Latest / Retro Sports Radio: Classic Games from History / 1948 • Baseball Clip • Dizzy Dean & Lefty Gomez - Radio

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1948 • Baseball Clip • Dizzy Dean & Lefty Gomez - Radio · Retro Sports Radio: Classic Games from History

• 0:00
  This is Retro Sports Radio. Visit RetroSeasons.com for more sports history.
• 0:07
  Dizzy Dean, brought to you by the makers of Johnson's Wax for car news.
• 0:13
  A wax fortified auto polish that cleans and polishes your car in one easy application.
• 0:19
  My goodness, Frank, do you mean I'm going to be on NBC Air a Saturday afternoon to talk about baseball?
• 0:25
  That's right, Diz, and I'm going to tell the folks about Johnson's car news, auto polish that really...
• 0:30
  Let's get going, let's get going. Boy, I'll tell you a story that I'll never forget about Charlie Grimm.
• 0:34
  Well, now just a minute, Diz.
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  Do you have another one about Frankie Freese? I'd like to tell that story.
• 0:37
  Well, just a second, now...
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  Let me tell you something about Lefty Gomez, the New York Yankees.
• 0:42
  Well, okay, go ahead. You've got me going.
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  Well, Frank, Lefty Gomez was pitching a ball game against Bobby Feller in 1936,
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  and in the seventh inning the Yankees were leading 2-1. They had 65,000 people in the grandstands.
• 0:54
  And the Yankees, naturally, being out in front, they start stalling for time, trying to get it to get darker,
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  and they could win the ball game 2-1.
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  And summers behind the plate, the umpire says, come on, let's play ball. I'll call the game when I think it's too dark.
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  So Gomez, being the next batter, he's reached over to Joe McCarthy, the manager of the Yankees, and says,
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  give me a match. I'll fix that umpire. So he took a match in the bat and walked up to the plate.
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  And he struck the match as he walked into the batter's box, and boy, I mean the summers.
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  The umpire summers really like to blue his top. He stepped out from out of the plate, and he says, Lefty says,
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  don't show me up in front of all these 65,000 people. He says, you can see that ball. And he says, I can see it.
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  He says, don't try to stall like that. Gomez stepped out of the batter's box and he says, Mr. Sommers, I tell you,
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  I can see the ball all right, he says, but I want to be doggone sure a feller can see me.
• 1:42
  Okay, it is. That's well. But I'd like to tell one more.
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  Well, now, just a minute. Hold it if you will, please. We've got to go through a little warm-up on this first program
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  before you start pitching him so fast. Folks, this is Frank Eschen.
• 1:55
  I want to tell you a little more about this program, what you can expect each Saturday.
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  You see, I've known Dizzy Dean for years. I've seen him pitch some of his great games.
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  I've worked with him here in St. Louis, where he made his name with the great St. Louis Cardinals.
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  Every Saturday afternoon, Dizzy Dean will bring back to life immortals of the diamond in his anecdotes of his baseball career.
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  He'll answer questions from the mailbag, telling of colorful incidents in baseball in which he has played such a rich part.
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  He'll have advice for the young Americans who want to become big leaguers,
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  and Dizzy really knows what it takes to make the big league great.
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  Boys who play in church leagues, municipal leagues, or small town sandlots will be interested deeply in counsel from the colorful Dizzy Dean.
• 2:37
  Dizzy will take the two leagues apart and put them back together again in his inimitable way as the pennant races progress.
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  There'll be hot off the wire news. There'll be stories about the heroes who are making the baseball news.
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  And by the way, Dizzy, do you think you'll have any trouble talking 15 minutes every Saturday?
• 2:53
  Frank, if somebody don't stop me, I'll be talking an hour and 15 minutes.
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  You know, Frank, I'm something of a veteran in this area of broadcasting business.
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  You're almost a 10-year man, eh?
• 3:02
  That's right, Frank. I've done the Cardinals and Browns, and right now I'm broadcasting flavor play on the Browners in St. Louis.
• 3:08
  And brother, I'm glad they've changed the rules since I started this broadcasting business.
• 3:12
  Well, what do you mean, Dizzy? Change the rules?
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  Well, maybe, Frank, I should say I'm glad there ain't no wartime rules to worry about no more.
• 3:19
  You know, when the war was on, I was a little new on the job, and the rules were strict.
• 3:24
  There was a game in St. Louis, and rain began to fall during the game.
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  And you know how it was during the war? You couldn't say nothing about the weather in St. Louis.
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  Farfair, it might change the military situation at Ashen or Iwo Jima.
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  Go ahead, that's all right.
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  But there was a long interruption this day, and my partner, Johnny O'Hara, finally got tired of talking and says,
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  Diz, here's the mic. It's all yours.
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  Well, I talked as long as I could about what a close game it was and how maybe play would resume pretty soon.
• 3:55
  And then finally I says, folks, I can't tell you why this game's been held up, but if you just stick your head out the window, you can soon find out.
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  Diz, you always did have a reputation for getting yourself out of a tight spot.
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  Right now I'm going to put you on the spot.
• 4:10
  What's next, Frank?
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  Well, we've got the mailbag. You know, when folks heard that you were going to do this program for Johnson's Carnu, the mail started pouring in.
• 4:18
  That gave us an idea. Every week we're going to answer some of those letters from the mailbag, and here's your first request.
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  Al Brennan of Chicago wants to know what game you look on as the biggest in your whole baseball career.
• 4:32
  Well, Frank, I certainly appreciate that letter, and there's a lot of games I can look upon as big games.
• 4:37
  I got a lot of thrills in the game of baseball, but the greatest thrill I ever got was in 1934 against the Detroit Tigers.
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  We won the pennant that year for the Cardinals and went into the series, the underdog, to defeat the Tigers.
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  Well, they had fellows like Gerringer Greenberg on the ball club, and when we got through with them, you know what I call them, the pussycats, not the Tigers.
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  And I think that was the greatest thrill I ever got due to the fact it was the seventh and final game of the series to see who was going to be the champions of the world.
• 5:08
  And I was fortunate enough to pitch that ball game and beat Detroit 11 to nothing, winning the championship.
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  Then the saddest game I believe I ever lost and the toughest game I ever lost, Frank, was about three or four years later.
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  I hurt my arm in between 34 and 38, and I was sold to the Chicago Cubs for $185,000 and four ball players and with my sore arm.
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  I was just thinking if I'd had a good arm, I wonder what I'd have brought.
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  No telling, Biz, no telling.
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  Well, anyway, I was over there, and we won the pennant that year, and I was pitching the second game against the New York Yankees.
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  And in the eighth inning, I had them beat three to two, and Kross said he came up the plate and hit a three and two pitch into the left field seats for a home run and beat me four to three.
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  Well, I didn't have a thing on the ball, and it was a lot of difference throwing that nothing ball up there in 38, and it was that far ball in 34.
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  And I was taken out of the ball game, and Gabby Hart was our manager that year, and I went over to the dugout and I really felt sad, Frank.
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  And the fans in the Chicago ballpark, something like 45,000 people, stood up and cheered as I left the mound, and when I started going to the dugout, you could hear the pin drop.
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  I finally went in the dugout, in the clubhouse, and the fellow I saw up there first was a grand old man of baseball, Connie Mack.
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  He put his arms around my shoulder, and I sort of felt a little better.
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  He says, Son, he says you pitched a great ball game out there with what you had on the ball.
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  He says, at one game, I'd like to see you won, although it was against our American League club.
• 6:39
  It is everybody was pulling for you in that game.
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  Well, in between those great games, you had the reputation of being something of a problem child.
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  I know, for example, that you gave Frankie Frisch some very anxious moments.
• 6:50
  Oh, I guess me and Paul was famous for that, all right.
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  Speaking of Frankie Frisch, it reminds me of that time when he was giving us pitchers a few instructs in the clubhouse before a game in Brooklyn.
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  In fact, it was a doubleheader in Brooklyn, Frank.
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  And Frankie was one of the greatest second baseman in the game, you know.
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  Well, he was talking there telling me how to pitch to Tony Cuccinelli and Linus Fry and Sam Leslie and Ralph Ball and all the other Dodgers.
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  And I gave him an argument on every one.
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  Finally, I said, let's stop this silly business, Frank.
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  Don't you think it's kind of silly for ordinary second baseman like you to be telling a great pitcher like me how to pitch to anybody?
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  Well, Frank almost had a stroke.
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  He told us to go out and pitch the way we wanted.
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  He didn't care if we did get our ears pinned back.
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  And the rest of the story is that I pitched a three-hitter that afternoon.
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  Nobody gets a hit off me till the eighth inning with one or two out.
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  And then my brother Paul goes out and pitches a no-hitter.
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  That was in that second game, and that was a lot of pitching that day, Diz.
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  Yes, Frank, that story makes me think it's about time for me to give a little advice to them high school and San La pitches all over the country.
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  Ain't it, Frank?
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  Well, before you do that, it's my turn, Diz.
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  I have a little advice to give.
• 8:01
  Here it is Saturday afternoon.
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  Tomorrow is the Fourth of July.
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  And the most sensible thing a man can do before the sun goes down is to give that car of his a Sunday shine with Johnson's Carnu
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  so that his car will be a sparkler instead of a dud in the Fourth of July parade.
• 8:18
  There's just no sense in anybody driving around on any Sunday in a car that's dull and shabby
• 8:23
  as long as you can keep your car shiny and new-looking with one easy application of Carnu.
• 8:29
  Just rub it on and wipe it off.
• 8:32
  Carnu takes off all road grime, bugs, oil, tar, tree sap, everything water won't touch.
• 8:39
  Carnu is wax fortified.
• 8:41
  It puts a showroom shine on chrome and body that'll make your family or your girlfriend proud to take that Sunday ride with you.
• 8:48
  So give your car a Sunday shine with Johnson's Carnu.
• 8:52
  Rub it on, wipe it off.
• 8:54
  It cleans and polishes in one easy application.
• 8:58
  How about that, Mr. Dean?
• 8:59
  Frank, you certainly said a mouthful, brother.
• 9:01
  And speaking of mouthfuls, you're going to have to unload a mouthful of advice to young pitchers.
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  Okay, Frank.
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  Boys, this part of our program is specific for the boys.
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  But I want fathers and big brothers to listen, too.
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  It's a little advice to boys who want to be pitchers and who hope someday to reach the major leagues.
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  The reason I want the fathers and brothers to listen is so they can help the boys pitch or remember what I'm telling them.
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  You know, when I was a boy, Frank, I didn't have the chances that the young boys today have gotten.
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  And when I broke in to baseball, we didn't have a lot of baseball parks all over the country.
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  We didn't have big league.
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  I didn't have big league pitchers and players to tell me what to do and how to take care of myself.
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  And I just like to say to the young boys that's breaking in today is don't throw too much.
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  In other words, don't pitch too much.
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  Do a lot of running.
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  Keep your legs in shape.
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  And always get three to four days rest.
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  In other words, just rest after you pitch a ball game and then do a lot of running in the outfield.
• 10:02
  Well, some of those star kid pitchers like to pitch every day, and that's bad, isn't it?
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  Yes, a lot of young pitchers, it's a star on a ball sub.
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  The other boys come around and pat him on the back and says,
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  Johnny, you've got to pitch for us tomorrow.
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  After pitching today, you've got to pitch the next day.
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  They want their best pitcher to pitch because them kids are all left to win, which is a very, very good thing.
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  And another thing for the young pitchers is to never throw curves.
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  Now, I'm talking about boys from 9 to 15 years old.
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  Don't start throwing curves at young because the curve balls will come later.
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  And it's not hard to throw a curve ball when your arm is strong and it's developed.
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  Just take the ball and throw nothing strictly but fast balls and work on control.
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  And as I said a minute ago, the curves will come when you develop ready for the big leagues.
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  And the third is warming up properly.
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  When you're out there on the mound starting a ball game, you must have 15 minutes of warming up before starting.
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  You walk out there and start lobbing the ball to the catcher easily,
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  gradually increasing the speed of the throw as the 15 minutes goes by.
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  And then the last three or four pitches you must grab back and throw the ball and you know you're in shape then,
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  you're loosened up, and then you can go out and pitch your regular turn.
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  And that way you'll never hurt yourself.
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  Well, it is in order to sum up for these young pitchers, suppose we do it this way.
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  Number one, don't pitch too often.
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  Get plenty of rest between games.
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  Don't start throwing those curves too soon.
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  And in the third place, warm up properly before you pitch any game.
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  And next week you'll have some fine advice for young catchers.
• 11:42
  Right now, Diz, what does the big league show look like to you today?
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  Well, Frank, I've been asked that question all over the country in the last couple of months.
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  And right now I want to say that the moment Bob Lemon of the Cleveland Indians,
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  who pitched a no-hitter Wednesday night, is the hottest thing in the American league, in fact, in either league.
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  But I want to say don't get discouraged because you ain't having no luck.
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  Bob Lemon started out as a third baseman.
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  He fumbled grounders and couldn't hit.
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  They tried him in the outfield, but they were scared he'd get hit on the head.
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  That was just two years ago.
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  And now Bob Lemon is top man on the pitching staff.
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  It includes none other than Bobby Fowler himself.
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  The Indians in athletics is hanging on to the top spot in the American league right now.
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  But watch the Yankees in red socks.
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  They're moving up, folks.
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  And I figure they'll be fighting for first place after it gets good and hot.
• 12:35
  But what a year.
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  Whoever figured the athletics on the 3rd of July would have won more than any other club in the league.
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  They won 42 ballgames more than any other club in either league.
• 12:48
  The dogfight goes on in the National League, too, with the Pats, the surprise ball club so far.
• 12:54
  A lot of people asking about managers.
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  Well, Billy Southworth is the manager of the year right now.
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  He's rebuilt that second base combination around second and short.
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  And the club's getting double plays now.
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  And brother, our pitcher loves to see them things.
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  They really take you out of trouble.
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  I hate to see little Joe Garagiola leave the Cardinals, too.
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  He's been sent to Columbus.
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  But that's what happens when a boy brought up too young.
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  Don't try to get into the majors until you're ready.
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  Well, that's fine, dear, and more of that big league picture next week.
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  Right now there is just one more thing I have to take up with you.
• 13:33
  Your old friends, the Missouri school teachers, are after you again.
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  Have to have them in the audience, Frank.
• 13:38
  Yes, but one of them has written you a very sharp note.
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  What does she say, Frank?
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  Says she's been listening to you this summer and she thinks you haven't changed a bit.
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  What does she mean, I haven't changed?
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  Well, she says you still say ain't.
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  How about that?
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  Well, Frank, all I can say is that, is what my old friend Will Rogers told me one time.
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  He said a lot of folks don't say ain't ain't eatin'.
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  So I'm going to keep on saying ain't and keep on eatin', brother.
• 14:07
  And we hope, ladies and gentlemen, that you will keep on listening to Dizzy Dean each Saturday at this same time.
• 14:13
  Brought to you by Johnson's Carnu, the auto polish that cleans and polishes your car in one easy application.
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  Music