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Speak of the devil... [youtube:3unf6z4j]qpeLakLjDLs[/youtube:3unf6z4j]

Two more American Leaguers: Ed Herrmann, 67, catcher, mostly of White Sox pitchers. Said teammate Dick Allen: As he did with everything he faced on and off the baseball diamond, Ed gave all he had to give during his long battle with cancer. He was a good man and he will be missed. Without a doubt, Hoggy has already jogged out to the bullpen in heaven and has started working with some of God�s pitchers. Paul Blair, 69, briefly a Met farmhand before the Orioles drafted him away. He became the junior circuit's premier defensive center fielder for a generation, though ironically robbed by Tommie Agee in the 1969 World Series. Hit nearly .500 in the next year's Fall Classic, won by the Birds. Finished up with the champion MFYs in the late '70s, with a stop in Cincinnati.

Given that he did some platooning, thus might have been available to pinch-hit quite a bit, was your man Ed Charles involved?

I want to guess Dan Norman is one of the remaining answers. I'd prefer to be right, but I'll guess Norman anyway on the off chance it's not quite wrong.

It wasn't the most cleanly executed of PH HRs, either, according to an area blogger: [H]itting the ball and running to first [...] was a skill set that abandoned pinch-hitter Josh Satin in the ninth. It was a comedy of presumption that unfolded as Josh lofted a fly ball far down the left field line versus closer Jim Henderson. Was it fair? Was it foul? Josh, whose job is to immediately steam counterclockwise to the nearest available base without pausing to ask questions, appointed himself judge and deemed it foul. Except it was ruled fair and in play. The �fair� part was accurate, which became a tad embarrassing for lead-footed Satin to realize since he had already begun to wander away from the plate to clear his head and await the next pitch. When he understood that he swung better than he thought, Josh dash-trudged to first, where he had to stop since he took his sweet time getting going. But the ball shouldn�t have been �in play,� as it actually cleared the fence and bounced back into the outfield. Instant replay cleared up the umpires� muddle. They emerged from their comfortably appointed video review lounge to signal �home run�. You know the gesture � it�s where you twirl your index finger in the air as if to indicate you�re not impressed��whoop-de-doo,� in other words. Which was how it felt watching Josh Satin score the reluctant run that turned a 4-1 loss into an eventual 4-2 loss.

Most recent: Josh Satin, I seem to recall.

Mike Hegan, 71, original Pilot, later a Brewer and A, author of the final batted ball at MFYS I, longtime Tribe broadcaster and guy I inevitably conflated with Mike Epstein. Profile from when he hung up his mic in 2011 here. Oh look, I got his card again.

Random Met memories beyond those mentioned above: Wally Backman HR in Friday night win Aug 1984 -- exotic because I got to watch on SportsChannel at my sister's house while playing Trivial Pursuit with her and her husband (we didn't have cable yet). Tom Seaver, announcer, making a big deal about a quiz he was asking on Mets' last visit in in 1999, having to do with all the HOFers Giants had at one time in the '60s. Something about how "it's Sunday and Sunday is a day for a quiz." Not sponsored or anything. Horrible 10-0 rain-shortened game in 1977 that Mets protested they didn't get a chance to lose by more. I think they won the protest but opted to leave it be. (I associate Dave Heaverlo with that game, the bald Giant pitcher who wore No. 60 and a wool cap, which apparently the San Fran management didn't care for.) Doc homering in 1992 as I was returning from see the NY Rock & Soul Revue at Jones Beach. Great night all around. Doc's 14-game winning streak ending there in 1985 on a Thursday but Keith Hernandez pulling out a victory with a PINCH HIT HR vs Mark Davis on Sunday. Marty Noble interviewing Vida Blue while Gooden's great season was revving up earlier in '85; Blue was on his last legs and the tale of the article was plainly cautionary that phenoms don't always stay phenomenal. David Cone breaking a finger while bunting in 1987. Barry Bonds not moving when Kelly Stinnett seemed to have homered but in fact doubled, c. 1994. Frank Tanana almost no-hitting the Giants in 1993 while I was protesting the existence of the 1993 Mets by spending that Saturday at the Met (had a radio with me, though). Tom Hall blowing a game in 1975. Or maybe it was some other reliever. This also happened at Jones Beach, a place I haven't been all that many times in my life.

Tonight, the SF 49ers play what will likely be their last game ever at Candlestick Park (unless the Niners win out and the Rams beat the Seahawks next Sunday in Seattle). The Stick was the baseball stadium Keith Hernandez was raised on. Ed Halicki no-hit the Mets there in 1975. The Beatles played their last concert there. And the Stick hosted my second most awesome all-time Sports moment: [fimg=633]http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4039/4439637126_1b307d9ed3_o.jpg[/fimg] Football Giants represented here with one of the best and one of the worst games ever, depending on your perspective.

Daryl, that is.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Doll Headband Bucket...of course!

Two Mets episodes that come to mind: 1965: A pair of early-season, late-inning comebacks whose parameters wouldn't reappear in Met annals until 2011. The original duo hinged on a huge hit by Danny Napoleon, leading to Casey Stengel's declaration of "Viva La France" in the clubhouse. 1969: These two defensive half-innings at the back end of August: GIANTS 8TH: GASPAR REPLACED SHAMSKY (PLAYING LF); Marshall lined to second; Dietz walked; Lanier singled to center [Dietz to second]; Perry reached on an error by Boswell [Dietz to third, Lanier to second]; TAYLOR REPLACED CARDWELL (PITCHING); DAVENPORT BATTED FOR MASON; HENDERSON RAN FOR DIETZ; Davenport hit into a double play (second to first to catcher) [Henderson out at home]; Ken Boswell caught the popup and threw toward HP while Ken Henderson was retreating to 3B; the throw hit 1B coach Wes Westrum; Donn Clendenon retrieved the ball to throw out Henderson who crashed into Jerry Grote; 0 R, 1 H, 1 E, 2 LOB. Mets 2, Giants 2. GIANTS 9TH: WEIS REPLACED JONES (PLAYING SS); MCGRAW REPLACED MARTIN (PITCHING); Hunt lined to third; Burda singled to left; McCovey doubled to left [burda out at home (left to first to catcher), McCovey out at third (catcher to third)]; Big shift for Willie McCovey who sliced double down LF line; Jerry Grote waited casually at HP, pretending no throw was coming, then lunged at last moment to tag Bob Burda; Grote rolled the ball to the mound, thinking there were 3 outs; Donn Clendenon retrieved the ball; 0 R, 2 H, 0 E, 0 LOB. Mets 2, Giants 2. Mets won in extras, stayed within four of Cubs.

And in the same vein of platoon player, maybe Daryl Boston?

Ron Swoboda.

Lee Mazzilli in there somewhere.

Joel Youngblood?

Jordany Valdespin had 5 PH HRs in 2012, I seem to recall. I believe Danny Heep and Chris Jones should be in the upper echelons for a season, certainly.

Henry Blanco, not nearly as colorful as Jordany Valdespin, signs a minor league deal with Arizona.

Zvon wrote: Zvon wrote: Couldn't they keep the classic logo on one sleeve and put Mr.Met on the other? I mean, our regular one is the best logo in baseball. I can go with wearing em both, np. Let me amend that. It's the best logo in the history of the entire universe! The universe wishes its logo was as stylish. Not a dealbreaker, but I miss the NY.

7 years, $130 million, no regrets ever from Texas, hoss.

Shin-Soo Choo: a very rich Ranger today.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Maybe they'll be more intimidated by a guy with a freakishly large head. Good point. Certainly helps explain Bruce Bochy's two world championships and Jay Horwitz's lengthy tenure.

Papelbon in 2012. Walkoff grand slam in 2013. HBP idiocy that clouded his transcendent contributions. Calling on Collins to suck on his cocksure attitude. And got hit where it counted in a game that didn't count. Sure squeezed a lot of images out of just a couple of results. Honestly thought he should've been given more time in the OF in 2012, but I guess rubbing everybody in the organization the massively wrong way can't help but wind up counterproductive.

Jordany Valdespin signs minor league contract with Miami Marlins.

MLBS 1965:John Steinbeck. You see, my interest in sports is catholic but cool. I don't expect you will believe that I once sent for a mail-order course in alligator wrestling complete with a practice alligator, so I will not tell you this. Yes, my interest in sports is quiet but deep. I am particularly drawn to the game of rounders, which we call baseball. I would be wrong to call it a sport. I don't think the players have a real sporting attitude toward it. Mostly they want to win because if they win they get more money. In baseball I like the audience almost better than the game. I guess that is why I am a Met fan. But for many years our household was torn to pieces emotionally every year. My wife was a Dodger fan born and bred in Fort Worth, which is, or was, a Dodger farm. Every year, she went through the fervency, the hope, the prayer, the shining eyes and the loud and raucous voice and, finally, after the season the dark and deadly gloom and despair that lasted clear into spring-training time. I guess our family devoted more pure spiritual energy to the Dodgers than to any other religious organization. This, of course, was before they defected to the West. Any kind of skulduggery and ineptness my wife could Forgive and even defend, but treason she could not take. She is a Met fan now, and our house is whole again. Early on, to save arguments, I became an Oriole fan and even bought a little stock in that club. If you were for anyone else you got an argument, but if you said you were an Oriole fan people just laughed and let you alone. I thought I had a guarantee that they would stay on the bottom, but now they have doublecrossed me by climbing up. I nearly went to the Senators, because there is a federal law which forbids them to win. Then the Mets happened, and I was stuck. Baseball brings out a kind of pugnacious frustration in foreigners. Once as guests of a very old and dear friend in London, we were at Lord's watching a sedate and important cricket match. When a player let a fast ball go by, my wife yelled, "Git it! What ya got, lead in ya pants?" A deathly silence fell on the section around us, and it was apparent that our host would have to resign from all his clubs. After-ward he lectured her gently. "My dear," he said, "we don't do it." "Peewee Reese would of got it," said my elegant moglie. "Don't tell me about baseball," said our host. "It's only rounders, and I know all about it. Don't forget, I, too, have been to Egbert's Field." There is no way to explain that baseball is not a sport or a game or a contest. It is a state of mind, and you can't learn it. [...] So you see, Ray Cave, it was a mistake to ask me to write an essay about sports. Hell, I don't even know the batting average of Eddie Kranepool.