Larry Jansen, 89, 1920-2009 Two Time 20 Game Winner For the New York Giants

Two-time 20 game winner Larry Jansen passed away October 10, 2009 at his home in Oregon at the age of 89. MLB.com reported an article announcing Jansen's passing which featured remembrances from Cy Young Award winners Gaylord Perry and Mike McCormick, who received tutelage from Jansen while he coached the Giants from 1961-1971. Jansen pitched 8 seasons with the Giants from 1947-1954, recording the win in the infamous 1951 "Shot Heard 'Round The World" game between the Dodgers and Giants where Bobby Thomson homered off of Ralph Branca to put the Giants into the 1951 World Series. Jansen resurfaced briefly with the Reds in 1956 and continued to pitch until 1960 with Portland of the Pacific Coast League.

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Humberto Robinson | Panamanian Pitcher Who Paved The Way For Mariano Rivera, Dies At 79

While Mariano Rivera is closing the door on games for the Yankees during the 2009 postseason, a tribute must be paid to the man who opened the door for Panamanians to play in Major League Baseball. Humberto Robinson was the first Panama native to play in the major leagues, making his debut with the Milwaukee Braves in 1955, posting a 3-1 record in 13 games that season. Robinson went on to pitch in the majors again in 1956 and then from 1958-1960 with the Braves, Indians, and Phillies. He also made multiple appearances in the Caribbean Series representing Panama, including the final one in 1960.

Sadly, Robinson passed away in a Brooklyn, New York nursing home on September 29th, 2009, after a long battle with Alzheimer's.

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Robinson's death was almost exactly 50 years after his brush with a gambler's attempt to fix a late season game in 1959 while pitching for the Phillies. Robinson was approached by Harold Friedman, a former operator of a Philadelphia night spot. Friedman reportedly offered Humberto $1,500 to throw the September 22, 1959 game against the Cincinnati Redlegs. Robinson refused Friedman's proposition, which was made at a hotel the day before the game.

"I didn't want to talk about it," Robinson said.

He confided his secret with teammate Ruben Gomez, who advised him to report the situation to manager Eddie Sawyer. Robinson remained quiet, but Gomez went to Sawyer during the fifth inning of the game. Robinson performed beautifully, pitching seven innings, striking out five while only giving up three hits. He also hit a double and scored the first run of the game. He was later congratulated by Commissioner Ford Frick for quickly reporting the attempted bribe. Friedman was sentenced two-to-five years in prison for trying to fix the game.

While you are watching Rivera pitch his way into the record books this October, envision a similarly lanky Panamanian in Robinson who displayed integrity in the face of corruption and endured hoards of racial taunts to pave the way for other Panamanians to flourish in the major leagues.

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Don Thompson, 85, former Brooklyn Dodger, 1923-2009

The Asheville Citizen-Times reported former Brooklyn Dodgers and Boston Braves outfielder Don Thompson passed away September 28, 2009 in Asheville, North Carolina after an extended illness. Thompson was originally signed by the Boston Red Sox as a pitcher in 1943, and pitched exclusively for four seasons until injuring his arm. During an April 2009 interview with Thompson, he recounted his transformation from a pitcher to an outfielder.

"I started out as a pitcher, but I hurt my arm," Thompson said. "I was in the Red Sox organization at that time with Louisville, and they sent me down to Roanoke. My arm got better but I stayed in the outfield. That’s when St. Louis drafted me (1948). I went to Columbus. I stayed as an outfielder. I didn’t have any desire to pitch."

Even though Thompson was a full-time outfielder, Brooklyn Dodger manager Charlie Dressen would often call on call on him when they were facing a tough lefty.

"Dressen, whenever we had a left handed pitcher pitching against us, he’d want me to throw batting practice to help the guys get ready. I still didn't want to pitch."

Once in the Cardinals organization, Thompson was immediately promoted to the AAA level, and sharpened his skills by playing two years of winter ball in Cuba under the watchful eye of Mike Gonzalez.

"The first year my manager was Mike Gonzalez," he said. "I played for Havana. Mike was an old catcher for St. Louis. I was playing in the International League with Rochester. After the 1949 season, he called me to come to Havana for the Winter. I went to Cuba, played for Havana the first year and then Almendares the second year. It helped me a great deal. I was already in shape going into Spring Training. It was sort of a circus down there. They really played hard and expected a lot out of the players."

Thompson's big break with the Dodgers came during the winter of 1949 when he was traded from the Boston Braves to the Dodgers for the legendary Sam Jethroe.

"I played against him in the International League. He was as fast as everyone said he was."

He entered a crowded Dodgers outfield, but managed to stick with the team for three seasons.

"We had seven left fielders in Brooklyn in Spring Training. I opened the season both years (1951 and 1953) in the starting lineup. I was a left-handed hitter, and Dressen, he was playing right-handed hitters against left-handed pitchers and switching things around. He had a platoon going. I wasn’t much of a hitter, but I was a very good fielder and I had good speed."

His defense played a memorable role in the 1953 World Series when he threw out Billy Martin at the plate in Game 4 after replacing Jackie Robinson in left field. During the aforementioned interview, Thompson clearly recounted how the inning unfolded.

"Clem Labine was pitching, he came in for relief. Martin was on second base with two outs. Mantle hit a line drive over Pee Wee’s head. He was hitting left-handed, so I was playing him a little around towards right. He hit the line drive and of course Martin took off, there being two outs. Anyway, I saw Martin running, [3rd base coach] Frankie Crosetti was waving him home. I looked up and I turned it loose. Billy Cox let it go or it would have hit him right in the head. It was about that high. Campy had him by several feet. Martin bent over and tried to knock Campy down. Campy sidestepped him with the ball in his mitt, hit him under the neck and turned him a flip. That was the last out of the game. I replaced Jackie Robinson both games. He could handle the outfield pretty well, but he wasn’t used to it."

Thompson retired after the 1954 season, but it wasn't before he had another brush with greatness. During most of the 1954 campaign, he played with Montreal. Under his wing was a 19-year-old outfielder from Puerto Rico by the name of Roberto Clemente. Thompson knew that the Dodgers had a gem on their hands as soon as Clemente hit the field.

"He worked out with me in center field to start," he said. "He had a great arm and he could hit; he hit a lot of bad pitches, like Berra, over his head. He was a wild swinger, but I could tell he was going to be a good ballplayer. I think he got a bonus of $25,000 from the Dodgers. They were trying to hide him. He was eligible for the big league draft. They knew that if they didn’t take him on Brooklyn that he would possibly be drafted. I knew he was going to be great. Roberto had a temper at times, but got along with us well."

After the 1954 season, Thompson returned to Asheville and effectively retired from baseball.

"I had an older brother in Asheville who had a Dodge / Plymouth franchise and I went into the automobile business. I stopped playing baseball completely after that."

He later became a real estate agent and one of the founders of Preferred Properties in Asheville. He was inducted into the Brooklyn Dodgers Hall of Fame in 1997.

Don Thompson avoiding the tag of Ted Kluszewski

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Billy 'Benny' Felder, 84, Negro League Shortstop, 1925-2009

Former Newark Eagles and Indianapolis Clowns shortstop Billy "Benny" Felder died at his Tampa home Friday October 2, 2009. He was 84.

Felder became the shortstop for the Eagles at the start of the 1946 season after the departure of future Hall of Famer Willie Wells to Baltimore, putting him behind Leon Day during his opening day no-hitter in 1946 against the Philadelphia Stars.

Billy Felder 1946 Newark Eagles

Day's no-hitter foreshadowed what was to come, as the Eagles won the Negro World Series that year, defeating the Kansas City Monarchs in seven games. Felder told me that being on the field for that no-hitter and winning the World Series were his two proudest moments in baseball.

Felder played in the Negro Leagues from 1946-1948, spending the 1946 and 1947 campaigns with the Eagles and 1948 with the Indianapolis Clowns. As the doors to the major leagues started to slowly open to African-American baseball players in the early 1950s, Felder found his opportunity playing with Key West in the Florida International League in 1952 and Pampa of the West Texas-New Mexico League from 1953-1954. He finished out the 1954 season with Artesia in the Longhorn League. During the 1953 and 1954 seasons, Felder posted averages above .300.

Felder was part of a 2007 tribute to the Newark Eagles at Newark Bears and Eagles Stadium. The tribute was done by the Newark Historical Society, where during that day, streets in Newark were named after prominent members of the Newark Eagles. The Newark Bears inducted Hall of Famers from the Eagles into their Ring of Honor and the four members of the Newark Eagles threw out the first pitch at Bears and Eagles Stadium. Felder was honored along with Hall of Famer Monte Irvin, James "Red" Moore, and Willie "Curly" Williams.

Below are photos of Felder throwing out the first pitch, as well as another of him seated alongside the aforementioned members of the Eagles. The last photo is of Felder and myself at his Tampa home in August of 2008. We spent about 30 minutes talking baseball before my return flight home. He was extremely gracious and humble. May he rest peacefully.

Felder (far right) throwing out the first pitch at Newark Bears Stadium in  2007 / N. Diunte

Felder (far right) with Williams, Moore and Irvin in 2007 / N. Diunte

Benny Felder receiving honors at Newark Bears stadium in 2007 / N. Diunte

Felder (right) with author in 2008 / N. Diunte

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Review of the 3rd Annual Sports Angels Inspiration Awards Dinner Honoring Rod Gilbert

This Wednesday evening brought a packed house to Cipriani's on Wall Street to support the Sports Angels Foundation. Over 30 tables were filled with supporters of the charity to raise money for local youth sports programs in need. Former New York Ranger and Hall of Famer Rod Gilbert was honored with the Inspiration Award for his work with the Garden of Dreams Foundation. Receiving the Community Award was Bobby Hoffman for his efforts with Manhattan Youth Baseball.

The emcee for the event was NY1 anchor Jessica Abo. Abo managed to keep the crowd entertained in between guests and crowned Gilbert with the new position of goalie. A true gentleman, Gilbert took it in stride, and Abo showed a sense of humor by being able to laugh it off after some gentle ribbing by former New York Giant Howard Cross (who was playing the role of auctioneer). Cross did an excellent job of getting the patrons to open their wallets in support of the night's cause. His constant reminders of, "look at me, not her!" had a lot of the men upping the ante on their bids despite the urgings of their wives. Former Brooklyn Dodger and Sports Angels Board Member Ralph Branca briefly addressed the crowd and led the singing of God Bless America.

A touching moment during the evening was when the crowd was addressed by members of the Inner City Scholarship Foundation. The three basketball players were in a middle school league that was a recipient of a Sports Angels grant. They expressed their gratitude for the opportunity the grant had provided them to compete and learn about the aspects of teamwork and sportsmanship.

The event proved successful for the Sports Angels Foundation, showing that even in a tough economy, there are still many out there interested in supporting initiatives to keep children involved in sports. For further information on how you can support Sports Angels, please go to their website www.sportsangels.org

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