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From: rossiter@cornell.UUCP (David G. Rossiter)
Newsgroups: net.sport.baseball
Subject: Phil Rizzuto
Message-ID: <3374@cornell.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 25-Jul-85 09:33:00 EDT
Article-I.D.: cornell.3374
Posted: Thu Jul 25 09:33:00 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 26-Jul-85 11:54:14 EDT
Reply-To: rossiter@cornell.UUCP (David G. Rossiter)
Distribution: na
Organization: Cornell Univ. CS Dept.
Lines: 34
Xref: tektronix net.sport.baseball:01667 

I'm not a Yankees (or even AL) fan, but I listen to at least half of their
games on the radio network, and I watch a few innings on the tube.  There are
things about Phil Rizzuto I don't like (the birthdays, whining about how bad
traffic will be after the game, etc.) but I feel that I must stand up for the
man on one count: his fairness.  I don't know where you all get the idea he is
a `homer'.  He certainly is a rabid Yankee fan, and lets you know it (the
team is often referred to as `we'), BUT he is very quick to give credit, even
lavish, to opposing players.  For example, on Tues. eve's pre-game TV show,
he said that the Royals' Bret Saberhagen was one of the best young pitchers
in baseball, and should be getting the kind of attention that Gooden has.
He raved about Buddy Biancalana's arm (in general, Phil likes shortstops, on
any team -- on many occasions I've heard him praise Ripken and Molitor).
During the game, Phil is disappointed when the opposing team does something
good, but doesn't try to minimize it.  Last night (Wed.) when Frank White and
Balboni hit back-to-back HRs in the 2nd, the phrase was `holy cow, he REALLY
creamed that ball!'.  As for calls, I've heard him say things like `I don't
know what Billy is arguing about, the replay shows he was definitely out'.
As an example from last night's game, Willie Wilson made a below-the-shoestring
catch, and Phil stated that he doubted that the ball had been caught when
the play occurred, but on the replay he saw that it was indeed caught.

I could go on in this vein, but you get the general idea.  Phil is a character
that some people have strong emotions about, but he's not a homer.  And
no, he doesn't belong in the hall of fame.

P.S. on the subject of announcers, I really like Ralph Kiner.  So what if he
is getting a bit forgetfull?  He has an excellent baseball head, and was a
truly great player.  He loves the game and gets excited about good play on
either team.  Along with McCarver, you have some genuine baseball knowledge
and two guys who can call and talk a good game.

David Rossiter / CS Dep't / Cornell University / Ithaca / NY / 14850 / USA
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