April 27, 1969...GAME 16 (SEA 6, OAK 5)

Final game in Hawaii before heading back to the mainland. Bouton notched another save, but gave up his first earned run in his stint down on the farm.

Meanwhile the big club took a 6-5 decision from the A's for a series sweep and 6th consecutive win. How is this possible ? Mike Marshall gave up 3 in a little over 6 innings of work to go 3-0. Segui got his 3rd save. Hegan hit a 2 run homer and went 2 for 3 as he raised his average to an obscene .432. Ray "filthy mouth" Oyler is hitting .250, which for him is like .432.

April 26, 1969...GAME 15 (SEA 4, OAK 0)

First time Bouton didn't get into a game for Vancouver. Bob Lemon spoke with Milkes (GM-SEA) to tell him how well the bulldog is doing. Goosen asked Bulldog if he calls home after every victory or save, to which he was told yes. Goosen replied, "big deal that means you only call 3 times a year".

Parent club won 4-0 over the A's. Sore armed Steve Barber tossed 8 shutout innings and Diego Segui notched his 2nd save of the season. Jack Aker was again ineffective and got only 1 out in the 9th before yielding to Segui. Hegan had 2 hits, including a triple, to raise his average to .415. If he keeps this up he'll wind up getting traded !

April 25, 1969...GAME 14 (SEA 7, OAK 2)

With Bouton still in the minors and tearing it up (7 straight appearances and 4 saves) the Pilots beat up on the A's. Ding Dong Bell went 8 innings and gave up just 1 run for the victory and evened his record at 2-2. Hegan went 1 for 3 and saw his average drop to .405.

April 23, 1969...GAME 13 (SEA 4, KC 3)

Marty Pattin went 8 strong innings and Jack Aker came on to save it with a scoreless 9th as the Pilots swept the Royals in a 3 games set. Each game was a one run affair. Aker lowered his ERA to 14.21, yet our hero Mr. Bouton is still toiling in the minors. Ok, it's tough to say toiling when you sit in the bullpen sipping mai tai's for 8 innings and come in to close out the game against minor league talent.

Bouton saved another one tonight. Jimmy Reese said, "What are you doing in this league ?". That's a compliment, by the way !!! Bob Lemon has complete faith in our hero who didn't expect to get called into his 3rd straight contest. When the call went to the pen he was on hold trying to make a collect call to his wife. Lucky for him Rollie Sheldon (pictured in Red Sox uni) was able to stall, so he could get ready. Is a return to the Emerald City eminent ?

Mike Hegan went 2 for 4 to raise his average to .412. Word has it that T.S. Williams, manager of the Washington Senators, is beginning to worry. No talks about asterisk's yet.

April 22, 1969...GAME 12 (SEA 6, KC 5)

Bouton's knuckler is getting stronger. Another outing where he didn't give up any runs. Only hit was allowed to former major league manager Bob "Buck" Rogers. We learn that mai tais can corrupt an All-American boy and siamin is a great soup served at Hawaiian ballparks instead of crackerjacks !

I'm sure it didn't break the Bulldog's heart to learn that the Pilots bullpen cracked under pressure and the team was lucky to escape with a 1 run victory over the Royals. Gene Brabender gave up 3 in the bottom of the 9th and the Pilots held on to a 1 run victory. Diego Segui was brilliant as a starter and gave up only 1 run in 6 innings of work. Seattle was up 6-2 unitl Brabender imploded in the 9th and barely held on. What turned out to be the winning hit was Ray Oyler's 2 run homer in the 9th off of Morris, call me Moe, Drabowsky. Tommy Davis had 3 hits to boost his average to .367. He must thing it's 1962 or 1963 all over again.

April 21, 1969...GAME 11 (SEA 8, KC 7)

Don't feel to bad for Bouton. The Vancouver Mounties were headed to play in Hawaii. If you can't make it to the bigs playing in Hawaii isn't to shabby. Years later I was told that Benny DiStefano refused a late season call up to the Pirates, so he could stay in Hawaii. He said, "It's cold and dank in Pittsburgh and we've got it real good here". Needless to say the Pirates moved their minor league affiliate back to the lower 48 the following year. Triple A features 3 types of players. Young phenoms on their way up, old dogs on their way out trying to see if anything is left in the tank and career minor leaguers needed to round out rosters. Bouton is getting a lot of work, but worries that his release is emminent. Thankfully the knucker is dancing.

Meanwhile the big club won a tight one over fellow expansion franchise, the KC Royals. KC is terrible, but they still found a way to score some runs and almost pull it out. I'm sure the Bulldog wasn't happy when he found out his bud Mike "Moon Man" Marshall got rocked for 7 runs. He did get the win, but giving up 7 runs and 10 hits in 7 2/3 innings is not what keeps you in the big leagues. Moon Man was a nickname Marshall got while playing for the Tigers organization, just like Hovley earned the "Orbit" nickname on the Pilots.

April 20, 1969...GAMES 9/10 (CHW sweeps DH)

While the big club was being tatooed in Chicago Bouton lost a decision on a disputed call at home plate. A wild pitch that Merritt Ranew (he was sent down also) rolled all the way to the backstop. Ranew threw to Bouton covering the plate, but a cloud of dust blocked the ups view and the runner was called safe. Manager Bob Lemon suggested that Bouton go back to Seattle (not too far from Tacoma) and get Jerry McNertney's oversized knuckle ball catching glove:

Sicks was empty. Nobody around. I knocked on doors, and banged on walls. Finally I hopped the fence and stood in the middle of the field and screamed...still nobody responded. Found McNertney's glove and a sign that said, "WARNING GUARD DOG PATROLING AREA". Guess they must have sent he pooch to the minors or the headline in tomorrow's paper would read "Former Pilot pitcher mauled by dog". Anyone could have gotten in here and dismantled the park and taken everything valuable. Is there anything valuable here ?

April 19, 1969...GAME 8 (CHW 6, SEA 4)

Bouton arrives in Tacoma, but the Mounties game is rained out. His dedication to getting back to "the show" is unmatched as he works out on the field in his long johns even though everyone else is gone. Quite possibly he has gone over the edge. The difference between a minor league clubhouse and a major league one (even Seattle's) is like night and day. No bat racks. Bats are stored in garbage pails. Possibly an omen ?

The big club dropped a 6-4 decison the the Chisox at Comiskey. Marty Pattin took the loss and gave up 6 runs, 4 of which were earned. In fact he was the victim of back to back dropped fly balls in the 2nd inning by Comer and Chico, don't call me Gore, Vidal. Boy that wind in Chi-town must really have been blowing.

April 16, 1969...GAME 7 (SEA 4, KC 3)

Bouton was stuck in baseball purgatory. Optioned to the Vancouver Mounties (Seattle's farm team), but still in Seattle due to the fact that the Mounties were in Tulsa and they didn't want him to travel. Prior to the game against Minnesota he got permission to workout with the team, so he threw to McNertney and Haney for 45 minutes. No BP due to rain...this is Seattle remember ? Bell started the game and went 7 and gave up only 1 unearned run to the vaunted Twin lineup. Jack Aker came in and proceeded to try and blow it. He gave up 2 runs in less than 2/3 inning work. His ERA is 37.50. No reason to keep the knuckleballer when you have Aker to throw propane on the fire. The team held on and won 4-3. Brabender and Segui had to come in and put the fire out. Tommy Davis had 2 hits and is now batting .385. Hegan is leading the team at .391 and Mincher is at .304. Speaking of Mincher, he proved out to be a real nice guy showing support for the old Bulldog. The toughest part about going down is getting living accommodations. Guys on the bubble find themselves writing out lots of deposits for 1st and lasts month's rent. Thankfully the parent team picks up the tab for the remaining month's on the lease when they send you down or release you.

April 14, 1969...GAME 6 (SEA 6, KC 5)

In the lexicon of baseball Bouton says, "I died tonight". After giving up 2 runs in an inning of work and seeing his ERA balloon into the 3.80's "The Bulldog" was optioned to Vancouver (Seattle's Farm team). The Pilots held on to win the game, and if Diego Segui doesn't yield a double to the light hitting Jackie Hernandez, Bouton escapes with only 1 run against. Still convinced that his knuckle ball can get out major league hitters he heads off to "the bushes". Interesting quote: "What about Steve Barber ? He hasn't been able to pick up a baseball. He had a brutal spring. What's this love affair with Barber ? Why can't he go on the DL ?"..."Ah, the hell with it". Baseball is a funny game. The thought processes that emanate from baseball management, even funnier. Sometimes as fans we sit back and shake our heads at the decisions they make. How many of us would have drafted Steve Chilcott over Reggie Jackson ? Somehow they get paid the big bucks and we don't. Gotta love the 'ole boys network.

April 13, 1969...GAME 5 (SEA 2, CHW 1)

Dare we say the bulldog is back ??? Bouton got into the game with the score tied at 1 and went 3 scoreless innings and got the win when Rich Rollins hit a sac fly to right to score Tailwind Tommy Harper. Harper setup the whole inning with his legs. He beat out an infield single, then promptly stole second and got to third when Wayne Comer bunted him over. Pundits thought Harper was going to be a weak link, but he and Ray Oyler have been a good keystone combo so far. Can't believe those three innings. More so, I can't believe Maglie and Schultz put me in with the score tied in the 8th. Marty Pattin went 7 innings and gave up only 1 run. Those anemic White Sox bats are sure making us look good. Tried to talk to Maglie after the game to see about getting more work, but he wasn't interested in chatting. Coaches and managers hate to talk to players. In baseball they have a saying, "he's a good guy...doesn't say much". Guess I'm not such a good guy.

April 12, 1969...GAME 4 (SEA 2, CHW 1)

Before today's game Joe Schultz said, "Okay men, up and at 'em. Get that old Budwieser." We deserved every ouce of that old hops and barley brew. In the pitcher's graveyard called Sicks Stadium, Diego Segui went the distance and gave up just 1 run, while we scrated out 2 to win. .500 record ! Mediocrity here we come ! Hegan doubled home Oyler in the bottom of the 9th for the win. Boy did we "pound" him.

April 11, 1969...GAME 3 (CHW 6, SEA 2)

Today was the home opener at glorious Sicks Stadium. Less than 15,000 showed up. Wonder if they know something we don't know ? I guess any city that values its museums more than it's ball team can't be all that bad ? Ding Dong Gary Bell started for us and got torched for 6 runs in a little over 8 innings of work. Ding Dong...I think you all know how he got that nick name ? If you don't, cups are made out of metal and when a ball hits it it makes a sound like "Ding Dong". Nuff said ?


Bell did well in 7 of the 8 innings he pitched. The 4 run 6th inning was his undoing. Schultz let him stay on the mound to "work through" it. I wonder who the real Ding Dong is ?

April 9, 1969: GAME 2 (SEA 13, CAL 8)

We lost game 1 in 11 innings in what is sure to be the first of many heartbreakers. Joe Schultz said, "tommorrow's another day"...who would have imagined he'd be right ? Bouton made his pitching debut today. The linescore shows no runs allowed. The linescore doesn't show that all of Jack Aker's inherited runners scored. Aker was tapped with 5 runs in 1/3 inning. Not a good way to stay with the club ! Got the last 2 batters out in a row !!! Amaro (PH) struck out and Vic Davalillo grounded out weekly ! We're at .500. Of course we had a huge 13-3 lead going into the final inning until that Aker guy gave them 5 easy ones...with a little assist from the Bulldog. Messersmith took the loss for the Angels and got pounded for 7 runs in just over an inning's worth of work. Hard to believe he's the Angels' ace and not Dooley Womack. Schultz was ecstatic, even though he looked a bit nervous during the bottom of the 9th.

When we all came into the clubhouse amidst all the yelling and screaming after our 1st win he said, "Stomp on 'em. That away to stomp on 'em. Kick 'em when they're down. Shitfuck. Stomp them. Stomp them good." Anything can happen, even the Mets are 3-0 !!! There are endless possibilities. Mike Marshall got the win ! He's been walking around with his hand in a cup of tea to help control blisters. He's halfway to madness, but he didn't blister today and he went 8 solid innings. If Starbucks was around in 1969 he'd have Green Tea Latte's all over his apartment and in the clubhouse ! 13-8 final...we'll take it !

April 8, 1969...OPENING DAY (CAL 4, SEA 3)

Every team starts out dead even on Opening Day. The Pilots sent Marty Pattin to the mound to throw the first pitch in franchise history. Tommy Harper led off the game as the first batter in Pilot history and promptly lined out to Dr. Strangeglove, Dick Stuart. The next batter, Mike Hegan, singled to right to record the franchises 1st hit. Hegan, who is known as a streak hitter would go 4 for 5 on the day as the boxscore listed his BA at .800. I think he should quit now and air-mail himself right to Cooperstown.

The second inning saw the franchise's first run and first lead. Rich Rollins led off by reaching base as California's second baseman Bobby Knoop booted a hard smash. Centerfielder Jim Gossger lined out to right and catcher Jerry McNertney laced one down the right field line for a two base hit as Rollins came around to score. The Pilots took a 1-0 lead and celebrated as if they just won game 7 (of the World Series, not the season).

Pattin was cruising. The Angels are a light highting squad for sure. Then in the 6th Auriellio Rodriguez led off with a clean single. Two batters later banjo hitting Knoop atoned for his error in the 2nd by taking Pattin deep into the Southern California smog to put the Angels on top 2-1.

With 2 outs in the 8th and all looking dim Rich Rollins singled home Mike Hegan to tie the game, which would eventually go into extra innings. The big Farm boy Gene Brabender came on in the 9th to relieve Pattin who gave up only 2 runs in 8 innings of work, but with nothing to show for his work. The game remained tied until the 11th when Bill Voss hit a Sac Fly Gosger in center allowing catcher Tom Satriano to score the winning run.

Joe Schultz was shouting encouragement to his troops letting them know that they have the same exact record as the Mets, so they can't possibly be the worst team out there. Maglie grumbled something about not throwing a fastball to a hitter with the winning run 90 feet away and less than 1 out. Bouton was probably thinking that there aren't many good pitches to throw in that situation...period !

PART 3: And Then I Died

April 7th, 1969...The day before the opener. The team is in Seattle finishing up getting settled in after a month in Arizona for Spring Training. Joe Schultz pearl of wisdom for the day, "It's back to the old salt mine, boys". I've personally heard that expression a ton of times in my life, but it's come from someone who had to do extensive manual labor in a dangerous environment. Then again that could apply to being a ballplayer on an expansions team...couldn't it ?

PART 2: "My Arm isn't Sore, It's Just a Little Stiff

Spring Training is a time where veterans work on rounding into shape (no puns intended) and young players to try to impress in hopes of making the team. That's what occurs on an established team, but not on an expansion team like the '69 Pilots. Everyone in training camp is looking to win a job. Veterans are either trying to recapture lighting in a bottle, come back from injury or finally break free from being a career minor leaguer or backup. In essence the younger players have a better chance, since they are viewed as the future of the franchise, while the vet is considered a place holder or trade bait to some contender in July or August.

In Bouton's case he falls under many categories: trying to come back from injury and hoping to be a place holder until some contender trades for him. In fact his dream of all dreams is to work his way from short reliever, to middle relief, then spot starter then to be traded to the Detroit Tigers for the pennant run and to pitch in Yankee Stadium vs his old team and shut them out. Who said the pros don't have the same type of sports oriented fantasies that we do ?

We learned that Joe Schultz (Pilots Manager) is one heck of a "wordsmith". Seems like Joe has a nutty quote of the day. "Guys in order to win we've got to touch all the bases". Geez, I wonder if the Harvard think tank was consulted on that one !

Bouton reveals the truth about coaches. At best most are useless. At worst they are rats who live to second guess every move their "charges" make. Sal "The Barber" Maglie, the famed ex-Giant is the piching coach here. He stops at no end to throw his players under the bus. One pitcher threw a 3-2 change up that flared into RF for a game winning hit. Maglie was all over him for doing that. Bouton afterwards said, "Sal didn't you get out many a hitter with a 3-2 change?" Maglie was proud enough to admit that he even got the great Musial out that way. Bouton then said, "so a 3-2 change is a good pitch then". Maglie begrudgingly admitted he was correct. The ever so sarcastic Bouton then said, "But not by Steve Barber on this day". Got to love Bouton's wit !

When a player "dies" in Spring Training he is either "released" or "sent down" to the minors. He usually packs his bags while the others are out on the field. Lou Piniella "died" in the spring of 1969. Seattle brass just didn't like his attitute. Piniella, even then was exceptionally intense individual, which rubbed the brass the wrong way. He only hit .400 in Spring training, so he got shipped off to KC (the other expansion team). Bouton's bud Steve Hovley was sent down to Vancouver (SEA's farm team).

Our hero made the cut ! And so begins the journey through the 1969 baseball season.

PART 1: They Made Me Who I Am Today

Contract negotiations in the "old days" (pre-free agency) pitted the ball player vs team, with the team holding all the cards. The Reserve Clause enabled ownership to own players and basically offer them whatever they wanted. A player's only recourse was to hold out. Bouton did his share of holding out in his years with the Yankees. One of his best buds on the team was the late Elston Howard who would tell him to "stick to his guns" and get what he deserved. Sadly he badmouthed Bouton behind his back by saying things like, "Who does Bouton think he is...How are we going to win a pennant with guys not in camp and not getting into shape". The old Reserve system pitted one player against another in scenarios just like this one. Today we see the exact opposite where the players hold the teams over the proverbial barrel. I would like to see a system that would be somewhere in between the two.

INTRODUCTION

---FALL 1968---

While the rest of the world was worrying about the escalating war in Vietnam, social unrest on the campuses and a pivotal presidential election between Tricky Dicky and HHH, Bouton is worrying about whether he can resurect his major league baseball career. For those who aren't familar with Jim Bouton, he of the hated "evil empire" NY Yankees, 1968 was a crossroads year for him. Just 5 years earlier he was the top pitcher on the top team winning just another one of their endless stream of pennants.

Then in 1965 it all came crashing down for both Bouton and his team. The NY Yankees went from the pinnacle of sports to the poorhouse...overnight. Bouton went from being a strong armed fireballer to a sore armed firestorm. Just like that it can go away. There are hundreds of pitchers in major league history who have lost it over night like Jimbo did. His story is more compelling because he is the poster boy for the crumbling Yankee dynasty, since his decline paralled the franchises. Couple that with his anti-establishment views and he is the perfect player to point the finger out. Surely the Yankee "declinesty" didn't occur because Bouton's arm went south and 18 wins turned into 4. Add those 14 wins back into the equation and the Yankees still finish 11 games behind the pennant winning Twins. The true culprit was Yankee management. For years they were able to sign as many players as they wanted, so they didn't invest in scouting or in aggressive minor league training procedures. If one guy went down, there would be 2 behind him to take his place. By 1965 the farm had dried up and the Free Agent entry draft prevented them from signing anyone and everyone. Added to the mix was the fact that father time and injuries caught up to the great Mantle, Maris and Elston Howard. For all intents and purposes Mantle, at age 33, was done...finished...caput.

I know old time Yankee fans have a tough time coming to grips with this, but their hero (Mantle) was completely finished at a point in his career where he should have still been in his prime. Injuries coupled with his reckless lifestyle led to his fast decline. Maris on the other hand played through a ton of injuries, but became the popular whipping boy for both the media and management, not to mention the fans who still resented him for 1961. In fact the local tabloid, who were fed stories by the Yankee brass, accused Maris of "jaking it". As it turned out his wrist injury did rob him of his power, but the poor guy was still treated pittifully by the Yanks, the media and NY fans.

Bouton's best line in the intro was: "I believe that as foolish as it is, Stan Musial has more influence with American kids than any geography teacher and Mickey Mantle is more admired than our scientests". Almost 40 years ago Bouton nailed it dead on: Athletes are role models, whether they like it or not.

PREFACE

The summer of 1978 was the summer before my 13th birthday. In other words this was probably the last summer where baseball meant everything and the real world had no bearing on what happened in my day to day life. Of course that is if you don't consider baseball or pennant races part of real life. For a 12 year old male, back in the dark ages of the late 1970's, baseball WAS life. Your day started with baseball and ended with baseball. It started when the newspaper was delivered, or in my case, when you delivered it. Naturally you read the paper from the back cover on in. For all those not schooled in the art of newspaper reading, the back cover is the domain of the sports section.

The first thing one would do is look for the previous night's box score or as we called it: "the holly grail of numbers". Here is where you got to see how your team and more specifically your favorite players performed the previous day. Living in NYC, specifically the borough of Brooklyn, put you at a HUGE disadvantage. The paper of choice, NY Daily News, went to bed by around 11pm. If your favorite team's games were not completed by then you would NOT get to see a box score. Instead you'd see the the worst 5 letter combination in the alphabet next to your team: night. The translation was simple: Your team played a very long game with lots of action or they were playing on the West Coast.

I know this all seems foreign today where we live in the internet dominated era. Instead of waiting for the boxscore the following morning you can see the boxscore being updated with live feeds or watch the game itself on mlb.tv. Boy times have changed.

One thing that hasn't changed is the baseball classic Ball Four by Jim Bouton, which was truly the first adult book I ever read...if you can call the exploits of a bunch of prolonged adolescents playing a kids game for a living, adult.

When I read it the first time it was an eye opener. My real life heroes became human and not just a bunch of pictures on a bubble gum card. I remember it like yesterday when Steven Shapiro ( who left us all to early just before his 40th birthday) "lent" me the book. In our working class neighborhood you didn't exactly run out and buy your own copy. Shapiro was the first to read it, and then one by one the whole gang read it. The summer of '78 was highlighted by the great Yankee / Red Sox pennant race and a bunch of pre-teen Brooklyn ethnics doing their best to "shoot beaver".

Fast forward 30 years later and I decided to re-read this classic and see how a 42 year old kid can interpret it. To add a twist to it I decided to use Action PC Baseball to replay the actual season that it chronicled (1969). I'm excited to play the role of Joe "pound them buds" Schultz and lead the rag tag Pilots on their maiden, and as it turned out their only, voyage through the AL.

I will also be using this blog to chronicle my version of the season by doing my best Bouton imitation. Fast forward to the fall of 1968...just before the expansion draft, to begin our journey.