OT: hit a single off the spaceman today...

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Posted By: Ben

I found out yesterday that Bill "spaceman" Lee was doing a book signing today at 3:00 at paragraph bookstore just 5 minutes from my apartment in downtown Montreal.

I went with a bunch of friends...the group I used to go to Expos games with, and played the odd game of pickup wiffle ball back when I was going to school. Bill spoke to a group of about 35 people in the back of a crowded bookstore. He talked alot and was his usual hilarious self. Talked alot of baseball, about what it was like to play in montreal when he was here in the late 70s, and endless funny anecdotes about whatever random thing he had on his mind. When questions were directed to the group, I asked a two part one...what pitcher did he enjoy watching most growing up, and what hitter lit him up most in his career. Warren Spahn and Hank Aaron, he answered. Go figure.

But the best part hasnt come yet. We coaxed Bill to come with us across the street to the Mcgill university sportsfield with my buddies and me for a few innings of wiffle-action. We used the inside of a melted out hockey rink, so the boards could be the outfield wall. A bunch of indian guys were playing a loud game of cricket to our left. There were lots of students walking by us, playing other sports, and hanging out within eyeshot by the outdoor restraunt next to the library. Bill pitched for both teams of course, tossed and talked all kinds of junk. He gave it his full effort, and could get that ball to sink though still! I made sure I got an at bat, and hit a seeing eye single My buddy Sam hit a towering blast to left right after me, and like any pitcher, Bill was not happy with that. One of my friends had a digital camera and took a bunch of pics, which i can post later...what a fun day, I thought why not share.

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Posted By: Ben

Bill serving one up to Matt


The group. I'm on the left, with my arm around my friend's girlfriend

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Posted By: john/z28jd

Thats an awesome story Ben.The closest i can come to that story is hitting a home run at a family dinner off my cousins boyfriend who played 5 years in the minors for the Dodgers and 1 year in the independant league.Unfortunately he was a middle infielder not a pitcher so its hard to brag about that. My dad struck out on 3 pitches vs Ed Halicki in a high school game once.He said he was throwing at least 15 mph harder than anyone else he faced all year

When i was in school,about 3rd grade,2 of the girls in my class were related to baseball players.One was Bill Lee,the other was Kurt Bevacqua.I was always hoping one day they would just show up and talk to the class.My senior year in high school i actually had Bevacqua's brother in law(the girls father) as my gym teacher,always tried to get him to call him.

If Kurt Bevacqua reads this board,please email me,ive been trying to meet you since i was 8 and found out you were related to people i know!!!!

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Posted By: Julie

Congrats of the hit, Ben!

Every year, Mark Macrae gathers together old time PCL players (I Mean OLD--like from the 40s and 50s) at the Oakland Museum for a reunion. Part of the program consists of three of four old guys sitting behind a table, on a stage, and just talking, and then fielding question from the audience. I'm never heard anything so funny in my life. Everyone in the audience has tears streming down their faces...not the least of our enjoyment is the willinglness of these old guys to share their experiences.

Roger Kahn reports that travelling the with Brooklyn Dodgers in '52 and '53, there was nothing like listening to players talk to each other--it was like magic.
"...but it was magic among the ballplayers. In the aisles. outaside their roomettes, you could hear ballplayer talk that was alive and rich and angry and grim ansd funny.

"If that son of a bitch Maglie throws at my head again, I break my bat across his ****ing dago head." (Carl Furillo)

" So I says to Augie Guglielmo, the little ump, "Augie, I ain't spoke to ya in two months, but I just want ya to know I still think you're horse****." (Preacher Rowe)

"Couple years ago he's in a jam and got Kiner up and he throws three of the wettest spitters you ever saw. And do you know what Kiner said after he fanned? He says, good and loud, "Your curve gets better every year." Ol' Ralph never even winked." (Carl Erskine)

"Get me some money, gonna fix up my house. You know what I'm gonna put up? A goddamn fence. ****it." (Billy Cox)


"When I was in Oakland, THERE was some ballplayers..."

Someone started to sing. The voice was twanged but warm. In the car you heard it resound:

...From the fields there comes the breath of new-mown hay; Through the sycamores the candle lights
are gleaming,
On the banks of the
Waa-bash
Far
A

Waaaay.

"The Boys od Summer," Roger Kahn.

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Posted By: Dan Koteles

I think that it is neat to have played a great game of wiffle and dared a MLB player such as the SPACEMAN to play along, how fun !!!

Thanks for the story Ben
-Dan

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Posted By: Max Weder

Ben

Nice to see the pictures from my old university, although it brought back memories of the 1979 to 1982 Expos, which are almost too painful.

Did you get a chance to ask Bill Lee about his plans to replicate Fenway Park on Vancouver Island?

Here's the link to the story in The Globe and Mail:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050409/BCBASEBALL09/TPNational/Canada

Max

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Posted By: Julie

I noticed all the BSox caps...