Saturday, May 28, 2016
#465 Gil Hodges
By the time this card came out Gil had passed
away from a heart attack on April 2 1972 before the strike delayed season started...he was age 47....This sad event adds an eerie feeling to his
picture....legendary player and manager but not in Hall of Fame....hit 370 home
runs as a player mostly as a Brooklyn Dodger...rung up a string of 7
consecutive season of 100 RBI’s or more....hit over .290 in 4 out of 7 World
Series but also went 0-21 in one too....excellent offensive player but never
led league in any major category...many time all star, gold glover, and highly
regarded man of outstanding character....went west with the Dodgers but his
game was eroding...returned to NY as a player with the infant Mets
1962....started the 1963 but quit the club to manage Washington Senators...came
back to NY again to manage Mets for 1968....hampered by team BA of .227 team captured
only 73 win....1969: made history....not just happy with an amazing 27 game
improvement, a sweep of the first NL League Championship followed....crowning achievement
was overturning the heavily favored Orioles in the World Series...following two
seasons had a winning records but ultimately let downs as the Mets failed to
make the post season.....Yogi Berra took over in his place for 1972.
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When I was a kid, I always he was ancient based on this photo. I am now astounded at how young he was.
ReplyDeleteHe was a heavy smoker which ages your skin and appearance. Without a doubt it was the leading contributor to the massive heart attack that killed him.
ReplyDeleteAging is different now than then. By the time I got the card, he had already passed by then, so the card has a feeling of sadness over it. I feel the same about the 1964 Jim Umbritch (which did recognize his death) and Roberto Clemente cards.
ReplyDeleteI think the all time advanced age photo of all time is 1969 Red Schoendienst card. Blurry enough to look like a 70+ year old but he hadn't passed 50 at the time. Lived to be a ripe old age. A good life.
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