Friday, December 28, 2018

#78T - Billy Martin


What a card: Billy Martin returned to manage the Yankees for the fourth time, replacing Yogi Berra who was fired a month into the 1985 season. But by the time this card came out, Martin had been fired again and replaced by Lou Piniella.

My observation on the front: It's an interesting dugout shot although there's a lot of dead space at the top. I guessed that the person next to Martin was Jeff Torborg, not even knowing whether Torborg was a coach during the 1985 season. Sure enough, he was.

More opinion from me: I experienced all of Martin's hirings and firings with the Yankees. It was all very bizarre and by the time Martin was hired a third time by the Yankees, I couldn't take the team seriously anymore. When George Steinbrenner hired Martin a fourth time, well it was certain: the Yankees' owner was insane.

Something you might know: Martin managed the Yankees during five separate stints, his final one coming in 1988. He was rumored to be returning for a sixth time in 1990 but died after a car accident on Christmas afternoon in 1989.

Something you might not know: Martin died in a hospital (Wilson Memorial) in Johnson City, N.Y., where both of my brothers were born.


My observation on the back: Martin is listed as taller than I thought he was. I thought he was no more than 5-9.

The blog wants to speak now: The Music category is updated.

1 comment:

Rob said...

I can't even imagine a dude like Billy Martin in 2018.