Cub Fans Bid Lou Adieu

Lou Piniella, then 66, retired ten years ago today after nearly four years as manager of the Cubs. Piniella’s experience with the Cubs was bittersweet, which was more than many of his forerunners (whose experiences were only bitter) could say.
    

LOU PINIELLA

 

On the plus side, Piniella became the first skipper to lead the Cubs to back-to-back postseason appearances (in 2007 and 2008) since the immortal Frank Chance did so in 1906, 1907, and 1908. And he tried, at least, to establish a general atmosphere of accountability that was often lacking for the “lovable losers” of seasons past.

    Alas, like his immediate predecessor Dusty Baker, whose tenure also began with a bang, Piniella’s stay with the Cubs ended with a whimper. Or maybe it was a yawn, given the dismal performance of the 2010 club, which had lost 20 of its last 25 games when Piniella cut bait. He had planned to retire at the end of the season anyway but accelerated the timetable so he could return home to Tampa and care for his 90-year-old mother, who was ailing. “I cried a little bit before the [final] game,” he said. “This will be the last time I put on a uniform.”

 Fifty-one years ago, it was a different story. Then Piniella was coming, not going. After getting one at-bat for Baltimore in 1965 and five for Cleveland in 1968, Piniella found himself in 1969 with the Seattle Pilots, a first-year expansion club that soon flew to Milwaukee and became the Brewers. This period of Piniella’s career is colorfully recalled in Jim Bouton's classic book Ball Four.
     Bouton’s first interaction with Piniella took place when he phoned the latter to enlist him in a player strike that was being planned. “I reached Lou in Florida,” Bouton wrote, “and he said that his impulse was to report, that he was scared it would count against him if he didn’t, that he was just a rookie looking to make the big leagues and didn’t want anybody to get angry at him. But also that he’d thought it over carefully and thought he should support the other players and the strike. So he was not reporting.   

     “That impressed the hell out of me. Here’s a kid with a lot more at stake than I, a kid risking a once-in-a-lifetime shot. And suddenly I felt a moral obligation to the players. I decided not to go down [to spring training].”         

     The work stoppage was soon averted, and the players reported for duty. At camp, Piniella was not called “Sweet Lou,” as he was in later years. He was “Red-Ass Lou,” as fired up as they come. Pilots manager Joe Schultz, a crusty old-timer, took an instant and intense dislike to him. “[Piniella] says he knows they don’t want him,” Bouton wrote, “and that he’s going to quit baseball rather than go back to Triple-A.” 

     Piniella was indeed sent to the minor leagues, but he didn’t quit. Just days after being farmed out, he was traded to the Kansas City Royals, the American League’s other first-year expansion club, where he not only earned a starting job but won the Rookie of the Year award to boot. He played five seasons for the Royals and 11 more for the Yankees before embarking on a 23-year managerial career.
     

Piniella won two World Series as a player (1977 and 1978) and another as a manager (1990). His encounters with umpires in the latter role will be featured on highlight reels for years to come. When he was planning a particularly strenuous argument, Piniella would spin the bill of his cap around like a catcher, so he could get to within inches of the umpire without touching. His dirt-kicking and base-tossing efforts brought fans to their feet and gave him a workout, “It’s a wonder I didn’t pull a groin or something,” he said. 

     When it was all said and done, Piniella had spent four decades doing something he was deeply passionate about, making a very comfortable living in the process. He will most likely be elected to the Hall of Fame some day. It is certainly true of Piniella, as is said of so many baseball lifers, that he loved and respected the game. But what set Piniella apart from many of the others was that he so obviously enjoyed it as well.

'Twas Fifty Years Ago: Chicago Sports Memories of 1970

On January 7, 1970, the Blackhawks’ rookie goalie Tony Esposito blanked the Detroit Red Wings 7-0 at the Stadium. The Hawks were now 16-15-5 for the season, just one point ahead of last-place Toronto and eight points behind fourth-place Detroit for the final playoff spot in the NHL’s powerful East Division (in those days, the “Original Six” clubs were all in the East, while the six three-year-old expansion teams were in the West).

TONY ESPOSITO

     In early February, defenseman and captain Pat Stapleton was lost for the season with a knee injury. General manager Tommy Ivan soon acquired veteran defenseman Bill White from Los Angeles to fill the void. White’s debut with the Hawks on February 21 was a memorable one, as it featured Bobby Hull’s 500th career goal. By the end of February, the Hawks’ record stood at 32-20-7. A playoff berth was all but assured, and the Hawks were aiming higher by now.

     The Blackhawks rampaged through March at 11-1-2, and ended the regular season with back-to-back wins over Montreal that not only clinched first place for the Hawks but eliminated the Canadiens from the postseason. It was a bitter pill for Montreal, winners of four of the past five Stanley Cups—and the team that had let Esposito get away on waivers.

     The Hawks swept Detroit in the first round of the playoffs (winning each game 4-2), and then were swept themselves by the Boston Bruins, who went on to win the Stanley Cup. Despite the rough landing, the future looked bright. Superstars Hull and Stan Mikita were still in their prime, rookies Keith Magnuson and Cliff Koroll were here to stay, and Esposito was on his way to the Hall of Fame. The man who was now called “Tony O” had set a record with 15 shutouts, won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year and the Vezina Trophy as outstandining goalie, and finished second to the immortal Bobby Orr for MVP honors. “He is the guy we’ve rallied around,” said center Pit Martin. “I don’t think there has ever been a goaltender with a season like the one he’s had.”

 

The Cubs came into 1970 with their core group of players still intact but smarting from their epic late-season collapse the year before. They settled into first place on April 21 and stayed there for two months, until a 12-game losing streak in late June bounced them down to fourth. 

ERNIE BANKS

     General manager John Holland brought in some reinforcements, acquiring starting pitcher Milt Pappas on June 23 and first baseman/ outfielder Joe Pepitone on July 29. Journeyman outfielder Jim Hickman had a career year, while third baseman Ron Santo and starting pitchers Fergie Jenkins, Ken Holtzman, and Bill Hands were typically solid. Left fielder Billy Williams had his best year so far, with career highs in runs, hits, home runs, and runs batted in (he was runner-up to Cincinnati catcher Johnny Bench in MVP voting). “Just write his name in the lineup,” second baseman Glenn Beckert said of Williams, “and watch him hit.”

     The Cubs crept back into contention as the season wore on, finding themselves only a game and a half out of first place as late as September 19. Things went south thereafter, and they ended up five games behind the division-winning Pittsburgh Pirates by season’s end. 

     Ernie Banks provided a highlight when he clouted his 500th home run on May 12 at Wrigley Field. It was a prototypical Banks homer, a low line drive about halfway up the bleachers in left-center field. Unfortunately, it was a dreary day, and only 5,264 showed up at the Friendly Confines to witness the historic blow. The Cubs couldn’t draw flies for most of Banks’s career, so it’s safe to say that few, if any, other players in baseball history performed so well for so long before so many empty seats as Mr. Cub.

 

In only their fourth season of existence (having joined the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1966), the Bulls stamped themselves as a team on the rise in 1969-70. Their fiery young coach Dick Motta got the team to play his kind of basketball, which meant going all out all the time—especially on defense. His main man was guard Jerry Sloan, who emerged as the team’s heart and soul. “It took me about ten minutes to recognize he was very special,” Motta said. “There weren’t too many players who had his intensity.”

JERRY SLOAN

     In addition to Sloan, the Bulls’ key players were forwards Chet Walker and Bob Love, guards Clem Haskins and Bobby Weiss, and center Tom Boerwinkle. “Boerwinkle really set the whole Motta program up,” said Sloan, “because of his ability to pass the ball.” The Bulls were 17-18 for the season when they lost Sloan to a knee injury on December 19, 1969. Sloan returned to the lineup on January 24, 1970, but was able to play only eight minutes before going on the shelf again until February 20. In all he missed 29 games, during which time the Bulls went 12-17.    

     After Sloan came back for good, the Bulls clawed their way to a playoff berth by winning 10 of their last 16 games. Although the Bulls finished just 39-43 and lost four out of five playoff games, they knew that better days were ahead. As Motta left the locker room after the last playoff game, he said, “I wish the season started all over again tomorrow.” The Bulls won 50 or more games in each of the next four seasons and sent the turnstiles spinning at Chicago Stadium.

 

By winning their first two games in 1970, the Bears exceeded their win total for 1969. Alas, they dropped seven of the next eight, and that was all she wrote. The Bears finished 6-8. Their defense was all right for the most part, but the offense left a lot to be desired. Quarterback Jack Concannon completed just 50 percent of his passes for 2,130 yards, throwing 16 touchdowns and 18 interceptions.    

DICK BUTKUS

     The Bears rushed for only 1,092 yards as a team. Ross Montgomery led the squad with 229 yards, followed closely by Don Shy (227) and Ronnie Bull (214). The great Gale Sayers, attempting a comeback from the devastating knee injury he suffered the previous year, played in just two games—carrying the ball 23 times for a total of 52 yards. 

     The lone bright spot on offense was wide receiver Dick Gordon, who caught 71 passes for 1,026 yards and 13 touchdowns. Not surprisingly, he was named first-team All-Pro and invited to the Pro Bowl. Perhaps it goes without saying that middle linebacker Dick Butkus was as ferocious as ever. It was his sixth year in the league, and he was a Pro Bowler for the sixth time and first-team All-Pro for the fourth time. Two other Bears went to the Pro Bowl—veteran punter Bobby Joe Green and the electrifying kick returner Cecil Turner.

 

The 1970 White Sox started off badly and got worse as the season progressed. They dropped five of their first six games and went on from there. At no point in time were they at or above .500. Their best month was August, in which they won 12 and lost 18.

TOMMY JOHN

     The Sox had some good players who had reasonably good years, but there were not enough of them. Mainstays included starting pitcher Tommy John, reliever Wilbur Wood, shortstop Luis Aparicio, third baseman Bill Melton (who set a new franchise record with 33 homers), and catcher Ed Herrmann.

     The club finished 56-106, achieving their low-water marks for both games under .500 (50) and games behind the division leader (41) on the last day of the season. Perhaps more alarmingly, they drew fewer than 500,000 fans to Comiskey Park. A doubleheader on September 21 attracted a “crowd” of only 672. A single game two days later drew 693.

     Fortunately, things were about to pick up. The buoyant Chuck Tanner was hired as manager late in the season. The next year, he and pitching coach Johnny Sain converted Wood into a starter, and Wilbur became a major star. Also on the horizon was the arrival of the one-of-a-kind broadcaster Harry Caray—whose presence would ensure that even if the Sox were bad, they wouldn’t be boring.

 

In Memoriam, 1970

·       Paul Christman, 51, Chicago Cardinals quarterback 1945-1949, NFL champion 1947.

·       Ripper Collins, 66, Cubs first baseman 1937-1938.

·       Paul Edmondson, 27, White Sox pitcher 1969.

·       Jimmy Conzelman, 72, Decatur Staleys halfback 1920; Chicago Cardinals head coach 1940-1948, NFL champion 1947; Hall of Fame 1964.

·       Chick Gandil, 82, White Sox first baseman 1910, 1917-1919, world champion 1917; reputed to be a ringleader of the “Black Sox” scandal of 1919.

·       Lefty Leifeld, 87, Cubs pitcher 1912-1913.

·       Sonny Liston, 40(?), won world heavyweight championship at Comiskey Park in 1962 and lost it to Muhammad Ali in 1964.   

·       Jakie May, 74, Cubs pitcher 1931-1932.

·       Johnny Mostil, 74, White Sox outfielder 1918, 1921-1929.

·       Lou Novikoff, 54, Cubs outfielder 1941-1944.

·       Brian Piccolo, 26, Bears running back 1966-1969 and the subject of the unforgettable TV movie Brian’s Song.

·       Mike Rabold, 33, Bears guard 1964-1967.

·       Dave Robertson, 81, Cubs outfielder 1919-1921.

·       Charlie Root, 71, Cubs pitcher 1926-1941, winningest pitcher in Cubs history and the man who gave up Babe Ruth’s “called shot” in 1932 World Series.

·       Ray Schalk, 77, White Sox catcher 1912-1928, world champion 1917; White Sox manager 1927-1928; Hall of Fame 1955.

·       Clark Shaughnessy, 78, University of Chicago head football coach 1933-1939; Bears defensive assistant coach 1951-1958, Bears defensive coordinator 1959-1962.