The Come-back Cubs have won two straight come-from-behind, late-inning games from the Reds, while the White Sox lost four straight to the Astros. The Cubs were actually down 7-2 during my baseball card luncheon, but had rallied by the time I got home, after I had prematurely bashed them to my co-collectors. I don’t mind my typical lack of optimism, or being completely wrong, considering the victory – whatever it takes to get the “W!” I took home with me a like-new, vintage 1960’s catcher’s mitt endorsed by Sherm Lollar, as well as some other cool items for my collection. Plus, I added over 200 baseball cards to my collection and a foot-high autographed, cut-out of “Charlie Hustle,” gamblin’ Pete Rose. “Mini-Pete” will have to meet Yadi. (See Post #174) and pose for some photos. I last saw Yadi at last year’s All Star Game in Miami. I’m proud to say that he will be replaced this year as the starting National League catcher by Willson Contreras of the Cubs. Yadi Molina will surely be a Cooperstown inductee, while Sherm Lollar and Pete Rose are both still in the parking lot waiting for the nod. Today’s Cub victory was a result of an extra-inning walk-off WALK!
The Sherm Lollar autographed mitt is on display in my office, next to the 1950’s version of the same glove (See Post # 505). There were some Cubs and White Sox players mixed-in with the batch of 1960 Topps cards that I bought for $1 each, but no players of Hall-of-Fame stature that typically command much higher prices. I also got a copy of the book, The Grand Old Minor League, by Dick Dobbins, who identifies the book “an oral history of the Old Pacific Coast League.” I had my new buddy, 96-year old Vince Paveskovich sign one of the pages, after being introduced to him for the first time by my friend Matt yesterday. He’s as close to a Hall-of-Famer that I’ve ever met. His brother Johnny is known as “Mr. Red Sox,” and the right field foul pole at Fenway Park in Boston is named “Pesky Pole” in his honor. It’s the shortest home run in the Majors, just 302 feet from home plate, although Johnny himself, a contact hitter, only had 17 career home runs (6 at Fenway). He’s a member of the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame, who’s uniform #6 is retired in the exclusive company of Bobby Doerr #1, Joe Cronin #4, Carl Yastrzemski #8, Ted Williams #9, Jim Rice #14, Carlton Fisk #27, and Pedro Martinez #45.
The entire baseball family is from the Portland, Oregon area, but Vince “Pesky” Paveskovich has out-lived siblings Johnny, Tony, Ann, and Millie. Only older sister Catherine, who lives at Maryville Nursing Home and recently celebrated 100-years still apparently survives. Vince now lives at the Regency Park Assisted Living Facility, and greeted Matt and I with open arms. He claims that “we made his day,” but really he made ours. Matt had actually given me the book and “Mini-Pete,” both prizes he had won at the baseball luncheon. He already had a copy of the book, as a serious collector of Pacific League memorabilia, and felt no real connection to the Big Red Machine, so kindly let me keep both. He’s known and visited Vince for years, and I’m glad he took me to finally meet him. I think we’ll go back to honor his upcoming 97th birthday with beer and pizza, especially since it falls the same week as both of ours.
The picture at the top of this post shows Vince and I holding a plaque with a photo of him and Jackie Robinson as displayed in his place of honor at Regency Park. Although his hearing is impaired, his enthusiasm certainly is not. He talked about how the brothers earned their “Pesky” nick-name because of their trouble-making nature that is obviously still part of his spirit. I’m sure he’s quite the character with the care-givers, and that they enjoy his celebrity friendliness. He played four years of baseball and championship hockey at nearby Lincoln High School. He then pitched four years at the University of Portland and two years in the New York Yankees farm system, before returning to his alma mater as head baseball coach. Vince was impressed with the Oregon State Beavers “NATIONAL CHAMPS” t-shirt that I was wearing, having earned it by attending the College World Series last week. It brought back memories of his playing days in Omaha. He was also thrilled that his native Croatia had just beaten Russia in soccer’s World Cup.
Vince chuckled as he told us the story about a black childhood friend, Billy Bell, who went on to be a member of the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II. Bell was shot down over Croatia and only his familiarity with the language that he learned from Vince’s mom (words like apple and bread) ultimately saved him. Rather than executing this black stranger who somehow spoke Croatian, they put him underground and spared his life. His stories like this were charming, but his local influence as a coach, teacher, and administrator for 44-years makes him one of the most beloved sports icons of Portland. It all started when the two brothers were in grade school. Vince was bat boy for the Portland Beavers, while brother Johnny was clubhouse boy. This is why I was thrilled when he signed his autograph next to the Portland Beavers jersey in my book, but I was most impressed that he remembered the name Sherm Lollar and recognized him as a great catcher.
Thanks, Matt for a great day! It will give us all something to talk about at the next Leadership Meeting.
