Ted-I grew up in the Bronx within walking distance of Yankee Stadium. I probably saw Mantle play in person over 100 times, so my impressions are not anecdotal. I loved Berra and Skowron who I thought were clutch players. I always felt that too often in big situations Mantle struck out. Outside of baseball Mantle was a boozer and womanizer. On multiple levels, he is not the kind of player or person to idolize.
BTW, anything nice you want to say about Whitey Ford I would back up 100%. He was one of the greatest pitchers I ever saw and is and was a wonderful person off the field. He has the second lowest career ERA since the live ball era began in 1920. One of the biggest mistakes in Yankee history was not pitching Ford in game 7 of the 1960 World Series. This was after Ford had already pitched two complete game shutouts. The move also got Stengel fired.
Last edited by oldjudge; 04-16-2019 at 11:54 AM.
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