Elston Howard

[brian1961]

George, many thanks for treating us again to a significant player's life story. It's been a joy, though sometimes very sad and frustrating, to read of the problems the player and his family encountered along the way. Elston seems to have risen above so much of the prejudice and poor judgment against him. Then again, what would I know of how much it actually bothered him? He died so very young. Being a WASP, most of what I "know" you could stick in your eye, and not even blink.

George, the contribution I can make is a minor story. When I was a tween, my dear Dad was a motion picture cameraman for NBC News. He was sent down to Ft. Lauderdale on assignment with a crew to cover the 1966 New York Yankees in spring training. They were squaring off against their old World Series opponent, the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the eyes of NBC, that made for a good story.

Now, recall this is the spring of '66. The Dodgers are defending World Series champs, whilst the Yankees are preparing for what would be their worst season of all, finishing dead last in the AL. Their dominance had been deteriorating for several years, and now a distant memory.

Knowing my intense interest in Major League Baseball, my very busy father did what he could do to bring home his son a nice memento. He got a program, and proceeded to get several Yankees and Dodgers to autograph it. Mickey Mantle could not be approached---I vaguely recall my dad saying there was a huge crowd around him. Understand, my Dad was not a pushy, aggressive browbeater. He was somewhat shy. Now, with his job, he was aggressive, but not here. Besides, doing his job, he would have had very little time to get autographs. Thus, any autographs he got were from friendly, willing players. These Yanks signed the program---Roger Maris, Tom Tresh, and Elston Howard. George, understanding the situation as I got older, my respect and appreciation for those 3 Yankees soared. I was already a Roger Maris fan, having become a card collector in 1961....

Now as for the Dodgers, my Dad got Manager Walt Alston and Jim LeFevere to sign. If you may recall, two players were holding out at this time---Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, so they were absent from the scene. Such is life. That's OK; I understand. I'm just glad Sandy and Don got the money they deserved.

You can rest assured I hung onto that cherished program. However, sadly, when I was laid off from my job in the bad recession of 2008-09, I consigned the perfect Roger Maris autograph, along with a few other items, to help pay bills and put food on the table. Such is life, also.

So, when I think of Elston Howard, I always think first of him graciously giving my Dad an autograph, in which he brought home to me. Never underestimate what a player's willingness to give an autograph will do to the mind of a child. --- Brian Powell

[GeoPoto]

(Albert and Brian: Thank you for the kind words. And, Brian, that's a great remembrance, combining your insight into your father's likely approach to capturing mementos for his son with the openness of the players involved. I don't doubt that Elston was among the more approachable players.)

The loss precipitated major changes. Yogi Berra was fired as manager, replaced by Johnny Keane, and CBS bought the team and did nothing to improve the aging roster. Howard injured his elbow during spring training, and it worsened over the next few weeks. By April 13 it was so swollen that he couldn’t bend his arm enough to eat breakfast. Bone chips were surgically removed from his elbow and the Yankees slipped in the standings. Howard didn’t catch again until June 13 and persisted catching 95 games after his return despite the sore arm. He ended with the lowest average of his career, .233, while the Yankees went nowhere. 1966 was not much better. The arm still hurt, the now 37-year-old Howard hit .256, and the Yankees were stuck in the cellar.

[GeoPoto]

Then came 1967. The Yankees offered a $10,000 pay cut. After a four-day holdout, Howard accepted only a $6,000 cut and a clause that if he performed well, he could earn the money back. But on June 26, Rick Monday fouled a ball off Elston’s finger and his hitting suffered. On August 3, Houk telephoned to tell him he had been traded to the Red Sox. Boston was in second place at the time and, unlike the Yankees, had a chance to reach the top. Tom Yawkey called Howard to assure him how much they wanted him. Howard briefly considered retiring, but the chance to play in his tenth World Series was enticing. “If I can help the Red Sox win the pennant this year it would be the greatest thrill of my career,” he told writer Jim Ogle.

[GeoPoto]

He joined the Sox on the road in Minnesota and was greeted by manager Dick Williams, two years his junior. Elston played the next day in a nationally televised contest against the Twins. Not an auspicious beginning: He struck out with the bases loaded in the 2-1 loss. Boston mustered only three hits against Dave Boswell. Elston caught the next day, too, when Boston’s best pitcher, Jim Lonborg, took the hill. But rain cut the game short, and Minnesota won it 2-0 in five innings, as Dean Chance did not allow a base runner and struck out four. They lost again after an off day, at Kansas City, the first time they had lost four games in a row since July 9.

(This thread will now enjoy a pause.)

[GeoPoto]

The team sputtered along until August 18, when they beat the Angels 3-2 at Fenway, a game in which Howard caught Gary Bell’s complete game four-hitter. The game would be most remembered, though, for the tragic incident that shattered Tony Conigliaro’s eye socket. Perhaps inspired to win for Tony and helped by Howard’s presence, the Sox reeled off a seven-game win streak, going 14-5 the rest of the month. Eleven of the games were decided by one run. In that span they played five doubleheaders and took three of four in New York. When Howard came to bat against his former team, the Yankee Stadium crowd gave him a standing ovation, one he later called “the best ovation I ever got in my life.”

[GeoPoto]

One of the memorable moments from the stretch run came when the Sox led Minnesota by half a game on August 27. That day the Red Sox faced Chicago, clinging to a 4-3 lead in the ninth. Ken Berry, the tying run at third, attempted to score on a shallow fly caught by right fielder Jose Tartabull. Tartabull’s throw was high, but Elston leaped to snare the ball, then swept the tag down in the same motion — Berry was out, and the game was over.

[GeoPoto]

Howard’s greatest contribution to The Impossible Dream, though, may be one that can’t be measured, in his influence on the pitchers and in the clubhouse. His knowledge of the hitters in the league, his game-calling ability, and his calming presence helped the entire pitching staff. “He was like a pitching coach to Lonborg, Gary Bell, Gary Waslewski, Lee Stange, guys like that,” Reggie Smith said. “No doubt Elston helped us win it. We were a young team. Our average age was twenty-six. We needed someone like Ellie to show the way. He brought the Yankee aura of winning to the Red Sox.” The Red Sox, of course, did pull off two amazing wins over Minnesota, while Detroit lost on the final day of the season, giving Boston the pennant.