A few thoughts on the passing of Tom Seaver ...
As the 1960s ended, while New York had its share of sports superstars, this was not the case in baseball, where greatness was most easily glimpsed during Yankees Old Timers games.
The Yankees had to brag about the next Mantle (Bobby Murcer) and a young catcher named Thurman Munson, and Mel Stottlemyre was an example of steady and quiet excellence, but that was it.
The Mets? Only one player truly stood out. He was the best ballplayer NY had. Tom Seaver.
One could sense even in 1969 that Seaver was Cooperstown-bound. To go 25-7 and excel in the age of Gibson and Marichal was something. There were pretty good Mets, such as Jerry Koosman, but there was only one great Met in 1969 ... Tom Seaver.
Although I most clearly identified as a Yankees fan, our household had none of that Yankees-Mets rivalry. My mom was a Mets fan, because she'd been a Dodgers fan (pay attention, gf!).
I even predicted that the Mets would make the World Series in our student newspaper (take note, @GregLogan1 and @OysterBayBomber) in an issue that came out just as the Mets were beating up on the Cubs at Shea.
Yes, I was a sports reporter. Kinda.
I loved watching Seaver pitch, largely because of his mechanics and because he reminded me of just how much thinking went into pitching. I was always struck by how he came out of his delivery ready to field his position.
But there were two other things about Seaver I loved.
First, he was intelligent. Very intelligent and thoughtful. Along with Bill Bradley, he stood as a role model of how smart guys who thought before they spoke could play ball.
Second, he wasn't afraid to offer his opinions on politics. He wasn't loud, but he was assertive, and he had a mind of his own.
You'll hear a lot about Seaver the ballplayer over the next several days, but I recall how on the eve of the '69 series Seaver said that it was time for the United States to get out of Vietnam.
He promised to place an ad in the @nytimes proclaiming that if the Mets could win the World Series, the United States could get out of Vietnam.
He didn't need to do that. He didn't need to risk that.
But he used his platform to express his views.
So I always thought Tom Seaver was a pretty good role model.
Coming from a Yankees fan ... well, need I say more?
#TomSeaver #TomSeaverRIP
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