OT: Famous Baseball Players You’ve Seen Play In Person

[jibsey]

Famous Old Timers; Mantle, Mays, Koufax, Maris, Pedro among the best I’ve seen. Wish I saw Williams.

 

[thatguyed]

Too many to list starting about 1965. I did interview Al Kaline on the field before Opening Day in Cleveland 1973 when I worked for the Akron U. radio station.

 

[MexicoHusky]

I got into a fairly mild confrontation with Reggie Jackson at Bradley Airport

 

[XLCenterFan]

My father used to bring me and my brothers to Cape Cod League games in Orleans. The amount of pros we saw is too large to list at this point. Awesome times.

Cape Cod Baseball League - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Waquoit]

I was at Fenway Jim Rice's for first hit and Yaz' 3,000th. I was SRO for the Yaz game and when the ball became a hit I missed it because it was behind a pole. My first game eve featured two guys named Howard hitting a home run. Frank and Elston.

 

[the Q]

Clemens
Ricky Henderson
Jeter
George Brett
Kirby Puckett
Pedro
Manny
Ortiz

Saw David price pitch for team USA

Saw kris Bryant and yelich as amateurs

 

[Bezzz]

Saw Mickey Mantle Homer. I was there with my cub scout pack, I guess tickets weren't a million dollars back then. I jumped up and screamed so loud I had one of those black-out moments.

Also years later I saw Joe Pepitone flipping the bird to a heckler sitting near us. Probably late sixties, Love Joe.

 

[Viet Vet]

I grew up a NY/SF Giants fan. On September 10, 1963 my Dad took me to the Polo Grounds to see my idol Willie Mays against the Mets. In the eighth inning Jesus, Matty and Felipe Alou batted consecutively for the Giants, the first, and only, time three brothers batted consecutively in one MLB inning.

It remains one of my favorite childhood memories.

 

[Huskybass]

Tony Gwynn. What an amazing hitter he was. Unbelievable bat control and could put the ball anywhere he really wanted to as he always knew how to go with the pitch..

 

[HuskyHawk]

Yaz, Rice, Lynn, Clemens, Ortiz, Manny Ramirez, Pedro, Fisk

Guidry, Mattingly, Jeter, Reggie Jackson, Jeter,

George Brett, Frank White, Barry Bonds, too many to remember really.

 

[HuskyFich]

I'm not old. But I'm sure as hell glad I got to see Bonds and Griffey Jr.

 

[cohenzone]

Mantle, Mays, Maris. T. Williams, Jeter, Mo Rivera, , aRod, Clemens, Berra, McCovey, Cepeda. Kaline, Snider, Campenalla, Hodges. Conseco, Henderson, Brooks Robinson, Ripken, really too many to remember and any of the famous teammates of the above I’m forgetting.

I have a picture from a game I want to that had 3 potential HOFers in one shot, but the steroid business probably messed that up.
I was sitting behind 3rd base at Yankee Stadium in what turned out to be Clemens last Stadium start. I took a pic of him releasing a pitch. I didn’t notice until l looked at the pic that in the foreground were both Jeter and ARod. I think Clemens is the only top shelf starter I saw in person. Amend that. Allie Reynolds for NY vs Boston. I’m old.

Amend again. Clemente.

 

[cw00dson24]

I saw Tyler Olander pitch

 

[Waquoit]

Anyone else see Clemens that last time he pitched in New Britain? This was the AA playoffs and he looked like that kid in little league with a mustache abusing the kids that hadn't hit puberty.

 

[gtcam]

I seen so many play and met many in person, especially Red Sox because my father was close to Walt Dropo (UConn frat brother/house mate 2 years)
I talked UConn basketball on the field during pregame with Greg Maddux at BankOne (now Chase) Ballpark in Phoenix before a Braves/Diamondback game in August 2001.
I am a huge Cubbies fan so it was a thrill, but most importantly, I was wearing a UConn 1999 championship TShirt with a Cubs hat, and he wanted to talk UConn basketball. He is a college basketball junkie and loves Jim Calhoun.

 

[Hugo]

Too many to list them all, but my most memorable ones were Williams hitting a homer off Bob Feller, watching Ryne Durran (sp) warming up in the bullpen with John Blanchard as his catcher, Fisk in his final year with the Red Sox and Pedro shutting down the Tigers.

 

[Sachem]

I miss baseball so bad, summer sucks without it!

 

[UCSouth]

I'm sure most of the old timers on here saw and somehow forgot about Hank Aaron. He autographed a couple dozen baseballs for our LL All Star team. Each player and coach got one. Great memory and piece of memorabilia that I gladly passed on to my grandson.

 

[jibsey]

Saw Mickey Mantle Homer. I was there with my cub scout pack, I guess tickets weren't a million dollars back then. I jumped up and screamed so loud I had one of those black-out moments.

Also years later I saw Joe Pepitone flipping the bird to a heckler sitting near us. Probably late sixties, Love Joe.

Box seat $3.50. Reserved $2.75

 

[alexd]

Anyone else see Clemens that last time he pitched in New Britain? This was the AA playoffs and he looked like that kid in little league with a mustache abusing the kids that hadn't hit puberty.

I didn't see the playoffs, but my dad and I saw Clemens pitch AA during the summer of '83 in New Britain. We sat behind the plate with tix he got from his job at Stanley Works....All we knew was he was that kid from Texas. He ended up 7-2 that summer with a 1.33 ERA and 95 K's and 12 BB in 81 innings.

 

[Waquoit]

I saw that Righetti no-hitter. Haven't gone back since (except for a UConn FB game and that doesn't count, plus they lost).

 

[uchusky32]

Mays
Pedro
Gooden
Strawberry
Rose
Bench
Seaver
Yankees
Bonds
Ripken

Sure there's more.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

I'm 33, so my answers are going to mostly be underwhelming.

* Wade Boggs homered over my head in my first Yankees game. Pretty cool.

* Mariano Rivera is my 2nd favorite Yankee of all-time behind Paul O'Neill, but getting to watch him live numerous times is something I will always cherish.

* I remember a game where Strawberry was playing left field and these two thicc ladies ran onto the field to give him hugs. They had to be taken away and one lady eventually tazed. That last part might not be true.

* Was never a huge fan of a guy, but obviously Jeter.

* Watching Judge play is pretty special.

* For you Sox fans out there, getting to see David Ortiz play at Fenway was pretty special. I hate the Sox, but always loved Oritz as a player and as a person.

* On a totally minor note, getting to see Brendan Rodgers live in Hartford was pretty cool. If he turns into a player, it will be really special to have seen him play for our state's team. Also got to see Gleyber Torres in Trenton, which was really special.

 

[Madmannsucks]

Wow, I could not even list them. Been going to games since the early 60's. Usually a few game a year. 60's Yankee Stadium, Fenway and Shea, 70's Same plus Wrigley field and Jack Murphy Stadium. 90's, those 3 and Coor's Field. Mays, Mantle , Murcer, Yaz, Seaver, Jenkins, Banks, Billy Williams, Fisk, Reggie, Munson's 1st game. Bonds, Clemens, Griffey, Ryan, Randy Johnson, Dawson, Rivera...I have not even scratched the surface.

 

[bfs3]

Clemens, Strawberry, mo Vaughn, Cecil fielder, Bernie Williams, Jeter, nomar, O’Neil, posada, posey, Mariano, Boggs, Matingly, Cone, Cano, Soriano, Mauer, Deion Sanders, Piazza, Ichiro, Griffey Jr, Sheffield Judge,