Photo of Ken Gurnick by Jon SooHoo
During my time working for the Dodgers, covering the team from the inside out, I marveled at the ease with which Ken Gurnick navigated the clubhouse.
Even though the same employer signed the players’ paychecks and my own, I often felt like an intruder. In contrast, Gurnick was part of the fabric. I recall how the longtime Dodger beat writer chatted as easily with a short-lived Dodger like Mike Bolsinger as with franchise icon Clayton Kershaw.
Mike Littwin/Los Angeles Times
It was weird enough, after the Dodgers won the 1981 title, when they split the World Series Most Valuable Player Award among three players.
It became weirder still when Bob Uecker and MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn included the wrong man, Steve Garvey, in the award presentation. It was Steve Yeager, not Garvey, who had been voted the winner alongside Ron Cey and Pedro Guerrero.
Howard Rosenberg/Los Angeles Times
Garvey expressed heartfelt gratitude for the award that he wouldn’t get to keep. Yeager, hovering in the background at the outset, eventually got to the microphone, though he is never named as a tri-MVP winner. Guerrero got a big hug from Al Campanis, but no chance to speak at all.
Enjoy the presentation above, in all its awkward glory.
By Jon Weisman
As often as the top Dodger minor leaguers get recognized for their potential, I never get tired of it …
Maybe April 15th we'll all wear #42 with this Jackie Robinson replica jersey, presented by Bank of America. pic.twitter.com/sqdhNmH7Mw
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) January 29, 2015
Wrap yourself in greatness. Get your fleece blanket, presented by Security Benefit, April 29th. pic.twitter.com/gZ3Be07iSW
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) January 29, 2015
[mlbvideo id=”37180533″ width=”550″ height=”308″ /]
By Jon Weisman
Fifty years ago today, the Dodgers signed 17-year-old Fremont High School outfielder Willie Crawford to a bonus contract worth $100,000.
That might not seem so unusual in this era of seven-figure contracts for teenage amateur ballplayers. But less than three months later, just nine days after his 18th birthday, Crawford made his Major League debut with Los Angeles.
Crawford’s signing on June 22, 1964 was headline news in the Times, which cited assistant general manager Red Patterson as saying Crawford had “lucrative offers” from 16 MLB teams. The Times added that Crawford “has been clocked in 3.1 seconds going to first base,” which would be faster than Dee Gordon on his Little League home run last week.
Dodger scouts Al Campanis, Kenny Myers and Tom Lasorda worked as a team to sign the highly prized athlete at his parents’ home, 1447 E 69th St.
Even Charley Finley, the controversial owner of the Kansas City Athletics, made a last-minute personal appearance at Crawford’s home Sunday in an effort to sign him. …
… The club said it believed this was the highest bonus ever paid a Negro. It is the second highest ever paid out by the Dodgers, Frank Howard having received $107,000.
What happens when three old friends in crisis fall into an unexpected love triangle? In The Catch, Maya, Henry and Daniel embark upon an emotional journey that forces them to confront unresolved pain, present-day traumas and powerful desires, leading them to question the very meaning of love and fulfillment. The Catch tells a tale of ordinary people seeking the extraordinary – or, if that’s asking too much, some damn peace of mind.
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