HAPPY 83RD BIRTHDAY TO THE GREATEST EVER!!

Willie Mays turns 83 on May 6, this Tuesday!! His legacy continues to grow every year!

Shortly after my arrival into SFO Airport I went to meet Sue Peterson who does fund raising for the youth in the Bay Area.
My Sports Interest Group at Sun City Grand in Surprise, Arizona raised $940 for the cause this past holiday season.
She and I had previously spoken but never met each other.
The half hour we spent was most enjoyable and she again thanked me for my efforts.

After that meeting I was given a private tour of the new Gotham Club at ATT Park on the Suite Level by Ryann Greenberg.
She is in charge of the club and recruiting members.
The two bowling alleys, pool table, and décor with NY Giants Memorabilia is amazing. There were numerous photos I had never seen before among other things.
The 1883 Theme is all over the place including the wine glasses..

I also spent time with a big time Giants Fan and supporter Annina Puccio. She is an amazing lady and we compared collectibles.

The three games were a repeat of 1954 as we swept the Tribe !
Saturday was the ring day and the Giants gave out 30,000 1954 replicas…..Amazing piece of jewelry for sure.
Saturday Night I met the grand niece and also the nephew of James DOC Crandall, a NY Giants relief pitcher from the early 1900s
We all had a great schmooze.

Sunday I again ran into Ryann Greenberg who took me to the bullpen portion of the Gotham Club.
and then the three run walk off homer by Brandon Hicks to sweep the series.

A great night was had by all as Helane & Jeffrey Rhodes discussed their father’s Dusty Rhodes’ baseball career and life before a SRO crowd at the Bergino Baseball Clubhouse in lower Manhattan. Helane provided us with a moving tribute to her dad and then she and Jeff held a 30 minute Q/A with members of the society. Jeff provided many insights to his dad and brought along many souvenirs of his father’s playing career including his NY Giants jacket.

The evening was capped off by NYGPS member Moe Resner showing the group his End of an Era DVD which he filmed as a youngster. The film is of the last game the Giants played as the NY Giants on September 29, 1957. The quality is exceptional!! Moe explained how he made the film and then answered many questions.

Thanks go out to the entire Rhodes Family including Dusty’s grandchildren and wife, Mimi, who were also in attendance, Jeffrey and Helane Rhodes, Moe Resner, and our most gracious host Jay Goldberg, owner of the Bergino Baseball Clubhouse. If any basbeall gifts are need for the upcoming holidays, Jay is the guy to contact.

Here is the podcast from our recent meeting with guest speakers Helane & Jeffrey Rhodes, Dusty Rhodes’ children, and NYGPS member Moe Resner. Enjoy!! Thanks always to Jay Goldberg, owner of the Bergino Baseball Clubhouse.
http://berginobaseballclubhouse.podbean.com/2014/04/14/ny-giants-preservation-society-event-with-the-children-of-dusty-rhodes/

The NY Parks Department informed me that a dedication will be taking place this Spring. Here are some very recent shots. Work appears to be totally complete.

Ladies/Gents, Our 2nd meeting of the year will be taking place on Thursday, April 10th, at 6:30PM at the Bergino Baseball Clubhouse. We will have 3 speakers that night. The first part of the program will have Helane and Jeffrey Rhodes speaking about their beloved father Dusty (James Lamar). They will share memorabilia and stories about #26. This is the 60th anniversary of Dusty’s clutch 2 home runs during the sweep of the Tribe, the Giants final World’s Championship in NY. The second part of the program will highlight Moe Resner and his video, The End of an Era which is a video of the last game the NY Giants played at the Polo Grounds in 1957. This should be a wonderful event. If you would be kind enough to email me your intentions please do so ASAP, so as Jay Goldberg can invite some of his people if there is room. Any questions regarding the clubhouse can be found here.

From Grizzlies Website:
May 17 Fresno Grizzlies vs. Albuquerque Isotopes

Both the Fresno Grizzlies (Giants) and Albuquerque Isotopes (Dodgers) will be wearing 1954-inspired jerseys of their parent club. All game-worn jerseys will be auctioned off after the game to benefit a select charity.
1954 New York Giants World Series Replica Ring
Add a little gold in your life by picking up a 1954 New York Giants World Series Replica Ring. The giveaway will be handed out to the first 7,000 fans through the gates!

Lester Lee Layton (November 18, 1921 – March 1, 2014)was an American professional baseball player. An outfielder whose pro career extended for 11 seasons (1944–1954), He appeared in 63 Major League Baseball games for the 1948 New York Giants.

John Elvin Harshman (July 12, 1927 – August 17, 2013) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played from 1945 through 1960. He played for the New York Giants, Chicago White Sox, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, and Cleveland Indians. Harshman pitched for the 1952 NY Giants.

THE TWENTY-NINE SURVING MEMBERS OF THE NY GIANTS
■Joey Amalfitano 1954-55 B:1/23/1934
■Johnny Antonelli 1954-57 B: 4/12/1930
■Jackie Brandt 1956 B: 4/28/1934
■Ed Bressoud 1956-57 B: 5/2/1932
■Pete Burnside 1955, 1957 B: 7/2/1930
■Foster Castleman 1954-57 B: 1/1/1931
■Gil Coan 1955 B: 5/18/1922
■Ray Crone 1957 B: 8/7/1931
■Alvin Dark 1950-56 B: 1/7/1922
■Joe Garagiola 1954 B: 2/12/1926
■Billy Gardner 1954-55 B: 7/19/1927
■Harvey Gentry 1954 B: 5/27/1926
■Monte Irvin 1949-55 B: 2/25/1919
■Joe Margoneri 1956-57 B: 1/13/1930
■Willie Mays 1951-52, 1954-57 B: 5/6/1931

■Windy McCall 1954-57 B: 7/18/1925
■Mike McCormick 1956-57 B: 9/28/1938
■Charlie Mead 1943-45 B: 4/29/1921
■Stu Miller 1957 B: 12/26/1927
■Mario Picone 1947, 1952, 1954 B: 7/5/1926
■Ron Samford 1954 B: 2/28/1930
■Red Schoendienst 1956-57 B: 2/2/1923
■Daryl Spencer 1952-53, 1956-57 B: 7/13/1929
■George Spencer 1950-55 B: 7/7/1926
■Wayne Terwilliger 1955-56 B: 6/27/1925
■Ozzie Virgil 1956-57 B: 5/17/1933
■Bill White 1956 B: 1/28/1934
■Al Worthington 1953-54, 1956-57 B: 2/5/1929
■Roy Wright 1956 B: 9/26/1933
Monte Irvin is the oldest living member of the New York Giants (95), while Mike McCormick (75) is the youngest.

What a session as SF Giants Executive and NYGPS Member Magowan reviewed his life as well as his ties to the Giants. He told us about his love affair with the Giants as a boy which led him and his group to purchase the team as a man and keep it in SF when it appeared they would be leaving the Golden State. He talked about the 45 second deal to get Barry Bonds in 1993. He also told us he had Willie Mays and Bobby Thomson sitting next to him on the last day of the 1993 season in hopes of the win they needed to get the pennant. Peter said the 1993 team was the best he can remember. He fielded questions as well. In the audience were NYGPS Member 1957 NY Giants Bat Boy Ed Logan Jr. and the mom of Rich Aurilia who lives in Sun City Grand. A great day for sure!!

Great new book by John Rosengren on the famous baseball brawl involving Hall of Fame Juan Marichal drafted by the NY Giants.

One Sunday afternoon in August 1965, on a day when baseball’s most storied rivals, the Giants and Dodgers, vied for the pennant, the national pastime reflected the tensions in society and nearly sullied two men forever. Juan Marichal, a Dominican anxious about his family’s safety during the civil war back home, and John Roseboro, a black man living in South Central L.A. shaken by the Watts riots a week earlier, attacked one another in a moment immortalized by an iconic photo: Marichal’s bat poised to strike Roseboro’s head.
The violent moment–uncharacteristic of either man–linked the two forever and haunted both. Much like John Feinstein’s The Punch, The Fight of Their Lives examines the incident in its context and aftermath, only in this story the two men eventually reconcile and become friends, making theirs an unforgettable tale of forgiveness and redemption.
The book also explores American culture and the racial prejudices against blacks and Latinos both men faced and surmounted. As two of the premiere ballplayers of their generation, they realized they had more to unite them than keep them apart.

Looks like a great new book by author Dan Fost. I spoke to him yesterday and he is real good guy. Hopefully he will speak to our group at some point this year. Book coming out next month. Here is the synopsis of the book

A beautiful illustrated celebration of all the players and moments that have brought success to the Giants baseball team on both coasts for the past 130 years.

From their origins as the New York Gothams in 1883 through numerous dynasties as the New York Giants and up to the most recent championship run in San Francisco, the Giants franchise has established a winning tradition that stretches back well over a century. Taking the reader through this incredible legacy, The Giants Baseball Experience provides fans with a unique season-by-season look at the team’s full history. Author and longtime Giants fanatic Dan Fost presents season profiles exploring the most memorable moments, the leading individual performances, the top off-field stories, and the key statistical accomplishments for each year. In addition, he includes feature articles highlighting the franchise’s prominent players and managers throughout the dynasty, the ballparks that the Giants have called home—including icons like the Polo Grounds and AT&T Park—and the fascinating characters, wacky stories, and distinctive traditions that have defined Giants baseball for so long. Illustrated with both vintage and contemporary photos and accompanied by a rich collection of rare memorabilia and a range of detailed stats, The Giants Baseball Experience provides the full understanding of what it means to be a true fan of the San Francisco Giants.