BRONX, NY – The recent shocking news of the NY Mets trading fan favorite Brandon Nimmo, and then a double shock when Pete Alonso signed with the Baltimore Orioles left their fans stunned and confused. While they were saddened by the losses, their closer Edwin Diaz signed on with the L.A. Dodgers. None of those transactions will ever compare to the tragic death on Christmas Day, 1989 of the legendary Manager of the NY Yankees, Billy Martin.
I remember watching Eyewitness News 36 years ago on the night of Christmas Day, when anchors Greg Hurst and Kaity Tong reported the accidental death of 61 year old Billy Martin. The tragedy happened in Johnson City, NY where Martin’s vehicle steered off the icy road and led to his death.
All hopes of Martin coming back to manage the Yankees for the 6th time vanished that night. “Billy the Kid” had his faults, but when you’re a winner nobody cares about the demons.
Martin’s words of “I may not have been the greatest Yankee to put on the uniform, but I was the proudest,” spoke volumes. The fans fell in love with Martin’s independence from the rules and what he represented, which was freedom!
Any owner of a losing team would look like a genius when hiring Martin. He was a quick fix, and proved it with his teams turnarounds from the year before. Teams like the Twins, Tigers, Rangers, Yankees and A’s went from zero’s to hero’s with Martin leading the helm.
Next to the tragic death of our Captain Thurman Munson, Martin’s demise made it a sad day for New York.
For Mets fans, Alonso, Nimmo and Diaz will keep putting up numbers and keep cashing their checks while they create memories.
When the memories of Martin cloud my thoughts, I think of him managing in today’s game. The thought of him not being able to let his anger out on the umpires, because of instant replay reviews, would have transformed into laptops being shoved up the asses of these ANALytical geeks, whenever they approached him with their game plans.
Comment below and come back tomorrow for the inimitable Jacob Sternberg.
