04/25/24
March 19, 2005
Roberto Alomar retires: after making two errors in a spring training inning. "I had a long career, but I can't play at the level I want to play, so it's time to retire."
posted by DrJohnEvans to baseball at 03:47 PM - 18 comments
Alomar's legacy was tarnished, however, when he spit in the face of umpire John Hirschbeck in 1996 while with Baltimore. While he will get plaudits for the great plays he made, I'm afraid most folks will remember him by the above incident.
posted by roberts at 05:53 PM on March 19, 2005
Next stop Hall of Fame? Certainly should be the case.
posted by holden at 08:12 PM on March 19, 2005
No barrier between him and the Hall of Fame is occurring to me, apart from time. There are some nice reminiscences over at Batter's Box.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 08:32 PM on March 19, 2005
He'll likely be remembered in Toronto as a player that may be the best to ever wear a Jays uniform. Hmmm...I think Roger Clemens gets that honour. As for non-pitcher, it's a tough call between him and Carlos Delgado (for accomplishments while a Blue Jay), but I wouldn't argue against someone choosing either one of them. He should be a first-ballot HOF'er. few will ever forget his home run off Oakland closer Dennis Eckersley in that series. It was the moment when Blue Jay fans realized that, yes, they COULD win the World Series. To this day, any time I hit a home run in a video game, I mimic that exact move he did after making contact (arms straight up, index fingers pointing straight up).
posted by grum@work at 12:52 AM on March 20, 2005
Catch the taste!
posted by smithers at 12:17 PM on March 20, 2005
Jays have had several players who are Hall of Famers who did great things in Toronto -- Paul Molitor, Dave Winfield, Roger Clemes ... hell, even Ricky Henderson -- but deservedly none wore-or-will-wear a Jays cap to a Cooperstown induction. Here's hoping Alomar becomes Toronto's first. When Alomar hit that dinger off Eckersley, best Thanksgiving Day present ever. (That would be a Canadian Thanksgiving ... our whole family was eating turkey in front of the box and erupted when he took it downtown, and yes, it was the moment when most fans, and perhaps the p,layers themselves, believed the hoodoo was off the Jays back and a World Series was inevitable, it gave the Jays all the momentum they needed. As big as that homer was, it was soon relegated to #3 on the Jays all-time list. 1. Joe Carter off Mitch Williams, 1993 World Series. 2. Ed Sprague off Jeff Reardon, 1992 World Series. 3. Roberto Alomar off Dennis Eckersley, 1992 ALCS.
posted by the red terror at 12:18 PM on March 20, 2005
smithers> Oh brother, those McCains commercials, were they lame or what?! (Mind you, has there ever been a McCains commercial that wasn't awful??)
posted by the red terror at 12:55 PM on March 20, 2005
Aw man, does this mean that Kenny Williams can't trade for Alomar again at the trading deadline? Well, at least we still have Carl Everett.
posted by apeiam at 12:58 PM on March 20, 2005
Well, at least we still have Carl Everett. Don't the White Sox already have Carl Everett? Are they going to trade with themselves?
posted by grum@work at 03:56 PM on March 20, 2005
I have heard some calling him the best defensive 2b man ever. While thats a stretch, he deserves to be in the Hall. He had a nice long career. He was a solid offensieve player and very good with the glove..
posted by daddisamm at 09:46 PM on March 20, 2005
I have heard some calling him the best defensive 2b man ever. I think that distinction goes to Bill Mazeroski, probably one of the worst-hitting non-pitchers in the Hall of Fame. The only reason he's in there is because of one HR and years of spectacularly solid fielding.
posted by grum@work at 11:25 PM on March 20, 2005
Alomar was one hocked loogy and 30 trades from being remembered as one of the greats at his position. I'm glad that he and Hirshbeck got over that ugly incident and his comments about the man's son.
posted by rcade at 08:01 AM on March 21, 2005
I think that distinction goes to Bill Mazeroski, probably one of the worst-hitting non-pitchers in the Hall of Fame. The only reason he's in there is because of one HR and years of spectacularly solid fielding. I agree, that was the talk on ESPn this weekend. There were other good fielding 2b like Richardson and Morgan among others....
posted by daddisamm at 08:47 AM on March 21, 2005
Don't the White Sox already have Carl Everett? Are they going to trade with themselves? That does put a wrench in things for sure, but I am fully confident that Kenny Williams will manage to somehow get rid of Everett in order to pick him up again. It must happen. I'm starting to look forward to it every trading deadline.
posted by apeiam at 01:38 PM on March 21, 2005
Count me as a huge Robbie Alomar fan - depsite not winning an MVP (I believe he was a top five guy a couple of times) I think he was arguably one of the best players period in the game from the early 90s to the end of the decade. He was a six tool guy. Too bad he never saw 3000 hits - but I don't think there's much of an arguement against him being a HoFer. And yes, he should go in as a Jay - the first legit one to do so.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 07:48 AM on March 22, 2005
Also don't discount Alomars glove when compared to Mazeroski, Alomar played on some mean carpet, which Bill never had to. Well, at any rate he was the best I ever saw.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 12:03 PM on March 22, 2005
Oh, one more thing - funny Alomar story. He lived where he played at the Skydome Hotel and I now a girl who slept with him. Apparently, mid-coitus Alomar leaps from the bed and stands straight up, looks at the girl and says "Admire my penis."
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 12:07 PM on March 22, 2005
Local interest added to the AP feed by The Toronto Star: He'll likely be remembered in Toronto as a player that may be the best to ever wear a Jays uniform. The San Diego Padres traded Alomar and Joe Carter to the Blue Jays for Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez in a famous December 1990 deal that put Toronto over the hump. He was the MVP of the 1992 American League Championship Series, and few will ever forget his home run off Oakland closer Dennis Eckersley in that series.