REMEMBERING THE MARTIN-WHITSON BAR BRAWL

The infamous bar fight between Billy Martin and Ed Whitson took place on September 22, 1985, at the Cross Keys Inn, a hotel bar in Baltimore, Maryland. The altercation between the New York Yankees' manager and pitcher is one of the most well-known incidents of its kind in baseball history.

The tension between Martin and Whitson had been brewing for some time. Whitson, who had signed a five-year, $4.4 million contract with the Yankees before the 1985 season, struggled to perform under the intense pressure of playing in New York. His performance on the mound was inconsistent, and he often found himself at odds with the fiery Martin.

On the night in question, after a loss to the Baltimore Orioles, the Yankees team gathered at the Cross Keys Inn. The exact details of what sparked the fight vary, but it is generally agreed that a verbal exchange between Martin and Whitson escalated quickly. Whitson, who had been drinking, reportedly confronted Martin, leading to a physical altercation. The fight was so intense that it spilled into different areas of the bar, and it took multiple people to separate the two.

The immediate aftermath of the fight saw Whitson with a broken rib and a fractured hand. Billy Martin, known for his combative nature, was also injured but to a lesser extent. The incident did significant damage to Whitson's reputation and his standing with the team.

Following the bar fight, Whitson's already rocky relationship with the Yankees deteriorated further. His performance continued to falter, and he found it increasingly difficult to handle the scrutiny and pressure of the New York media and fans. By the end of the 1986 season, Whitson requested a trade. The Yankees obliged, sending him back to the San Diego Padres in exchange for pitcher Tim Stoddard.

In San Diego, Whitson managed to revive his career to some extent, enjoying several productive seasons away from the New York spotlight. However, his time with the Yankees remained a blemish on his career, marked by the infamous bar fight with Billy Martin.

--Alvin Izzo
BYB Yankee History Contributor

PASSION-BASED BASEBALL: THE SECRET TO SUCCESS

With the Core Four down to one, I ask you all to think long and hard about what you would like to see in your 2014 team. Leadership? Absolutely! Innovation? For sure! How about passion? How about that? Who is the heart and soul of the new Yankees? And with this heart and soul, who will lead the Yankees to a championship? The only two guys that have the heart for it are on the auction-block with another outfielder added to the roster! Ichiro Suzuki and Brett Gardner are our quiet champions; they play hard, give it everything they have and if we give them up, then who has the heart to lead and strengthen this team?

The Cano debacle is still haunting me. Money flaunting, only doing what's necessary with no additional effort- Robbie Cano! Don't ya know we were counting on you? You break my heart Robbie! Would your name-sake do the same? What would Jackie say?

OK, back to passion: Brett Gardner, the young, spry, center field bleeds Yankee blue and we have him hanging on a limb like bait on a hook. And Ichiro who always wanted to be a Yankee, the ultimate professional, let's throw him out to the trash too! Really? Did we really need Carlos Beltran if that means we need to give up Gardy and Ichiro?

Dick Vitale, who I admire for his passionate calls and undying enthusiasm for college basketball, tweeted this today:

Yes, if we give up another young player, we could make that B.S. statement a reality. "Or are the Yankees of this decade just going to be a better and far more expensive version of the Yankees of the 1980s, another time when they wandered aimlessly from plan to plan and brought in Jack Clark and Ed Whitson and Dave Collins and Ken Griffey and, well, Yankee fans know that’s the short list," according to the Mike Lupica in the New York Daily News on Sunday.

Did we overpay for Jacoby Ellsbury at the expense of Gardy? I think so. Remember Jacoby started in the Red Sox organization just like Gardy. And he doesn't have even a quarter of the passion that Gardy does! And Beltran was always whining and crying in New York while he was with the Mets. Have you heard even a peep from Ichiro?

To say I'm disgusted would be an understatement. I suggest you read Lupica's column in The Daily News today and re-read our posts on passion and teamwork because that's what's missing and taking out Gardy and Ichiro is going to kill our chemistry completely. I expect more vision in our front office and less cherry-picking. The secret of success is in the makeup of your team, which includes passion-based ball playing. Let's hold onto what's left of that and seek out those that fit that profile for the sake of our future.

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





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TIM STODDARD: UNSUNG HERO OF THE 80's YANKEES PEN

Tim Stoddard was one of the unsung heroes of the Yankees bullpen in the middle 1980’s. He came to us at a time when the Yankees desperately needed help with their relief pitching. The combined ERA of the men originally slated to set up closer Dave Righetti lived in the neighborhood of 5.00. Additionally, they had a personnel problem named Ed Whitson. After a year and a half of verbal abuse, hate mail, threats on his life, and a bar fight with then-manager Billy Martin, it was time for Whitson to go. So, on July 9, 1986, the team sent Whitson to San Diego and Tim Stoddard became a Yankee. His job was to raise the level of the game in the bullpen, and he quickly inserted his 3.83 ERA into the bullpen mix.

He made 24 appearances in the second half of 1986, 18 times with inherited runners on base, and only allowed 24% of them to score. His job was to put the fire out. In the following year, Stoddard posted a 3.50 ERA and got some help from Cecilio Guante. His proficiency in stranding runners increased, allowing only 22% of them to score. He also filled in as an occasional backup closer in 1987, converting eight out of nine save opportunities, when Righetti was starting to struggle closing out games.

His final year with the Yankees was in 1988, which was not a good year for him. Despite establishing himself as a reliable setup guy, it all came apart in 1988. At times, he looked good, and at other times, he looked lost. His ERA fluctuated between 6 and 8 throughout the season. By late August of that year, he had given up earned runs in seven consecutive appearance. Most of them involved multiple earned runs surrendered. So, at age 35, the Yankees released him. He pitched one more year in 1989 with the Cleveland Indians, appearing in 12 games with a very respectable 2.95 ERA.

These days Tim Stoddard serves as the Assistant Coach of the Northwestern Wildcats college baseball team. He has a strong record of accomplishment with coaching pitchers, as his pitching staffs have achieved two Big Ten ERA titles in his tenure at NU, read HERE. As of this writing, twelve of his pitchers have been selected in the MLB draft. He also is the holder of two curious records. First, he is one of only two players to have made it to the World Series (he was a member of the 1979 Orioles) and to the Final Four of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. Kenny Lofton was the other. Second, he was the first pitcher to have ever given up a broken bat home run, read HERE.

 It wouldn't be a complete Stoddard tribute if I didn't mention one of our favorite appearances ever by Tim.  When he appeared in the film Rookie of the Year.  

We were proud to have him as a member of our team, and we wish him all the best.

 
--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row

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BRONX ZOO: PART II

Oh man, there's a whole lot of chaos right now.  What do you want me to do... tell you that I am "thrilled" Alex Rodriguez got suspended?  Or, tell you I'm Gung ho for Alex to appeal officially? (Read HERE) Of course I'm not thrilled about any of it.

Look, we all know Alex is no angel, but let's face facts, at the end of the day, all this drama stains my New York Yankees.  I care more about my sons and their opinions on this stuff, AND whether or not my Yankees can continue to win.  It's a tough gig being a New York Yankee. It's like the Bronx Zoo: Part II and it seemed to have started when Alex showed up.

(In Photo: Billy Martin with Ed Whitson)
Sure, it's not the same as when Reggie and Billy were fighting, or those arguments between Billy and Ed Whitson, or disagreements between Thurman and who knows.  No, Part II of the Bronx Zoo is almost worse.  Back then, the players bitched at each other and it was comedy if you were a fan. But when they got out on the field, they won.  These days, we would have had better luck with a tree at third base and the cloud of PEDs around every corner is very disappointing.  The whole thing stinks... and it all goes back to my son's Alex Rodriguez card, still in purgatory (his sock drawer) until he determines if he should officially throw the card back in the garbage, or if he'll give him another chance.

(Read PEDs HAVE DESTROYED THIS GREAT GAME OF BASEBALL for context.) Look, I don't want my kid pushing to be the "next best thing" and deciding he wants to stick a needle in his ass because he wants an edge. That worries me.  Now, as a parent you hope you've provided good values and decision making skills in your child's mind, but peer pressure is a bitch and trust me... if you're not the best, in a moment of weakness, you may think a needle will take you to the top. When I was a kid in little league, that stuff wasn't talked about, in fact, I didn't even know about it at age 11.  These days, it's a different story.

Alex Rodriguez is an admitted cheater.  That's from back when he was interviewed on ESPN in 2009.  We know that for a fact.  Now, a few years later this comes up again and while the evidence against Alex is cloudy, there was wrong doing in some capacity.  OK fine, now Major League Baseball has suspended him for 211 games.  That's the rest of this season and all of 2014.  He violated drug policy and that makes sense, but last time I checked, Selig wasn't the Drug Czar, you know what I mean?  One thing I do know is that this whole mess, coupled with major injuries in the Yankee clubhouse and a losing streak... well, it bothers every Yankee fan right now... it truly is the modern day Bronx Zoo.  How do we as a fan base or a Yankee club, turn this whole thing around and become confident, dominant and clean? How I ask? I don't have answers, but I want them!

PEDs ruined this great game I love and the circus that MLB has put forth to "squash" something they ignored in the 90's seems like a crime in itself (Read BREAKING DOWN BUD SELIG'S STATEMENT  for context on that.)   I am absolutely convinced that MLB turned a blind eye then, when PEDs were rampant just to get the fans back to the ballpark. Why? Because the money was pouring in... baseball was back! So this is what confuses me... years later, Selig is now cleaning up the sport he allowed to get out of control in the first place? I mean, are you kidding? We're not stupid Selig.

So what happens now for Alex and for the Yankees? Alex appeals and he's done it formally and he plays until he's not allowed to play anymore.  The Yankees? They need to win.  We haven't been in a spot quite like this in a while.  We're not competitive. We're not confident. In fact, we're horrible and we're not even good at that.  But in the end, we still need to try to put up the best record we can.

4th place isn't a place I want to be in.  Geez... can we at least rally to take 3rd?

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IS PINEDA FINISHED BEFORE HE STARTED?

Disappointed doesn't begin to explain what I'm feeling for Michael Pineda's DUI situation right now. The trade that sent Golden Boy Jesus Montero to the Seattle Mariners for young pitching sensation Michael Pineda still hasn't paid off on our end and with this recent DUI mess involving Pineda, I'm happy to just clean my hands of the whole thing. It sucks on many levels.

This is what we know about Pineda, brought to you by David Waldstein of the New York Times:

"Yankees pitcher Michael Pineda was arrested early Monday in Tampa, Fla., on a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol, a Tampa Police Department spokeswoman said.

An arrest report said Pineda, 23, who is in Tampa rehabilitating from shoulder surgery, was pulled over at 2:35 a.m. Monday. He was released on $500 bond.

The report said the Nissan S.U.V. Pineda was driving was traveling 'at a high rate of speed and weaving from side to side, crossing the lane markers.' The arresting officer wrote in the report that Pineda’s eyes were red, glassy and watery and that he smelled 'the distinct odor of alcoholic beverage coming from his breath.'

Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman declined to comment."

So without even throwing a pitch for the New York Yankees officially in 2012, Pineda got hurt, has surgery and then gets a DUI. It's not only a pathetic start, it's now embarrassing for Pineda, for his family and for Brian Cashman.  Sure, Cash did nothing wrong, but when you trade away a kid you swear you'll give 500 at bats to as a Yankee (Montero), read HERE and the kid we get in return just can't get started (read THE LEMON?), there is no doubt people are going to call for Cashman's head.  Sure, it isn't fair, but that's the business. Cashman knew he had a potentially good thing in Pineda, but he, nor none of us had any idea Pineda would have such a string of bad luck, some accidental, some brought on by himself.

Am I going to slam Pineda for getting hurt? No. Am I going to slam Pineda for getting a DUI? Kind of, yes. It's idiotic. He's a Yankee. He needs to represent. He's not representing, in fact, he's failing.

Now look, there are plenty of Yankee in our lifetime that have been caught drunk.  I'm not blasting the Mickey Mantles, the Ed Whitsons, the Michael Pinedas of the world for throwing a few back. I am disappointed with the DUI. What if someone got hurt, or God forbid, killed?  People need to think sometimes.

 

All I'll say is this; Apologize for the mistake you made Michael.  Then, get back on the field. Then... when the smoke clears and you're in your training again for 2013... Remember this; Being a Yankee is about pride. You need to stand a little taller and work a little harder.   Do I think you can be a superstar in New York? Sure, I do, but it doesn't just happen by wearing the pinstripes, it happens by being the pinstripes.

Straighten yourself out and show us what you got because all these shutdowns get Yankee fans impatient. After all, we gave up a kid we loved for you... now we want you to make us love again. Good luck pal.

MORE YANKEE HISTORY WITH MARTY APPEL

As you know, I'm a nut for Yankee stories and Yankee history, so we did what we knew we had to do to get more knowledge, we reached out to former Yankees PR Giant Marty Appel again and asked him more questions about the Yankees for this lovely Sunday morning.  Don't forget, Marty is the author of the new book, Pinstripe Empire which is now on sale, click HERE and order a book today. It's great.

So here it is, more fantastic info from the guy who knows the Yankees better than anyone, Marty Appel. Enjoy this...Happy Sunday.

BYB: Phil Rizzuto doesn't get enough credit as a Yankee ballplayer, but many suggest his speed and defense really helped the Yankees in the years he manned SS. Tell me about your experiences with Rizzuto, the man, one on one, years after he played...he's not talk about enough...

Marty Appel: He was an instinctive student of the game and could see things no one else could.  A joy to listen to as an analyst, but he always did play-by-play as a broadcaster, rarely color.  Reason?  If he was doing color, he'd lose his concentration, he'd start chatting with people in the press box and we'd be unable to fully use his skills - for the seven innings we had him, until he left to beat the traffic.  He was a real pro as a broadcaster, who didn't start the playful stuff until around the time Fran Healy joined the broadcast team.  But he could read copy in one take, pre-recorded openings and commercials effortlessly.  And he was just a joy to be around.

BYB: Out of all the Yankee first basemen you've actually seen play through the years, who was your favorite and why? Not personality, but raw talent.

Marty Appel: Don Mattingly.  Largely because he was a thrill to watch, as he broke records set by the likes of Lou Gehrig, Earle Combs and others, and because he was the favorite of a generation of fans who fell in love with baseball because of him.  A throwback player, a great team player.

BYB:  If possible, describe those turbulent Billy Martin, Ed Whitson times. A lot of young fans don't know the friction there.

Marty Appel: Ed Whitson and Billy Martin could both be provocative and if they were in the same room at the time, look out.  I once thought it would be a great find to get a single-signed Clint Courtney ball - as a minor league manager, he must have signed some - and then add to it all the names of people Billy subsequently fought with, including traveling secretaries, players, marshmallow salesmen, sportswriters, and more.  That would be quite a collector's item.  

BYB: I have always been fascinated with Lou Piniella's toughness as player and manager. Describe for me how Sweet Lou handled himself and others during those Bronx Zoo years?

Marty Appel: He had the gift of intensity and sweetness.  Like the flame on a stove, he could be on and off in a flash.  He was a voice a reason during the Bronx Zoo years, but was becoming an elder statesman in the process, which led to his managing career.

BYB: Where were you when Dave Righetti pitched his no hitter on July 4, 1983?

Marty Appel: It was a brutally hot day, and I was with my family in the backyard - I kept running into the house to see how the game was going, and of course, stayed in for the last few innings.  I remember my amazement at Mel Allen calling the game for Sports channel - one more Yankee highlight for Mel, 19 years after his celebrated firing.

BYB: What made the combination of Phil Rizzuto, Bill White and Frank Messer in the Yankee booth so great?

Marty Appel: Frank was the underrated one, the consummate pro.  Scooter and Bill developed this "act" at which they would pick at each other in a respectful, loving way.  And Frank never appeared as the guy left out - he was more the solid performer who kept the broadcast smooth.  The three of them were wonderful together.

(In photo: Bobby Richardson)
BYB: If you could play ball for the Yankees, what team would you want to be apart of the most and why? 

Marty Appel: Second base was always my position in Little League and Bobby Richardson was my hero.  I wore number one.  I certainly wouldn't have wanted to take Bobby's job.  Anyone else would be fine of course.  But I would have loved to have been a teammate of Mickey's.

BYB: Throughout the Yankees rich history, if there was 1 player that you'd want to have a beer with, living or passed, who would it be and why?  I know, a tough one.

Marty Appel: Lou Gehrig.  Babe would not have remembered my name, so I would have felt let down.  I have a feeling Lou would have, and we might have had a real friendship.  Of course, he played before there was Lite Beer, so I would have put on a lot of weight in the process.

BYB:  I've always suggested Robinson Cano should be the next Yankee captain, but I also know it's not that easy. Do you know the process involved in picking a Yankee Captain? How does the process work? Was is just a simple choice by George Steinbrenner?

Marty Appel: Mr. Steinbrenner acknowledged that sometimes the captain isn't the obvious choice - not necessarily the loudest or the most talented player.  He knew that from his football assistant coaching days.  Teixeira, Cano, Granderson could all be candidates if the position opened tomorrow.  I know Ron Guidry was once a co-captain but it sometimes doesn't feel right for a pitcher.

BYB: How far off am I in suggesting that Alex Rodriguez was handpicked to help bring the all-time home run record back to the Bronx. My theory is simple, at the time of his signing, he was probably the only player to break the record. Was it strategic or am I being ridiculous?

Marty Appel: It was a nice by-product of the process, but not critical.  Even if he does break the Bonds record, a lot of those homers came with Seattle and Texas anyway.  I wish the fans at home would ease up a little on him when he fails.  He's one of the greatest players in baseball history; we ought to appreciate that more.  We see the outs with men on base, and the old time greats - we only see their heroics.  Not every at bat was on television.  I know his body language sometimes suggests, "whatever," but he really seems to work very hard, and I admire his talent a lot.

BYB: Share a nugget with us from your new book Pinstripe Empire that the readers don't know about.

Marty Appel: It's a small thing, but here you go - during World War II, fans would receive instructions on what to do, where to go, in the event of an air raid.  At the end of the instructions, it said, "In the event of an air raid or an enemy attack, whichever team is leading after five innings shall be declared the winner."  Like a rain-out.  I thought that was pretty odd.  End of life as we know it, but let's get the standings right.

I'm blown away by Marty Appel.  He's knowledgeable, his answers are thoughtful and he's just full of true Yankee history.  I hope you enjoyed this second installment of my interview with Marty Appel and, in case you missed it, check out: YANKEE STORIES REVEALED BY PR GIANT MARTY APPEL.

Thanks again Mr. Appel!

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