The 1980's...

[Rob D.]

Originally Posted by GoldenAge50s

Anybody want to buy a stack of Andy Benes RC's?

This made me laugh out loud.

I know it won't help the value of the stack of RCs you have of him, but for what it's worth, I don't think I ever played with or against anyone who was as dominant as Benes was for about a four- to six week stretch his first year as a professional.

After he signed as the first pick in the 1988 draft he was assigned to Class AA Wichita in the Texas League for the '89 season. I played outfield (and also rode the bench) for that team, so I had a great view of just about every start he made. He was 8-4 in Double-A before being promoted to Class AAA Las Vegas and then the Padres (where he went 6-3 as a 21-year-old.) But more than his record was the way he just overmatched hitters and sometimes just seemingly toyed with them.

I can't tell you how many times I'd be in center field and Benes would get ahead of a hitter 0-2. Then he'd work on his change-up two pitches in a row, miss with those, then maybe throw a curve that would miss badly ... and then blow the poor guy away with a fastball or exploding slider. It was like he knew he could get a hitter out whenever he wanted to by going back to the good stuff. During this one stretch he won three or four starts in a row, and I think he struck out 10 more more in just about every start.

I wouldn't have blamed anyone who saw him pitch that first year for investing in his cards. Heck, one game Bill James drove from Kansas City just to see Benes pitch. (The highlight of that season for me was meeting James in the clubhouse and telling him I was a huge fan of his work. He looked surprised, then looked at my stats listed on the insert of that night's game program and said, "Hey, you've got a good secondary average.")

Benes, by the way, was a good guy, too. His nickname in spring training was "Andy Bonus," and he took it just the way you should and never copped an attitude. Probably because he knew he was earning interest.