JV wrote:

artie_fufkin wrote:

Damn. 

I'm late to this wake, but...Damn. He was a favorite for as long as I can remember, which goes back to the '68 WS (I was only marginally aware of the '67 WS, when I decided I was a Cardinals fan but from which the only name I remember was that of Yaz, who was, after all, a monster that year).

Unfortunately, most of my memories of Brock were after his playing career ended. I'm too young to remember any of the three WS in which he played, and the Cardinals weren't on TV very often in the '70s. I remember watching Brock break Cobb's record, and his 3,000th hit, but not much else.  

I saw Yaz's 3,000th hit at Fenway. The Red Sox were playing the Yankees, and he hit a ground ball single past Willie Randolph. He was stuck on 2,999 for about a week, and it seemed like forever. My dad somehow got grandstand seats. I don't know how. But the Red Sox back in the day were notorious for exceeding the ballpark's capacity. According to folklore, you could get in on a standing room basis if you slipped an usher a $10 bill.

Yaz has kind faded into the background, by his own volition. If the Red Sox make it to the World Series, he'll show up to throw out a first pitch, but if he does, from what I understand his car will already be on the Mass. Turnpike by the end of the first inning. 
He's the complete opposite of Ted Williams, who really, really enjoyed his career at the Red Sox' resident talisman. 

I'm going to be curious to see what ends up happening with Roger Clemens. He's still the co-holder for the franchise record for wins, and I think most people associate him with the Red Sox, but he's been almost completely ignored post-career here. I'm sure if you asked, the Red Sox would say it's because of the steroid accusations, but there's a lot more to it than that.