A Tale of Two Guys Named Denny

On one of the morning TV shows today they showed the picture of a moving train. I had the sound down on the set but imagined the train whistle blowing.
Then I thought of former Major League pitcher Denny Neagle who could do a hilarious impression of a train whistle. Then I wondered if he's done that train whistle imitation lately. When was the last time? Who knows? All I know is that Neagle has vanished from sight and I speculate what he is up to these days.
When Neagle pitched for the Rockies, I was frequently in the Coors Field clubhouse getting postgame sound. Not my favorite thing to do in sports but part of the job. Neagle was always nice and cordial to me. I would watch him interact with people and he was a funny, fun loving guy. He didn't pitch all that well for the Rockies but he didn't seem to take it out on anyone else.
Then it all unraveled in November of 2004 when the injury plagued pitcher was arrested for soliciting a prostitute in Denver. He later pleaded guilty to the charge. From that point on it seems like things went downhill for the affable lefthander. It didn't help that the prostitute in question looked like an ugly, meth-addicted man. That just led to punchlines and jokes. His marriage ended shortly after and he was later arrested for DUI. I have an easier time forgiving him for the prostitute scandal than the DUI. He could have killed someone driving drunk but the incident with the prostitute didn't harm me or anyone other than his wife and family. Which is pretty bad too.
But under the assumption that everyone deserves a second chance, it would be nice if that was afforded to Neagle if he wanted to get back into baseball. I don't know where he is or what he is doing but I hope his life is back on track and that he isn't haunted by a couple of terrible decisions.
Which brings me to Denny McLain, the last 30-game winner in the Major Leagues. Unlike Neagle, McLain was a jerk when he played and a bigger piece of crap when he left the game. Gambling, weapons, associations with unsavory characters and wasted talent was McLain's legacy as a player outside of his 31-win season in 1968. Following his pitching career, McLain spent time in prison for drug trafficking, racketeering and embezzlement. After that stint in prison, he went back for pilfering 2.5 million from the pension fund of a Michigan company.
In between prison terms, McLain worked as a talk radio host, did autograph signings and endorsements and some TV work. Seems like McLain was in demand despite being a despicable human being.
Currently McLain is writing for a sports magazine in Detroit while Neagle is likely still paying the price for a couple of embarrassing and damaging transgressions.
I wouldn't want to spend 5-minutes in the company of Denny McLain. I wouldn't say the same thing about Denny Neagle.