John Olerud Retires

[Elster88]

]Cool out.

It's cool. He said maybe, I disagreed. Nymr said Piazza never matched them, I disagreed.

Then I called the remark silly, which it really kind of is as other player info piles up.

It's cool. No hate, just friendly discussion.

I'm no bitter Jets fan.

] All those other guys (Piazza, Seaver, Kooz, Straw, Gooden, whoever) had a down year or two also. Ol' Johnny 5 came here, kicked ass for three years, then strode off into the deep, dark night. I don't think anyone else did that.

True. Like an assassin. Great stuff.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Other great hit-'n'-run Mets.

Tommy Davis, 1967
Rusty Staub, 1972-1975
Mike Hampton, 2000

The granddaddy of them all is Richie Ashburn 1062.

[Willets Point]

Edgy DC wrote: The granddaddy of them all is Richie Ashburn 1062.

Richie Asburn went medieval on the opponents when he played for Ye 1062 Mets.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Damn.

[Centerfield]

I hear 4 years later he played a crucial role in the invasion of England.

[seawolf17]

I thought Dan Norman led that invasion.

[Guest silverdsl]

Olerud has always been a favorite of mine. Just one of those guys that you felt confident would get the job done at the plate more often than not when he was in his prime. I'm very happy that he was a Yankee for a little bit there and that I got to see him play in person another time or two before he moved on. I hope retirement treats him well.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

We should also thank JO for having the good sense to be injured when he was, in October '04. I was *certain* he would come up with whatever the MFYs needed to win that series.

[G-Fafif]

Except for those who lost money betting on him in relay races, I've never heard a Mets fan say a bad word about John Olerud. He probably belongs in the recent discussion of most beloved Mets ever. Given his truncated tenure, nobody ever had a chance to sour on him. As such, his stature only grew.

Not that he didn't deserve it.

http://faithandfear.blogharbor.com/blog/_archives/2005/12/7/1439373.html

[Guest Edgy DC]

History doesn't necessarily need a villian.

The record is pretty strong that Steve Phillips, whatever his flaws, didn't turn his back.

Lovely piece, though, as usual.

[Centerfield]

Great article.

[G-Fafif]

Edgy DC wrote: History doesn't necessarily need a villian. The record is pretty strong that Steve Phillips, whatever his flaws, didn't turn his back.

I've always harbored a grudge against Phillips over the departures of Olerud and Reed based on the feeling that if a guy wasn't a "marquee name," the GM found them disposable. They both overachieved here. They both contributed to winners. Neither of them caused a lick of trouble. Each was let go. Olerud has indicated that if he were shown a little love ($$$) after 1999 that perhaps Seattle wouldn't have felt so much like home. Granted, this makes him a human being, not the saint I prefer to think him, but I could've handled that.

(And thanks for the "lovely".)

[G-Fafif]

Centerfield wrote: Great article.

And that!

[Frayed Knot]

I do remember, during the Olerud FA period, that there was a reported faction within the "Met front office types" that thought Olerud a bit too passive in his ABs and they wanted more punch for their money. IOW, if true, there were those paying too much attention to RBIs and not enough to OBA. Where wer those damn Sabrematricians when we needed them?
Who knows if that was accurate though?

JO is the CPF ranking project leader among 3-year Mets; higher, in fact, than all the 4 season guys too.
Definitely the best of the short-timers.

[Guest Scrapple8]

It is hard to believe that the Jays sent along 4 and a half million bucks along with the pooch hitter to defray his salary, and all the Mets had to give up was Robert Person. Person's wife woulda made the wifey watch if they had one at the time.

I also recall reading or hearing that Olerud might have stayed with the Mets had they ponied up a few more bucks. However, there were also some personal reasons why Olerud signed with Seattle, beyond the fact that his parents live there.

Remember in 1993 when Olerud was at the top of the world? They wrote articles in the world series, comparing the Krukker and Olerud to the Odd Couple. Supposedly the Pale Hose offered Frank Thomas straight up for Olerud and were turned down... my friend Joshua from Tranna is always talking about that trade.

I was at his major league debut... it was my first game at SkyDome... it was the day before labor day - our labor day - in an afternoon game against the Minnesota Twins. Olerud came in the game as a def replacement and I saw, for the first time, a player play the field with a batting helmet.

Rickey Henderson used to say, when he was in Seattle, that he had a teammate in New York who also used to play the field with a helmet. It is hard to guess whether Rickey was being serious or not.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

As I recall it, that Henderson story was made up by Robin Ventura as a comment on the kind of teammate Henderson was: It was funny because it *could have been* true, but it probably wasn't.

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

My memory comports with JD's. The story was made up, and the 2000 Mets were very amused that the newspaper(s) reported it as fact.

[Zvon]

Scrapple8 wrote: ..... and I saw, for the first time, a player play the field with a batting helmet.

Pete Rose wore one in the '73 playoffs.
Between then and Olerud Id never seen it done.
Olerud, of course, had the plate in his skull.
Rose almost got a bottle in his skull.

[Guest Scrapple8]

]Pete Rose wore one in the '73 playoffs. Between then and Olerud Id never seen it done.

Maybe Dave Parker? The fans really turned against him in Pittsburgh.

[Valadius]

Greg, you beat me to it - today is the sixth anniversary of John Olerud's signing with Seattle.

It's also the 64th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

[Elster88]

ScarletKnight41 wrote: the newspaper(s) reported it as fact.

I'm shocked that reporters would have printed such stuff without further fact checking. They took a huge gamble, and risked their lives and careers. Fools.

[nymr83]

the high level of accountability in their corner of the journalism world must have cost them all their jobs, right?

[Gwreck]

G-Fafif wrote: Olerud has indicated that if he were shown a little love ($$$) after 1999 that perhaps Seattle wouldn't have felt so much like home. Granted, this makes him a human being, not the saint I prefer to think him, but I could've handled that.

Page 3 of the Rico Brogna thread (the story about Olerud's daughter) seems to contradict this.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Thanks for doing some checking of your own, Gwreck.

[Zvon]

Valadius wrote: It's also the 64th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Its nice to hear from a younger person who remembers this.
To most kids your age its only the day Dimebag Darryl died.

Im proud to know you, Valadius.


(this is all serious above^)

[Valadius]

Thank you Zvon. That means a lot.

[Gwreck]

Edgy DC wrote: Thanks for doing some checking of your own, Gwreck.

I'm not sure I'd call it "checking" per se -- it's as much based on hearsay as the report that Greg posted. I'll admit to rather believing the version that portrays Olerud in the best possible light.

[G-Fafif]

Zvon wrote: Pete Rose wore one in the '73 playoffs. Between then and Olerud Id never seen it done.

Reggie Jackson wore one for the top of the ninth of the final game of the '77 World Series to protect him against his own loving fans.

[G-Fafif]

Zvon wrote: Pete Rose wore one in the '73 playoffs. Between then and Olerud Id never seen it done.

Reggie Jackson wore one for the top of the ninth of the final game of the '77 World Series to protect him against his own loving fans.

[G-Fafif]

Valadius wrote: Greg, you beat me to it - today is the sixth anniversary of John Olerud's signing with Seattle. It's also the 64th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor.

The reason I clearly remember it as December 7, 1999 was that in discussing the breaking news with my skewed-perspective pal Joe, he said, "Screw Pearl Harbor. We lost Olerud."

I responded silently to Joe as I usually do when he gets a little too caught up in the moment.