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..you share it with Mookie Betts, the best outfielder developed by the Red Sox since Jim Rice, but was deemed too expensive for Fenway's future. Instead, after a trade and contract extension, he now stars for the Dodgers. After a terrific 60-game first season in L.A., he's made the last two NL all star teams, and finished 2022 with a career high 35 home runs for the runaway NL West champs.Bud Daley pitched well for some lousy Kansas City A's teams in the '50s, but battled injuries after being traded to the Yankees. He did have one shining New York moment -- working the last 6-2/3 innings, and earning the win in the fifth and final game of the 1961 World Series.
Jose Cardenal spent 18 years in the majors, most notably for the 1970s Cubs. The Cuban expat (and cousin of A's star Bert Campaneris), also coached for Joe Torre with the Cardinals and Yankees -- where he earned rings as 1st base coach for the 1996, '98 and '99 champs.
Evan Longoria, the Rays' longtime "Face of the Franchise," was cashed out by Tampa Bay for a quartet of prospects (none of whom panned out) after the 2017 season -- just before his numbers began to slip. Age and injuries cut into his production since he began calling Oracle Park home. Not sure how much of a market he'll find as he enters free agency this winter at age 37.And we remember:
Charlie Fox played just three games with the 1942 New York Giants -- going 3-for-7, leaving him a lifetime .429 hitter -- and then spent the next three decades in the organization, highlighted by a five-year stretch as manager. His 1971 Giants -- with future Hall of Famers Mays, McCovey and Marichal -- won the NL West, but fell in the NLCS to the eventual champion Pirates.
Chuck Klein, a .320 lifetime hitter who spent most of his career with the Phillies. Playing in an era when uniform numbers didn't have the historic or marketing significance they do now, Klein wore 1, 3, 14, 26 and 29 at various times at Baker Bowl and Shibe Park.The club posts a stylized P in his honor near markers for Ashburn, Roberts, Allen Schmidt, Bunning, Halladay and Carlton. His Wall of Fame plaque -- placed between those for Robin Roberts and Del Ennis -- tells his story to fans born decades too early to have seen Klein homer four times in a game, win four home run titles, the 1933 NL batting title or the 1932 NL MVP. Cooperstown finally welcomed the Indianapolis native in 1980 -- but he never lived to enjoy the moment.
Chuck's health declined just a few years after his playing days ended. He died young, in 1958 at just 53, so baby boomers and fans whose Phillies experience began at Veterans Stadium never got to meet him or cheer for him.
Saturday... a player you've likely never heard of, but deserves a shout out:
Gosuke Katoh spent most of nine years in the minor leagues, the first seven in the Yankee organization, where he was a second round pick. Finally making his big league debut this year, he lasted just eight games with the Blue Jays before being DFA'd and joining the Mets Triple A club at Syracuse. My image came from the season's final game on September 28th. It takes a lot to put up with almost a decade of life in the minors; for that alone the California native deserves to share this page with a star such as Mookie Betts and a Hall of Famer in Chuck Klein.
Then Sunday, a Mets free agent signing who paid off in 2022:
Starling Marte helped the Mets hold first place in the NL East for most of the season. Batting second behind Brandon Nimmo, he helped energize the top of the Mets order with speed (18 steals), power (16 homers) and an average close to .300. His importance was underscored by his absence in September after a broken middle finger; while sidelined, the Mets were overtaken by the Braves and will begin the post-season this weekend with the hope that Marte can return and contribute.
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