Bert Blyleven

When I think of Bert Blyleven, several things pop up.
First off, his astonishing curve ball. How anyone ever hit that is a mystery. But big league hitters can do some astonishing things in their own right. That is why they are in the majors.
Secondly, I remember Blyleven and Catfish Hunter going at it on April 18th, 1976 at Yankee Stadium, one of my most vivid memories in a ballpark.
It was my first visit to the renovated Yankee Stadium. The Yankees won on April 15 and 17th against the Twins.
On this particular Sunday though, Blyleven out dueled Hunter. Hunter was cruising until the 9th. He gave up back-to-back homers to Lyman Bostock (2-run shot to right) and Butch Wynegar, also to right, to turn a 4-2 Yankees lead into a 5-4 Twins advantage and win. They were the first career homers for Bostock and Wynegar. It was the first loss for the Yanks in the renovated ballpark, on the 53rd anniversary of the original park's opening. Blyleven got the win and Hunter took the loss. If Blyleven gets into the Hall of Fame, then it will have been a match-up of two future Hall of Famers. By the way, where was Sparky Lyle that day for the Yankees? Even though it was just the 7th game of the season for the Yankees, it was Hunter's third start and 2nd complete game. In April? Billy Martin was the manager and he was known to burn out a few arms. Just ask the starters on the 1980 Athletics (94 complete games). As a tidbit to that day in the Bronx, I sat on the 3rd base side, field level, with my mom and dad and sister Mary. The tickets cost $5.50 apiece. What will that get you at the new Yankee Stadium?
The third thing I always remember about Blyleven is that he was one of my grandfather's favorite players because he was born in Holland, as was my grandpa. My grandpa was born in Rotterdam and when you said something to him that he really wasn't interested in, he would say, "Amsterdam, Rotterdam, I don't give a damn."
One other thing I won't forget about Blyleven is when, during a Twins pre-game show on live TV, he dropped an F-bomb. He thought the segment was taped. Ooops. Actually, Blyleven is pretty darn good as a baseball analyst, f-bombs aside.
Anyway, Blyleven won 287 big league games, collected 3,701 strikeouts and was 5-1 in post-season play. He belongs in the Hall of Fame. Should have been inducted years ago. What seals it for me though with Blyleven is that he is 9th on the all-time shutout list with 60. The current active leader is Roy Halladay with 19.
Hopefully Blyleven gets the call on January 5th. My grandpa would have been happy.