My Dad took me to my first baseball game in June of 1963 because he wanted me to see Stan Musial in person before he retired. Koufax pitched that night. Musial sat. So I never saw him play. But I was fortunate to meet him several times, which was probably even better. I have the two scorecards from his 5-HR doubleheader in 1954. I went to his Stan The Man Inc. offices to have them autographed and he was there at the time. I got to sit with him for about 10 minutes while he signed and reminisced about those games. Just hearing him talk about the various at bats like they happened yesterday was an experience I wish I could have videotaped. For a lifelong Cardinals fan, it was a religious experience. "I could have had six - I pinned Mays against the wall on one of my outs." "I never tried to hit home runs but I sure did on that last at bat, and I popped up to first" and then he laughed that famous laugh. What a warm, genuine American hero. That nickname is absolutely perfect.
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