The Baseball Digest Archives

October 1981

Unless you’re a Dodgers fan, 1981 was one of the worst seasons in MLB history. The midseason players’ strike was at the time the longest work stoppage the league had ever seen. So, on the face of it the opening piece in this issue, which stated that the strike should never happened, feels spot on. However…. the tone of the article was very pro-management, placing all of the blame at Marvin Miller’s feet. It plays all the hits - players are well compensated as it is, why be so greedy? And was the central issue of the strike - disputes over compensation if a team loses a free agent, really worth the fight? I am almost always 100% pro-labor, and with the knowledge that owner collusion was in the game’s near future, an article with such a negative tone towards the players sure ages terribly.

Figuring out the timing of when this particular issue would have gone to the printer it’s likely that it was put together while the strike was still going on, so there is little in the way of articles about current players to be found here. Really, the only one was the cover feature on Ron Davis. As it turned out his time as the Yankees’ other relief star would end after 1981, as he was traded to the Twins before the ‘82 season. The feature on Oakland pitching coach Art Fowler is another one which reads differently today. The 1980 A’s rotation famously completed more than half of their starts, but they also all quickly flamed out with arm injuries. Fowler was always just as well known for being Billy Martin’s drinking buddy as he was for being Martin’s pitching coach; the rapid decline of that rotation terribly damaged Fowler’s coaching reputation.

In 1981 a list of the 12 greatest clutch home runs of all time looks a lot differently than one drawn up today. This is pre-Ozzie Smith, pre-Kirk Gibson, pre-Joe Carter, etc. Some of the choices here are just as significant as they were then - Gabby Hartnett, Bobby Thomson, Bill Mazeroski, Chris Chambliss, Bucky F***ing Dent. Others, not so much. If I tell you that a Dick Sisler home run made the list, I don’t know how that would resonate with very many people today.

Once again, perhaps due to the strike, this issue contains some standard articles that feel like they were stored in the “in case of emergency break glass” section. An article about the wacky hijinx that takes place in bullpens? Check. In that era you could always count on old Moe Drabowsky stories. Yet another article about the life of an umpire? Check. The article that Joe Falls wrote also feels as if it came out of his personal emergency supply. It was a listicle of “what if’s” had famous moments in baseball history played out differently. “The Dodgers win the pennant! The Dodgers win the pennant!”

All in all, this was a relatively uninteresting issue published at a fairly uninteresting time for the sport. I haven’t yet pulled out the random issue that I’ll write about for next week. Fingers crossed that it will be a better one. At least this contained another one of Gene Mack’s cartoons of old ballparks - this time of Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium.

The Official E-Coli Strain Of the Paris Games

In what has become a tradition the final run up to an Olympic Games comes with its share of anxiety - will they be ready? This os connected to man’s natural inclination to procrastinate, but the host cities always seem to cut things awfully close. In addition, there often seems to be some sort of unique hurdle specific to that particular event. There were so many concerns about the Zika virus as the Rio Olympics approached. And who can forget the urban legends about the wolves that were allegedly roaming through the athlete’s village in Sochi?

Those fears usually turn out to be unfounded. No athletes were attacked by wolves in Sochi. Let’s hope that turns out to be the case this year as well, because the worries surrounding the Paris games make one say “ick!” The swimming portion of the triathlon as well as the marathon swimming events are scheduled to take place in the Seine. That’s understandable, staging those events at that locale will provide a beautiful backdrop. The problem? Swimming in the Seine has long been illegal. The river is filled with fecal matter & all sorts of bacteria. Organizers have been hard at work in cleaning the river (they insist that all recent testing deems it clean & safe for swimming) but all it will take is one poorly timed rainstorm to create yet another overflow of sewage. We shall have to see if they can pull that off.

Team USA Is Taking Shape

While we’re on the subject of the Olympics, trials are underway for several of the major sports that will make up a large chunk of both NBC prime time coverage and the expected medal haul for Team USA. The swimming trials ended last night and the Americans have another strong and deep squad, with returns for the two biggest stars from the Tokyo games.

Katie Ledecky remains the top name in the American contingent, once again easily winning the 400, 800, and 1500 freestyle races. The difference from the most recent Olympiads is that while she is still a favorite in all 3, she is not necessarily the overwhelming favorite. Australian Ariane Titmus won the 400 in Tokyo and is still a threat. In a surprise, Canadian Summer McIntosh, who looked to be her chief competition in the 800, chose to focus on the medley races instead.

The biggest male swimming star in Tokyo was Caeleb Dressel, who won 5 golds. He has taken a long road back, briefly stepping away from the sport to take a mental health break. It looks like he has regained his form; he failed to qualify in the 100 freestyle, so he will not be able to defend that title, but he did qualify in the other 2 individual races that he won in Tokyo - the 50 free & the 100 butterfly.

NBC has got to be pleased over this fact - the rivalry between the 2 top swimming powers of the United States & Australia is very chippy right now. There have been a lot of spicy comments that the swimmers have made in the press. The relay races all promise to be tightly contested & you can bet that the participants are desperate to win as many of those matchups as possible. That means that some of the results from the trials were meant to send messages. Regan Smith set a wotld record in the 100 backstroke and Gretchen Walsh did the same in the 100 fly. Get your popcorn ready.

Meanwhile, the track & field trials are only 3 days old, so only a small number of athletes have punched their tickets to Paris. Two of the marquee events have been completed, and each of the reigning world champions in the 100m won their events. Noah Lyles & Sha’Carri Richardson are not only exceptionally talented sprinters but each have charisma to spare. They promise to become major superstars if they do as well in Paris as expected.

Lyles has the supreme confidence characteristic of all world class sprinters and his signature hop - with an insane vertical leap - just before he goes into the starting blocks makes for a great visual. Richardson’s upcoming Olympic moment will be long overdue. She won the Olympic trial for Tokyo, but soon afterwards she was given a 30 day suspension after testing positive for marijuana. She stated that she used it to help deal with depression, and it did appear that she went into a minor tailspin following the suspension. Her results in 2022 were subpar, but she rebounded in a big way last year. The rivalry between the American & Jamaican sprinters, at least on the women’s side, is as strong as ever.

I once again have my standard rant about NBC’s coverage of the track & field. They present the track portion very well, fully covering all of the heats & finals. The field events are a whole different matter. I wouldn’t even say that they do a half-ass job on the field events, maybe quarter-ass? To be fair, with multiple events taking place simultaneously, it’s not easy to fully cover, and the field events are fully shown on Peacock. But as far as the network feed goes, sometimes you wonder why they even bother. The way they presented the decathlon was a perfect example. NBC provided a few updates, but no real coverage. When it came time for the 10th & final event of the decathlon, the 1500m, NBC showed the race but without any setup. They did not show the standings, nor did they identify the runners in the field before the starting gun went off. As a result, viewers had no idea about who they should focus on. Was the leader in that race in contention for the title? Which of the runners in the middle of the pack were in contention for a top 3 spot overall? How many seconds did runner A need to finish above runner B? NBC provided none of this info. I’ve already said that I try not to be too harsh in judging NBC’s coverage, but this was unacceptable. They have got to do better than that.

50 Years Ago - The Rockford Files

If you come across a random issue of TV Guide from the 1970’s you can see that a significant percentage of the network prime time schedules was devoted to shows starring detectives - both police & private. Almost all of them were titled after the last name of the lead character, and those leads were often given either a gimmick or a catchphrase (or both) to help differentiate themselves from the pack. As interchangeable as many of these series were, there are a few that clearly stand out from the pack. The best of them all just may have been The Rockford Files.

It’s more than a matter of the difference in the titling protocol. This show felt different as early as the opening credits. Beginning with Jim Rockford’s outgoing answering machine message, it led into what just might be the single coolest TV theme song of its era.

Rockford was an intentionally low rent private detective, offering his services for $200 a day plus expenses. He lived and worked in a mobile home parked on the beach. It was set in Malibu, so it was a bit more glamorous than living in a van down by the river, but this still illustrates his spartan lifestyle. As a general rule of thumb, the cases that he worked on weren’t high class either.

A key part of his backstory was that he had recently been released after serving time for a crime that he did not commit. As such, one of his key allies was Angel, a sleazy ex-con whom he had befriended in prison. The other important supporting players were Sgt. Becker, a friend in the LAPD who would often assist him even though Rockford would often irritate him, Beth, his lawyer and ex-girlfriend, and his father Rocky, always trying to keep him on the straight and narrow. I should also mention a few notable names who acted as recurring characters - Isaac Hayes, Louis Gossett Jr., and most memorably, Rita Moreno.

There is one vital reason why the show was as successful as it was, and that was James Garner. This show debuted more than a decade after his long run as Bret Maverick, and the two characters share some DNA. Maverick was more of a scoundrel than Rockford was, but they were both so charming (and cowardly) that they were able to talk their way out of any dangerous situation. Plus, Rockford always drove the coolest cars, and he had a signature driving maneuver; the so-called J turn.

Because he gained fame playing two easygoing characters, Garner doesn’t always get the credit he deserves for being as great of an actor as he was. It takes a lot of talent to make his particular characters so easy to root for. His film work offered more opportunities to demonstrate his versatility; just take a look at The Great Escape or The Americanization Of Emily. But it was his TV work that brought him lasting fame, and it’s hard to find a more ideal match of actor to character than James Garner & Jim Rockford.

Closing Laughs

That will be enough for today. Let this be the start of a great week for everyone. See you all again on Wednesday.