Goose Gossage Part II

Spring Training, 2008  In my quest to meet baseball players, I would rise at a (relatively) early hour and head out to the practice fields that flanked Legends Field.  Before I got there, I would always stop into a local diner called Mom’s for breakfast. The food is fast and good, and it is on the walk from the Days Inn that I stayed at to the stadium.

I meandered in early one morning with my wife Paige, her brother Guy and my friend Jeff.  We were sitting at a booth, perusing the menu when a very tall man with a handlebar mustache walked in alone and got seated two booths away.  His distinctive mustache is what gave him away- it was unmistakably Goose Gossage.

Since I was on my way over to Legends Field, I had a bag full of Rawlings baseballs and several pens for autographs.  I could have easily interrupted Mr. Gossage’s breakfast for his signature.  But Jeff had a better idea.  He suggested that I buy him breakfast.  After all, he had just been elected into the Hall of Fame.  Brilliant!

I grabbed the waitress and asked her if she could bring me the check for the guy sitting two booths over.  “Goose Gossage?” she asked.  I guess she realized I was a fan.  What was interesting was that nobody else in the diner seemed to notice he was sitting there all alone.  The waitress brought us his check when he finished his meal. 

A few minutes later, Jeff left our table for the men’s room.  Mr. Gossage came over to our table to thank us for buying him breakfast.  Since Jeff’s spot was vacated, we offered him a seat at our table.  Gossage joined us, and we chatted with him about his new found HOF status, and about our experience meeting him at a signing at Shoprite in NY. (For that story, see http://bit.ly/gzjM6k)

He was really awesome to talk to, sharing stories and signing a few baseballs.  It was an unforgettable experience, just hanging out and drinking coffee with a HOF pitcher and all around nice guy.  We thanked him and congratulated him one last time.

Two weeks later, I was back in NY, at a fundraiser that the Hudson Valley Renegades (Tampa Bay’s Single A affiliate) put on annually called Pitch for Kids.  I walk in with Paige and Jeff.  Who is sitting on the dais?  Goose Gossage.

He looks at me, points and says, “Where do I know you from?”  Holy crap.  He recognized me! 

“I bought you breakfast at Mom’s in Tampa.”   I explained I was from the Hudson Valley and that I go to Renegades games and events all of the time (they are a fun team to watch!).  We chatted and I introduced him to Jeff, who didn’t make it out of the men’s room in time to meet him at Mom’s. 

What I learned from this experience is invaluable: do something classy and unforgettable, and a player will remember you.  Another thing I realized was that most players are just regular guys that have extraordinary talents.  They just want to be treated like you would treat a friend (that just got elected into the Hall of Fame)!

If you liked this posting, check out my guest blog on www.allsportstalk.net with tips on how to get autographs.  The posting can be found here: http://bit.ly/fNSvpG.  

Getting Autographs from Prospects at Spring Training

Melky Cabrera signed baseball from Spring Training 2006

One of my favorite things about going to spring training is to check out the up-and-coming players, watch them develop and then see them as starting players a few years later.  I love to meet these guys before they really hit the big time, when they are fighting for their spot on the roster, when they put in some of the best effort to show off their raw talent.

Back in 2006, I was watching a young Yankee prospect, Melky Cabrera.  I had seen him make a brief appearance in the MLB the previous season, with little success.  In spring training, he seemed to have his stuff together, and was fun and interesting to watch.  I wanted to meet him.

What was interesting was that I was staying at the Tampa Bay Days Inn, a few blocks away from Legends Field (where the Yankees practice, now known as Steinbrenner Field).  So was Cabrera, along with several other Yankee prospects.  In fact, I would see him practically every day, leaving for the park and returning back to the hotel.  At night, fellow Yankee Robinson Cano would swing by, pick him up and head out to dinner.

I began to see Cabrera and company frequently, so it got to the point where I would wave hello to them.  They would wave back.  After a few days, I flat out approached them and requested autographs.

While I didn’t get a chance to really speak with any of them, it was really interesting to see how hard Cabrera and the other Yankee prospects worked.  They were up and out at around 7 am, and returned over an hour after the game.   Pretty grueling day, especially when you factor in the physical drills, performance during a game against other professional athletes, all while trying to win a coveted spot on the Yankee roster.  Yet still they took the time to sign for a fan.  Pretty cool.

The moral of the story is that prospects often are put up at the small, local hotels.  So, if you choose to stay there as well, you just might get an opportunity to know them a bit better.  Just be respectful.  Keep in mind they are on a six week job interview!

These days, I don’t get to see Cabrera play as often as I used to, since he has bounced to the Atlanta Braves and then to the KC Royals (I live in a NY market, so I don’t catch those games as often).  But when he is in town, I still feel the connection from that day at spring training – and that makes me a fan.

Autograph Seekers Tips

Since it is the season (spring training, that is), I thought I would share some inside tips on successfully obtaining autographs at training camps.  While there are always tons of people at spring training games looking to get their own piece of memorabilia, there are certain things you can do to help stand out from the crowd.  Here are the best tips to get autographs with some of the roster’s best players:

• Get to the park early.  Getting to the park several hours before the game allows you to view batting practice and gets you in front of the players at the beginning of their day when they are more likely to sign. They are often taking bp at the main ballpark (not the practice fields). They will usually come up to the fence to sign for fans.
  
• Come prepared!  Bring baseballs and several pens (they get lost or stop working so bring a few) along with a bag to hold them.
  
• If a player is signing, have the ball and pen out of the bag/box and ready to be signed.
  
• Be respectful of the player whether they sign for you or not.  Don’t heckle them if you don’t get a signature.  You might get another chance later.
  
• Always thank the player for a signature and their time.  Most players really do appreciate their fans, and probably get just as much of a thrill at meeting you as you do meeting them.
  
• I have also had a bit of luck getting autographs or simply chatting with pitchers in the bullpen area of some stadiums during the games.  Again, be polite and respectful.  There may be times where pitchers can/will chat with you, and there may be times when they can’t.  Never heckle them if they can’t talk or sign.
  
• When you have gotten an autograph, make sure you note it down.  I usually mark the box for the baseball I got signed and return the ball to that box.  This does two things: it protects the signature, which can smudge if not handled carefully, and it helps me figure out who signed the ball when I get home.  Some signatures will be almost illegible!

Most of all have fun getting autographs!  I love meeting the players and talking to them, as they all have different personalities.  The stories are worth so much more than the autograph!

Goose Gossage among the Pineapples

After meeting Joe Torre at the Bronx Zoo and his book signing in '98, I found I was definitely bitten by the autograph experience bug.  My girlfriend and I were on the hunt to find more opportunities to meet sports figures and get an idea of who they were outside of their sport.

The interesting thing is my girlfriend (now wife) grew up in Queens, and was a die-hard Mets fan.  I grew up just north of the Bronx and have always been a true blue Yankee fan.  The Joe Torre meeting was a great experience for both of us, as I knew him as the Yankee Skipper, and she remembered him fondly blowing big pink bubbles in the Mets dugout in the mid-late 70's.

I just knew she didn't follow the Yankees back then.  I was quite surprised when she informed me that Goose Gossage was going to be at a local Shoprite supermarket to do a free signing.

"How do you even know who he is?" I asked her.

"I was a Mets fan, I wasn't dead," she replied.  "I saw the sports highlight reels.  I am familiar with classic, great players."  Duhhhhhhh.....

A supermarket?  Really?!  I was reluctant, but we trudged out to Warwick, NY, a good 45 minute drive from our house.  What was the great Yankee reliever doing out there in the sticks anyway?

When we got there, we were directed to the produce department.  There, among the pineapples and grapefruits was a rectangular table and two chairs, and a line of mostly men my age with their sons.

Mr. Gossage was late to the signing, and practically ran through the store with his assistant, who was lugging a box of 8x10 photos.  He immediately apologized to the small crowd of 45 people for being tardy.

We were at the middle of the line, and probably had to wait about an hour before we got to meet him.  So I really got a good idea of who Gossage was as a sports figure. 

Gossage was actually spending a good 5 minutes with each person on the line.  He would shake hands with the adults, but he would really focus on the kids.  The amazing thing was, most of them weren't old enough to have seen him play.  But he knew most of them played the game themselves, or were fans of the Yankees.

So he would ask the kids who their favorite player was, what position did they like to play and who they admired.  He took pictures, sometimes a few at a time with them, shook their hands and told them to practice.

I don't really remember much else from that signing.  But I learned that Gossage loved his fans, and fans of the sport of baseball.  And all of that 9 years before he was voted into the Hall of Fame.


For a continuation of this story, check out Goose Gossage Part II: http://bit.ly/dLskUg

Joe Torre, 1998: The Beginning



Joe Torre and I at the Bronx Zoo, 1998



They say it is best to start at the beginning, and that would be November 1998, when my girlfriend (now wife) brought me to the first annual Bronx Zoo Christmas Lights, also known as the Holiday Lights Festival.  At the time, New York Yankee skipper, Joe Torre, was there with his wife and children to throw the switch and begin the festivities.  Dressed in a dark wool coat and a green and red elf hat, Mr. Torre made quick work of flipping the large switch that lit the festive figures.

I watched from afar as he shook many people’s hands, stopping to speak to some of the younger children that were clamoring to meet him.  His wife and two children meandered off to take in some of the scenery, immune to the excitement that meant being part of the Torre family.

My girlfriend, armed with several new Rawlings baseballs and a pen, took me over to him, introduced herself and then introduced me.  I shook his hand and handed him the ball and pen.  As he signed the baseballs, I asked him if I could take a picture with him.  An associate took the picture and that was the end of it.  Or so I thought.

A few months later, I found a local book signing for his new book, Joe Torre’s Ground Rules for Winners.  Armed with a quite unflattering photo from the zoo lights event, I grabbed a copy of the book and waited patiently on line for an autograph.  A huge sign hung next to Mr. Torre that stated, “Absolutely no autographs except for Joe Torre’s Ground Rules for Winners.” 

I walked up to Mr. Torre, leaned in and said, “I know you are not supposed to sign anything but your book, but I have a photo of the two of us from the zoo event, and I would love you to autograph it for me.”

“Pull it out quick,” Torre responded.  He looked down at the picture, glanced up at me with a huge grin and joked, “What, were you drunk or something?”

“And that hat looks so great on you,” I responded almost immediately.  He signed the photo and my book. 

Telling that story over the years made me realize something.   It isn’t simply the signed ball that sits in the case, or the autographed photo on the wall - it is the story, the memory of the meeting, the laughs and camaraderie that make the experience memorable.  There I was, an average Joe, joking around with the manager of the 1998 World Champion Yankees.  It felt good, and it propelled me from being a fan of the game, to being an autograph experience fanatic.