Clemente died while trying to get aid to people who desperately needed it. Factoring in the fact he was afraid of airplanes and flying over water, which is exactly the risk he took and the way he died, and the legacy he left really does go beyond the game where people try to hit a little ball with a piece of wood.
I have on CD an interview Clemente gave, before the final game at Forbes Field on June 28, 1970. Asked what he hoped to accomplish in baseball, he replied he wanted to get 3,000 hits. That is exactly the number he had when he died.
I never understood all the accolades Koufax received for refusing to pitch Game 1 of the 1965 World Series. He pitched Game 2, Game 5, and Game 7, so what difference did it make? I'm not being critical; just noting that Game 1, Game 2, they both count the same.
Koufax will be remembered as a great pitcher; Clemente as just plain great, in every single way.
And, Mary Ann. Besides being nicer she was also way cuter, even though they couldn't show her belly button.
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