SWEET LOU

#14 smashing into the left field fence just to catch a fly ball; or sliding head first into third to stretch a double into a triple- the ultimate Yankee hustler- that’s what I remember about Lou Piniella.  And later in his baseball career, he carried the same fire, the same gutsy attitude as a manager – unafraid to take risks and always ready to add more than his two cents.

Affectionately known as Sweet Lou for his bat and demeanor, Piniella was a career .291 hitter and named Rookie of the Year in 1969 for his stellar season with the Kansas City Royals.  Back then, the Royals were a nasty little team with which we developed a little rivalry – I personally had moment of silence last week to remember the infamous pine tar incident.  

 Piniella was fun to watch both as a player and a manager.  He hit well when we needed him to and his passion was contagious.  Recently, Lou came out against too much training stating that today’s kids’ workouts are too intense.  “Back on those ’70s teams of ours, Reggie (Jackson) was about the only guy who worked out,” Piniella said. “But we were in shape to play baseball. Baseball is a game of fluidity, timing and coordination. It’s not a game of muscle mass,” Piniella said in an interview with the New York Daily News in mid-May.  Piniella said there were no weight rooms or personal trainers back then.  To his point, perhaps once again, today’s pressures of the game and media have taken this too far, causing players to work harder than their bodies are capable; pushing themselves to the breaking point.

Fierce with his mouth as with his dedication to the game, Piniella himself had to battle with Steinbrenner over his weight back in the early 80s.  “There’s the famous story of when Piniella was given a “golden parachute” three-year contract from George Steinbrenner after the 1981 season that had a weight clause stipulation, requiring Piniella to report to camp under 200 pounds. For every day in camp he was over 200 pounds, he was to be fined $1,000,” stated the same article.  He had one of his best seasons that year, batting .307 at 38-years-old.

Piniella knew the game, took teams to the playoffs and picked up a World Series win with the Cincinnati Reds back in 1990- the Reds swept the series against the A’s who were highly favored to win.  He went out to Seattle and managed there from 1993-2002, had a short stint with the Rays and ended his managing career with the Cubs in 2010.  He has done some work in the booth too as a color commentator.  He currently works occasionally for the YES Network as a color analyst.  Never short on words or afraid of speaking up to anyone who would listen, Piniella added that extra spark to the game of baseball- something missing in the game today. 

There is something special about Lou Piniella that no other Yankee in my lifetime has possessed.  He has gumption.  He calls it as he sees it.  He was not a Thurman Munson or a Reggie Jackson- he was Sweet Lou- a buddy to the super stars and a manager who took nothing less than a player’s best.  He expected the game to be played like it was supposed to be played- accurately, professionally and when the season was over you handed in your gym bag to the equipment manager and went home to your family. 

The game is just too serious today and maybe that’s why it’s lost some of its fun- the Sweet Lou kind-of-fun- just playing the heck of the game for the heck of it!

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Opinion Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof





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