as the Bucs skipper, Danny Murtaugh, left the Pittsburgh dugout and headed to the mound, motioning for the righthander. That righty reliever happened to be Kent Tekulve, those fans were his family and friends, and this night was his MLB debut in his hometown, Cincinnati.
I’ve always enjoyed homecoming stories for players, and on that night in 1974 I quickly became a fan of Tekulve and began to follow his career. He pitched in sixteen MLB seasons, always as a reliever, and compiled a sparkling 2.85 ERA with 184 career saves. Tekulve’s best seasons were in 1978 and 1979 when he saved 31 games each year. In 1979, after his Pirates beat my Reds in the NL playoffs, I rooted for Tekulve as he saved three games in Pittsburgh’s seven-game, come from behind, World Series championship over Baltimore. It was Tekulve on the mound for the final out in Game 7. In 1989 he returned to a bullpen in Cincinnati, but this time along the first base side, as he pitched 37 games for the Reds in his final year. I’m sure he had many a night that season with family and friends cheering him on.
More recently, I’ve become a fan of Joe Musgrove, a righthander who pitched the first no-hit game of the 2021 MLB season. Musgrove has a coming home story of his own. During this past winter’s hot stove season, he was part of a three-team trade that brought him from Pittsburgh to his hometown team, the San Diego Padres. In his second start of the season, he pitched the first no-hitter in the Padres’ franchise history, a masterful 3-0 win over the Rangers. It was also Musgrove’s first no-hitter at any level of baseball. Last Sunday night I watched with the entire baseball world his start against the Dodgers on ESPN. I plan to see a lot more of his outings as the season progresses.
Another former righthander of the Pirates, Trevor Williams, has received a warm welcoming during the first month of the season. Williams had a non-descript early part of his career with Pittsburgh, and became a free agent in the off-season. The Cubs signed him to a one year, $2.5 million contract. His debut at Wrigley Field, on April 5 against the Brewers, was particularly fun since his Dad, a lifelong and diehard Cubs fan, was there in the stands keeping score and cheering him on. Before Williams next start in Chicago, an April 17 game vs. Atlanta, Trevor gave his Dad a special memento, a game-worn Williams jersey. Wrigley will see a lot of his Dad’s jersey and scorebook this summer.
Greg Maddux is certainly a pitcher who knows his way around Wrigley Field, having pitched there at the beginning and end (save for a minor stint with the Dodgers) of his Hall of Fame career. Maddux debuted with the Cubs in September 1986, and then starred there on the mound for the next six seasons. Free agency took him to Ted Turner’s Braves in 1993. His achievements are monstrous – first pitcher in MLB history to win the Cy Young Award in four consecutive years; only pitcher in MLB history to win at least 15 games for 17 straight seasons; most Gold Gloves for a pitcher with 18; and one of only 10 pitchers ever to win 300 games (355), record 3,000 strikeouts (3,371), and walk less than 1,000 batters (999). He was a control artist and master technician, and the leader of a magnificent Braves starting pitching trio, alongside Tom Glavine and John Smoltz. Maddux returned to Chicago in 2004 and pitched for a couple more seasons. His number, #31, has been retired by the Cubs.
Another #31 for the Cubs, the number also retired and waving on a flag proudly at Wrigley, is that of Ferguson Jenkins, the Hall of Famer who in 1971 was the organization’s first Cy Young winner. Fergie made his claim to fame as the ace of the Cubs staff between 1966-1973. His numbers are also remarkable – 284 wins; 3,192 strikeouts; and a 20-game winner for seven consecutive seasons. Jenkins led the NL in complete games for three seasons as a Cub and the AL for one season as a Texas Ranger. One crazy stat from his standout season in 1968 is that he lost five 1-0 games, all of which were in complete game starts. After some stints with the Rangers and Red Sox, he returned to Chicago for the last two seasons of his career (1982-1983). In early April this year, the Cubs announced that Jenkins will be honored in 2022 with a statue outside Wrigley Field, joining the likes of Banks, Santo, Williams, and Caray.
Ken Griffey, Jr. had homecomings in two different cities. He was raised in Cincinnati, the son of the Big Red Machine’s exceptional rightfielder, Ken Griffey. While his Dad and Reds teammates were dominating the NL ballparks, Jr. starred on the high school diamonds at Cincinnati Moeller. In 1987, he was named the U.S. high school player of the year and drafted #1 overall by Seattle. His career numbers are outstanding – 630 HRs, 10 Gold Gloves, 1997 AL MVP, and a 13-time All Star. In a wonderful story, his Dad joined him as a Mariner in 1990 and 1991, the first father-son combination on a team in MLB history. Jr. returned to his roots in Cincinnati for nine seasons (2000-2008) as a Red. In his final two seasons, he went back to Seattle to complete his Hall of Fame career.
Joe Torre’s idea of coming home was returning to manage in three cities where he performed as a player. When we think of Torre now, most often it is because of his four world championships as the manager of the Yankees. He was a big time player too, starring as a catcher, third baseman, and first baseman with the Braves, Mets, and Cardinals. 1971 was the highlight of his playing days, when as a Cardinal he was named NL MVP for leading the major leagues in batting average (.363) and RBIs (137). As a New York Met in 1977, he quickly transitioned his playing career into a managerial career, serving as player-manager for a brief stint. He went on to manage the Mets for four more seasons (1978-1981), the Braves for three (1982-1984), the Cardinals for six (1990-1995), and the Yankees for twelve (1996-2007).
It was during Torre’s managerial tenure with the Cardinals that I had the privilege of meeting him. In May 1995 I attended an annual baseball event in St. Louis, the “Knights of the Cauliflower Ear” dinner introducing and honoring that year’s Cardinals club. I had great seats that night too; I was seated at a table of ten that included manager Joe Torre. I’ll never forget how gracious he was to me that night. He signed a baseball for my oldest daughter, a special keepsake. About a month later Torre was fired as manager of the Cardinals. I became one of his ardent followers as he joined the Yankees as manager the next year. For a 12-year period in my life, I was, can you believe it, a Yankees fan.
Until next Monday,
your Baseball Bench Coach