Orlando Peña At least a couple of sportswriters have attempted to come up with the number of teams that Orlando Peña played for throughout his baseball career. Best guess, adding up his years in the American major and minor leagues plus steady appearances in the Cuban and Venezuelan winter leagues and that still-unconfirmed number easily climbs above 30 teams. Lucky for us that the Peña parade included a pass through Rochester! He first pitched and played ball in the little town where he was born, St. Mary’s, in the Southern part of Cuba, not far from Victoria de las Tunas. Orlando remembers that an early pitching paycheck was for three dollars a day, plus the use of a room and free movie tickets to go to the theater. One of his first managers nicknamed him Guajiro or Farm Boy. “Who isn’t a farm boy in Cuba?” Peña asks when interviewed late last year, soon after celebrating his 82nd birthday. “After so many years, I’ve forgotten the names (of his baseball towns),” he laughs. “You know, I’m really 55 now because I don’t count what I played in Cuba!” Scout Paul Florence signed the right-handed Peña for the Cincinnati Reds in 1955. (Florence was the starting catcher during the Wings 1930s powerhouse clubs and elected to the Wings Hall of Fame in 2005). At 24 years old, Orlando won his major league debut August 24, 1958 at Los Angeles’ Wrigley Field. Eight years in the Reds organization included AAA stops in Havana and Jersey City. And after two years with Toronto of the International League he was picked up by the Kansas City Athletics. Although getting plenty of work in KC’s pitching rotation from 1962-65 (starting 82 games, finishing 20), the team wasn’t known for its hitting support. Peña led the American League with 20 losses in 1963 but also tossed three shutouts- 8th-best in the circuit. He also was errorless in the field, best for AL pitchers. The next year he fanned 184 batters, ranking 6th among hurlers but also surrendered the most home runs (40). During Peña’s stay, Kansas City floundered in the standings, never closer than 31 games back and either first or second in leaving the most men on base. The Athletics were then owned by the outspoken and outrageous Charlie Finley who delighted in challenging baseball tradition. Finley experimented with orange baseballs, a mechanical rabbit that popped up behind the umpire to deliver baseballs, and an air compressor to blow dust off home plate. He was the first to outfit his players in white shoes and mustaches. But he was also instrumental in adding the designated hitter and World Series night games. “He would trade people left and right- a disaster sometimes,” remembers Peña. Finley despised the New York Yankees and their home field’s short right field distance of only 296 feet. So Charlie brought one of KC’s fences in to the same 296 from the plate. But major league baseball forced him to change it to the league’s new-team minimum of 325- a “blast” that was taken advantage of more by the visiting teams. “Against the Red Sox, one of the best games I ever pitched,” Peña recalls. “And I threw a 2-2 change to (Carl) Yastrzemski and he popped it up. The second baseman went to look for it.. and the ball was a home run. I cussed Finley out that day- all in Spanish!” In 1966- now as a bullpen reliever, Peña went on to Detroit, then Cleveland and Pittsburgh over the next few seasons- including stopovers in minor league cities. In 1971, Peña was signed by Baltimore to player-coach for the Florida State League’s Miami Orioles. Helped by soon-to-be-Wing Jim Fuller’s record 33 homers, and Peña’s 8 wins and .070 ERA the “Baby Orioles” won the championship. The 37-year old graduated on to Rochester in July, went up to Baltimore for five games, then was sent back to the Red Wings. Orlando got into 11 games for pennant-winning Rochester. His record was 2-1 with 5 saves and an ERA of 2.45. The Wings of 1971 are considered by many as our greatest-ever Rochester club, led by the International League Manager of the Year, Joe Altobelli. Hitting stars included Bobby Grich (’71 MVP, All-star and led league in hitting at .336 and home runs, 32), Don Baylor (All-star and hit .313, 20 HR, team-leading 95 RBI and 25 SB), Sam Parilla (.333, 11 OF assists) and Rich Coggins (.282 , 20 HR, no.2 on the team for hits 151, runs 107, doubles, 22 and stolen bases, 17. Defensively, .Jim Hutto, Johnny Oates and Mike Ferraro were part of the best fielding team in the IL. The pitching staff was headed by Roric Harrison (15-5) named the year’s Most Valuable Pitcher and league leader in strikeouts (182). Ray Miller (11 saves) was a player/pitching coach. Bill Kirkpatrick was 11-10. John Montague (8-6), George Manz (8-5), Mickey Scott (9-1) and Fred Beene (7-1) all supported the league’s No. 2 ERA of just over four runs a game. The Wings beat Syracuse in round one of the playoffs and took on Tidewater for the Governor’s Cup. Peña started the first game and was knocked out of the box by the Tides who romped, 12-1. But Orlando rebounded in the deciding game five. With Rochester ahead 8-5 in the 7th inning, Peña was brought in with the bases loaded and two outs. He induced a ground ball to get out of the inning, then allowed two singles the rest of the way to send Rochester into the Junior World Series. The Wings next battled the American Association champion Denver Bears. Because of scheduling conflicts in Denver, all of the best-of-seven series games were slated for Silver Stadium. Peña didn’t pitch in game one of the Series, won by Rochester, 8-5. On the afternoon of game two Orlando learned that his father had passed away. But he told Wings Manager Altobelli that he’d be willing to pitch- and did so- saving the contest with a perfect two innings to close out the 6-4 victory. “When I came into the game,” Pena recalls, “Bobby Grich said ‘Win it for your father.’ And I went out there very determined.” Peña left for Miami the next day but returned for game six. He told a reporter that he explained to his wife, “Baseball is my business. I want to go back.” Orlando pitched one inning and gave up a run as Denver knotted the series at three games apiece. The final game seven was witnessed by 9,043 fans at Silver Stadium. In the eighth inning and Rochester leading 8-5, Wings starter Fred Beene gave up consecutive hits with no outs. Altobelli went out to the mound and called for Peña. “I felt very comfortable with him, a darned good relief pitcher,” Alto says of Peña. “And he could hold a club at bay. You knew you were in the hunt once you brought him in.” The Bears scored a run but no more. Orlando finished off the eighth and ninth innings saving the Red Wings win- and championship. Orlando’s signature pitch was the fork ball. It differs from a split-fingered fastball in that the ball is jammed further between the index and middle fingers. Says Bill Kirkpatrick: “My hands were too small. Peña, he could take a softball and spread his two fingers around. The ball wobbles when it gets to the plate, the bottom would fall out, a helluva pitch. Control was the key- he could throw it for strikes. Even if they hit it, they’d hit ground balls.” Peña’s big year of 1971 wasn’t over yet. He went on to play for the Venezuelan Winter League champions, so he ended up receiving playoff money that season from four different leagues: FSL, IL, AL (voted a post-season share by the Orioles who lost the World series to Pittsburgh) and VWL. Peña was undefeated with Rochester in 1972 at 7-0 and an ERA of .096, earning a return to Baltimore the next year. He finished his major league baseball career with visits to St.Louis and California. At 45-years old he played one game for the Miami Amigos in the Inter-American League, striking out four with one earned run. In the late 1990s Peña was approached about helping out on radio broadcasts targeting the Cuban community. Today he’s still a part of "Al Duro y Sin Guantes" (Hitting Hard without Gloves) on Radio Marti, headquartered in Miami, Florida. The Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB) oversees Radio and Television Martí, providing the people of Cuba with interactive news and information programs. Visit www.martinoticias.com for program information and podcasts. “It wasn’t easy in the beginning,” says Peña. “But I put some questions together that had been asked of me before. The director called me and asked if I wanted to keep doing that, interviewing Latino ballplayers, making commentary and talking sports. And I’ve been doing it ever since. I love it, I love my work. It’s like playing ball. If you love it, you consider yourself fortunate.” Peña, on the influx of Cuban ballplayers in the US: “The raw material has always been there but not a development for a professional future. Prohibitions and politics make it impossible for the Cuban ballplayer to get out.. there are cases of players being banned or mistreated. There’s no payoff, no ascension so it doesn’t matter if they bat .250 or .300. But here (US) they realize that you can come here, hit .280 and make 10 million dollars.” Today Peña lives in Key Biscayne, Florida and enjoys watching his grandson play baseball. He still gets mail and up to 20 requests for autographs each month. Peña’s major league totals/notes: 427 games, 56-77, 3.71 ERA, 1202 innings pitched, 818 strike outs… gave up Reggie Jackson’s first ML hit, a triple… was an accomplished barber and regularly clipped Boog Powell and Brooks Robinson… had success vs Berra (0-7, 3 k’s), Clemente (0-4), Bench (1-7), Carew (0-5), Hodges (3-14)… with KC, hit grand slam home run off Claude Osteen: “And I started running like a mad man. By the time I got to second base I realized that I had hit it out. My wife was at the stadium, she was in her last trimester and she started jumping up and down and got so excited they had to take her into the hospital. But she didn’t give birth yet- that happened a month later. On July 4th my son was born Orlando Peña Jr. so we almost had him that night at the stadium!” With the Red Wings: nicknamed “Poppa”; arriving in Rochester at age 37 was just two years younger than Manager Altobelli (Joe and Orlando played winter ball together). “But they know Poppa can pitch pretty good,” Peña explained to a reporter… Kirkpatrick on Peña: “Helpful to younger pitchers and a very good competitor. He didn’t play the ‘big league’ stuff- like some guys do. He was down to earth, a team player all the way.”... Altobelli on Peña: “I appreciate what he did- not only for me- but for our organization. He certainly was well thought of (by the Orioles). I think about him often, he had a lot of class.” The Spitter: Peña openly confessed to throwing the spit ball during his career, a pitch that acts similar to the forkball. He admits that his final pitch in the 1971 Junior World Series, striking out Denver pinch hitter Lou Klimchock, was indeed a wet one. Thanks to… Horacio Martinez for conducting and translating the Orlando Pena interview and the Baseball Hall of Fame for the Pena file. Internet baseball statistical sources were also utilized. Bill Flynn’s website is at www.flynnflam.com index and middle fingers along the seams like a two-seam fast-ball. Spread your fingers out as far as possible around the ball. The ball should be jammed further between your index and middle fingers than in a split-fingered fastball. When releasing the ball, snap your wrist. August 24, 1958 (Age 24.280, 9,176th in MLB history) vs. LAD 2.0 IP, 1 H, 3 SO, 0 BB, 0 ER, W After so many years, I’ve forgotten names.. I’v e been on so many teams.. at my age.. you know, I’m 55 now because I don’t count what I played in Cuba (laughs).. That means you’re from the Southern part of the island? Yes, from a little town called St.Mary’s… next to Victory of the Tunas where I started to play baseball there….and that was my name ‘cause I was from such a little small town.. and I had a manager who spoke English- couldn’t really communicate with us..he would call me (wa-hee-doh).. and that stuck In the late 1990s Pena was approached about helping out on radio broadcasts targeting the Cuban community. He was asked to interview Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, one of the pitching stars during the Yankee’s three-year championship run. Today he’s still a part of "Al Duro y Sin Guantes" (Hitting Hard without Gloves) on Radio Marti, headquartered in Miami, Florida. The Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB) oversees Radio and Television Martí, providing the people of Cuba with interactive news and information programs. Spanish podcasts are available here: http://www.martinoticias.com/archive/al_duro_y_sin_guantes/latest/97/131.html “It wasn’t easy in the beginning. I had never done it before. But I put some questions together that had been asked of me before. The director called me and asked if I wanted to keep doing that, interviewing Latino ballplayers, making commentary and talking sports. And I’ve been doing it ever since. I love it, I love my work. It’s like playing ball. If you love it, you consider yourself fortunate.” Today Pena lives in Key Biscayne, Florida and enjoys watching his grandson play baseball. He still gets mail and up to 20 requests for autographs each month. Pena pitched two perfect innings to preserve game two 6-4 win for Wings in Jr WS.. 2 k’s… before game he was advised that his father had died … when he came into the game Grich said “win it for your father” [ bob Matthews column] Rochester was one win away from taking the Series, but Denver pulled out a wild 12-11 win. Orlando was ineffective being committed to the team was important- to a lot of players back then… including pitchers… you don’t want to see someone’s father passing away, but you certainly would welcome those kind of guys back to your ballclub at any time, because you knew what they were made of END OF ALTO--------------------------------- Pena pitched in parts of 14 seasons in the major leagues and another 13 seasons in the minors. He was signed by the Cincinnati Reds and won his major league debut August 24, 1958 over the Dodgers at the Los Angeles Coliseum. Pena went on to throw for Kansas City, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and California. Pena pitched in 5 games for the 1971 Orioles (pena called up to Oriole in July 71 after Eddie Watt fractured a bone in his hand in a rundown- lost for a month) broke his wrist season by the Cincinnati Reds and went on to throw for is big league highlights include Silver Seasons Pitoniak and Mandelaro HEN LIBRARY - L/H - LOCAL HISTORY r796.357 MAN On a Silver Diamond- Bennett L/H - LOCAL HISTORY r796.357 BEN Pena pitched in two seasons for the Rochester Red Wings in 1971 and ’72. He lost just one of 10 decisions over 78 innings pitched and a 1.38 ERA. logging a 9-1 regular season record appearing in only 21 regular season games A forkball is generally slower and has either no rotation or tumbling topspin. The grip is usually tighter in the hand, really choked. A fork is easier for the batter to pick up because it doesnt look much like a fastball. A splitter comes in faster and has backspin or slightly offset backspin almost like a 2 seamer. It looks just like a fastball out of the hand and then drops at the plate. The grip is a little looser than a forkball. These pitches are very difficult for young players to throw and they may be more stressful on the arm. Pena: The Martís are a multimedia hub of news, information and analysis that provide the people of Cuba with interactive programs seven days a week … I didn’;t know what I was doing- had never done it before—put some questions together… that had been asked me before… the director called me and asked if I wanted to keep doing that, intervieweing Latino ballplayers, making commentary, talking sports and I’ve been doing it ever since. It wasn’t easy in the beginning.. I had to learn a lot but nowadays I love it, I love my work.. It’s like playing ball : if you love it, you consider yourself fortunate… I work in an environment where I can joke, make fun of things.. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ley purchased the A's after the death of Arnold Johnson in December 1960. In an effort to copy the dimensions of the short 296 foot right field fence at Yankee Stadium, Finley added a section of bleachers called, "Pennants Porch" in right field before the start of the 1964. However, MLB vetoed this option and the fence was moved to the league minimum, 325 feet and renamed, "One-Half Pennant Porch." Kansas City Municipal Stadium had several unique and quirky features. A small zoo and picnic area was behind the right-field fence that housed the team mascot, a mule named "Charlie O". A mechanical rabbit, named "Harvey" rose out of the ground with new baseballs for the umpire and a compressed-air device blew dirt off homeplate. - See more at: http://www.ballparksofbaseball.com/past/KCMunicipal.htm#sthash.zeuH9WYY.dpuf Reggie Jackson got his first ML hit off Pena… ORLANDO PENA – December 2015 How did you face the challenege (going from starter to reliever)? I went through a lot of changes.. as far as my record is concerned: a big portion of my career was as a starter… and then I had a prob with my Achilles and I was sent to the Florida farm teams and I was playing between a team in Florida and rpchester… when I was in rochester, a great coincidence, an incredible team.. we got all the way to the end and we won the little world series… I pitched in relief several times – an unforgettable series for me… because so many of those guys went on to play with the Orioles and the big leagues… lot of great ballplayers.. can’t remember names right now.. we had a great 9 starters.. Joe Altobelli- who was the manager and had played with me in Cuba… … [ don baylor went to the all stars so that we could win the series--- ]… you know that don baylor became a huge all-star…… Alto played winter ball with me… rich coggins played winter ball with me… In your father’s name, get these guys out The Red Wings won game one Little world series, the last inning, you were on the mound.. I do recall it.. that very day my dad died.. but Bobby Grich told me, in your father’s name, get this guy out.. and I went out there very determined and it’s unforgettable cause we won…. Sao then I wen tand buried my father and I came back… then I went up to the bigs and the Orioles… and I particvipated in the the playoffs.. the Orioles went on to win it… and Weaver told me that he wasn’t goinmg to have me on the WS roster.. and I wasn’t able to pitche in the WS… but I got a share of the money and that was very nice… There was a n article written by a jounrnalist in aBaltimore… saying that when I came back after burying my father… went up to Baltimore… I brought latin music to the team and all the guys were energized when I went up to Baltimore.. in that article, he said that I was the only pitcher to have played for 37 teams.. proud of … Hutto? We had a guy.. a lefty.. never made it to the big leagues… … pitcher (Ray) Miller—they had said that Miller had taught me the spit ball but that wasn’t really true….. I had known about that pitch for some time and it was a great time to be in the IL because not long before that Cuba had stopped being in the IL.. because of the relations between the countries aafter Castro’s revolution… so Frank Verdie [incident when In Cuba… reviolutionaries fired gus during celebration of Cuba’s indepenedence day, a bullet hit Verdie in the protective helmet he was wearing… ] they moved the team to Jersey City… affecting relationships between Cuba nad USA Last strike was a fork ball but that wasn’t the case… ========================== After so many years, I’ve forgotten names.. I’v e been on so many teams.. at my age.. you know, I’m 55 now because I don’t count what I played in Cuba (laughs).. Did you start your professional career in Cuba? And you spent some time in the Venuzuela leagues? Yes… And you spent some time in the Venuzuela leagues? Yes, I did spend a couple of years there… What do you think of the new Latino movement in the major leagues- especially the Cuban talent that is coming up? Especially in the last decade.. Let me just say.. before Fidel took power in Cuba, there was about 12 major league ballplayers- real stars.. Cookie Rojas, Tony Taylor..Tony Oliva, no- cause he never played in Cuba… Now, as of late, there’s a stream of talent coming out of Cuba. They’re getting back to where, historically, the Cuban ball players had been. The raw material from Cuban ball players has always been there- the raw talent. But the problem has been all along that – there have been prohibitions, and it’s been impossible for the Cuban ball player to get out since the revolution…. So what do you think specifically- are they ready for the bigs, coming out of Cuba… Or do they need development in the minors? Well, you gotta understand that the baseball being played in Cuba is a little different.. In Cuba, we’ve always had Little Leagues, youth baseball that was designed to lead to other levels.. but nowadays, they don’t have that klevel of enthusiasm because there is no payoff, no ascension so it doesn’t matter if they bat .300 or .250.. but here, they realize that you can come here, hit .280 and make 10 million dollars… in Cuba right now, there isn’t that full development because there are even cases of ballplayers have been banned and mistreated so it’s not a development for a professional future. That’s not the way that professional programs behave. (case of a phenom who was banned.. politics] They may not be 100% ready to play, but they’re moldable and they say that with the school of Hard Knocks, you learn. Why do they call you “farm boy”? Who isn’t a farm boy in Cuba? That means you’re from the Southern part of the island? Yes, from a little town called St.Mary’s… next to Victory of the Tunas where I started to play baseball there….and that was my name ‘cause I was from such a little small town.. and I had a manager who spoke English- couldn’t really communicate with us..he would call me (wa-hee-doh).. and that stuck I’m also from the same province… [re the stadium)… apparently Aroldis Chapman is from St.Mary’s?.... now with the Yankees, from the Reds.. he’s from that area as well.. he starts talking about the little stadiums from that area [telling his where I’m from and he has recollection…. That’s where Preston Gomez is from.. and I played there… so just so you can appreciate how small the world is and what coincidences there are: I played in that town… no one has ever asked me about that team..I went to play there in (Preh-toh?) …. Three dollars a day.. I’d get three dollars a day, I would get a dorm, and a ticket to the movie theatre [and explains about an event when the theatre burnt down]… [he was there when it happened]… so after that…I don’t remember the next team Do you remember this date… May 31, 1963… going to bat against Claude Osteen? I was in the bigs then with Kansas City… laughs.. what pitcher would ever forget that? MICKEY VERNON, Washington manager walked the 8th hitter intentionally.. to get to me… I had played with Claude Osteen in Cincinnati- we both came up together, we were friends… and when I came up to bat.. one of the coaches .. Jimmy Dykes was coaching third base… and he gave me the signal to hit.. I said, he’s nuts.. then Osteen threw me a fastball- they didn’t have a speed gun back then but I knew how fast he was throwing… I knew that he could throw in the mid to high 90s… then I looked at the coach… it was a ball and he gave me the hit signal again..so I crowded the l;ate and osteen threw me another fastball inside.. and I opened up my my left and I swung and I smacked he hell of it… and I strted running like a mad man.. and by the time I got to secondbase I realized that I had hit it out…. But when I got to second bae I wasn’t sure – I wasn’t sure- if I should stay there and then I saw the signal… and my wife was at the stadium that night (Nancy Lopez).. and she was in her last trimester .. and she started jumping up and down.. got so excited they had to take her into the hospital and.. but she didn’t give birth yet- that happened a month later… on July 4th that my son mwas born Orlando Pena, Jr… so we almost had him that night at the stadium…. So that hoimer had wuite an impact Also, special recollection on having faced Aaron, Mantle, Williams..any thughts.. At that time, I don’t know if you know my career really well… but I played for a team that was run by a gentleman who didn’t care about baseball- Cahrley Finley—he would just trade people left and ruight.. a disaster sometimes.. you didn’t know who was on the team.. and he started to mess with the dimensions of the field.. he had a PENNANT PORCH … he did some thinsg that I can recall that were just beautiful, innovative There was a rabbit, behind home plate with a bag of balls… and it was recessed, it would pop up from below the ground.. next to the umpire… the umpire would press a button and this trap door would open up, the rabbit would pop out witrh a bag of fresh balls, and he would put the balls in the pocket… and for some reason the people loved to see that,…the other thing: everytime the Yankees would come play us at home, they’d hit like 5,6,7 homers in each game… and Charley said that we also had to hit homers… so he set up a PENNANT PORCH behind second base—almost right behind second base.. and I was pitching, I’ll never fotrget this: against the Red Sox.. one of the best games I ever pitched in my life… and I was pitching that game … and up to bat was the polish guy, Yastrzemski and at 2-2 I threw him a change up and he popped it up behind 2nd base.. when (Kasako) went to look for it (nia Cemoli) was right there at the Pennant Porch and the ball was a home run… and lost the game.. I cussed Finley out that day … all in Spainish because of that damn pennant poirch… but he also did some things that were innovatiove: he used three colors white-1st base… 2nd was orange.. third base was black… he sais that was for fans that hjad come just as tourists and they come to this little town- that’s the way they’ll know the difference between 1st 2nd and 3rd base…’’ also: he ahd a green bat.. and he gave it to Gino Cimoli... Gino Cimoli... (Finley gave him the green bat and he strated to hit the crap out of the ball)… a beautiful shiny green bat… played two games and hit the hell out of the ball… and the Commissioner of Baseball called Finley and he said that the bat had to go… and when Cimoli heard about that, he said they ‘ll have to kill me to take this bat away from me…ha ha Your career in baseball? There’s a lot of things I remember… Once I was pitcvhing a no-hit … in Cleveland… and then Tito Francona came up.. and with 2 strikes, in the 8th, 2 outs, I threw a forkball… he lined one over third base, nreaking up the no-hitter.. next guy hit me for another line drive, next guy, another hit… if they hadn’t of pulled me I prob would have given up 20 hits… so I blew a no hitter… wound up winning the game but blew my chance for a no-hitter (talks about another no-hitter broken up) I had oucnhed out 7 or 8 guys.. had a no-hitter going in Washington.. first pitch I thrwew to the lefty—son of a bt=itch hit a triple… broke up the no-hitter.. I was close… I read that you never had arm pain…… I did have arm pain but it was playing in Winter Ball.. used to pitch with the Crabs.. that team moved from Cuba to Puerto Rico when the change happened… Napolean Reyes? Was the manager of the Senators farm team in San Juan… and Roberto Clemente …. [interrupted by producer]… Clemente was the one who told the manager to look after pena cuse he has a pain…. I played the game, pitched 4 innings but I couldn’t sleep that night… my arm was in so much pain…[ jumps to another topic—switched to the other side of the island—senators let him go]… Tony Oliva was a teammate—we stayed on the beach we lived near the beach.. and there was a big coconut tree. .. and what I used to do is hang from that tree with both of my arms… all of a sudden I felt a snap in my arm and after that snap all the pain was gone and I never had another arm pain again [the year Wash let him go in the middle of the season] Specialty pitches… last pitch of the Wings 71 series… Hutto says it was not a forkball… That was what we started talking about—absolutely, that happened in Rochester.. tAbsolutely.. [acknowledges it, no detail]… nowadays, there’s a lot of major league teams that wish they had that mionor league roster (teams in the major leagues)… Bobby Grich went on to become one of the best who ever played the game, along with Mazeroski.. How do you pass the time… The way it happened.. I used to love being interviewed..listened to a lot of baseball.. nj I learned… what the interviewer does.. he has a list of questions… and then what happened, you learned to answer them.. something happened here in Miami, 17-18 years ago… when the Yankees played the Marlins in the World Series.. when El Duque was playing.. they hired me to help with , paid me to help out with the deatails , the program to the Cuban community… got tot interview El Duque right here in (Radio Marti?)… I intwerviewed him,m…. at the same time, a kid had came over from Cuba (some connection to El Duqyue)… we were talking to someone else… I didn’;t know what I was doing- had never done it before—put some questions together… that had been asked me before… the director called me and asked if I wanted to keep doing that, intervieweing Latino ballplayers, making commentary, talking sports and I’ve been doing it ever since. It wasn’t easy in the beginning.. I had to learn a lot but nowadays I love it, I love my work.. It’s like playing ball : if you love it, you consider yourself fortunate… I work in an environment where I can joke, make fun of things.. [end of interview] ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ALTOBELLI You and he were about the same age He covered every minor league club we had with the Orioles… and others, for the most part he did a tremendous job… Played winter ball with him… yes I did..I used to go Winter ball almost every winter… I played in Venuzuela , (Meta Kie-bal) Ponce and Puerto Rico He had success here… he was a darned good relief pitcher and he could hold a club at bay and give you a chance to catch up or go ahead.. he was very, very good at that Good influence—definitely was that.. you knew you were in the hunt once you brought him in the game… as a manager I felt very comfortable with him My pitching coach was Ray Miller, he was pitcher/player coach Re: Orlando spitball—I don’t know if it was a spitter… it was a sinker of sorts… not many throw a sinker any more… some have better sinkers than others… that’s a taboo, way back then, you didn’t talk about spitballs He had good stuff without the spitter.. you don’t pitch as long as he did without having a pitch or two under your belt… I didn’t want to know about those things (spitter)…. You’re going out there to pitch, go ahead and pitch.. unless something is really funny, you don’t really bring that up Those kinds of guys (spit ballers then)… not that they were far and few between but they were rare… they were usually your short man and when you brought them in you were trtying to solidify the game How to throw the spitter… it was either a little saliva… I wouldn’t call it cheating.. I just thought they were very rare – those kind of pitchers- and you knew what you were getting when you brought ‘em in… that’s all… His father’s passing-- being committed to the team was important- to a lot of players back then… including pitchers… you don’t want to see someone’s father passing away, but you certainly would welcome those kind of guys back to your ballclub at any time, because you knew what they were made of Pena also as a starter—usually Orlando was not a starter (primarily) when he pitched for me, at that time of his career Denver—It was a really good year for us, we did everything right and Denver was not an easy team to beat.. they had to win two games at Denver to play us… they played all of the Junior World Series games at our ballpark on Norton Street (Sum up on Orlando- we interviewed him recently) Well, just pass a long a big hello—tell him that I think about him often.. I appreciate what he did- not only for me- but for our organization.. He certainly was well thought of in our organization.. he had a lot of class.. it’s not surprising that he is still involved in baseball • ----------------------- Before 1956 Season: Sent from Daytona Beach (Florida State) to the Cincinnati Redlegs in an unknown transaction. • July 21, 1961: Traded by the Cincinnati Reds with cash to Toronto (International) for Ken Johnson. • November 8, 1961: Obtained by the Milwaukee Braves from Toronto (International) as part of a minor league working agreement. • August 3, 1962: Traded by the Milwaukee Braves to the Kansas City Athletics for Bill Kunkel and Leo Posada. • June 23, 1965: Selected off waivers by the Detroit Tigers from the Kansas City Athletics. • May 6, 1967: Purchased by the Cleveland Indians from the Detroit Tigers. • July 9, 1968: Purchased by the Seattle Pilots from the Cleveland Indians. • September 8, 1968: Purchased by the Kansas City Royals from the Seattle Pilots. • April 6, 1970: Released by the Kansas City Royals. • June 9, 1970: Signed as a Free Agent with the Pittsburgh Pirates. • August 26, 1970: Released by the Pittsburgh Pirates. • March 16, 1971: Signed as a Free Agent with the Baltimore Orioles. • June 15, 1973: Purchased by the St. Louis Cardinals from the Baltimore Orioles. • September 5, 1974: Traded by the St. Louis Cardinals to the California Angels for a player to be named later. The California Angels sent Rich Hand (October 15, 1974) to the St. Louis Cardinals to complete the trade. • May 5, 1975: Released by the California Angels. ______________________________________________- Bill Kirkpatrick – ORLANDO PENA MEMORIES OF— He pitched relief and was a spot starter—he was one of the mainstays of the bullpen in the 71 yeam along with Scott and Miller.. he had the trick pitch—they called it the fork ball—he was 36 or 37 at the time and he was phenomenal with that pitch- no body could touch it… he had his time in the big leagues by then.. look up his records.. His age, called him poppa— And I think when you get a guy like that … his experience was very helpful to the younger pitcher… he didn’t flaunt it like he was a big leaguer, he was just a pitcher, competing.. he was tough pitcher to face cause the ball moved so much His spitter? I wouldn’t know that—I thought his split finger/forkball reacts the same way- so if he was he was mixing it in – the bottom falls out—I always thought his key pitch was the forkball… I could never say if he did or didn’t… his forkball was unbelievable…spitball- sometimes that’s psychological- you want the hitters to think that The spitter— ya ever pinch a watermelon seed—that’s like a baseball- it comes out- it slides out, the bottom falls out.. the lubricant works as as… you want to throw it like a fastball- with not so hard a grip—wobbles all the way up there—helluva pitch Forkball— its called a split fastball now—you put the ball between your first two fingers—some spread it out like a fork- some more than others—all the way, half way… my hands were too small—pena, he could take a softball and spread his two fingers around—put the ball between- that’s a helluva split- that’s why he was so successful… you throw it like a fastball- snap your wrist, the ball comes out between your two fingers- and it wobbles when it finally gets up to the plate, a big drop—having a big hand would be more benficial… today, the split finger – how far do they split the fingers? I say, the split is a takeoff of the forkball, my opinion.. elroy face had a forkball.. would have to ask some coaches..the wider you could spread your fingers, the bottom would fall out, a touch pitch to hit… and control! That was the key—he could throw it for strikes- others, most guys throw it and hope to get it up to home plate.. the only time he got hit was when it was up- in the strike zone—but when it was low and dropping, ewven if they hit it, they’d hit ground balls… he was like Luis Tiant…changes speeds Anything else—was a veteran, classy, helpful to younger pitchers and a very good competitor… very successful… and he didn’t play the “big league” stuff- like some guys do—I’m from the big leagues, no, he was a down to earth player, he was a team player all the way, a good guy on the team +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ On a Silver Diamond The playoffs opened in Syracuse. The Chiefs, defending Governors’ Cup champion, had played Rochester tough over the season and served notice they would not give up their title easily, taking an early 3-0 lead in the opener. The Wings scored one in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game at four, then won it in the 10th when a Baylor single scored Fazio from second base. The game was costly for the Wings however; in the sixth inning Harrison pulled a hamstring sliding into second base, an injury expected to end his season. Beene pitched the Wings to a 5-1 win in Game Two, battling his sore foot and an sun-inflicted upset stomach which made him sick between innings. The Wings traveled home with a chance to complete a sweep, but Syracuse scored three in top of the ninth in front of 9,339 to win 8-5. With Harrison and Boswell out, the starting pitching was suddenly thin, but there was no worry when the offense came alive to spark an 11-2 victory in Game Four to capture the series 3-1. The Red Wings’ opponent in the Governors’ Cup final was second place Tidewater (79-61), which had swept the Charleston Charlies. The series opened in Rochester and the Tides swamped starter Pena with five first-inning runs and cruised to a 12-1 victory. It was the Wings’ worst loss of the season. After the game, 20-year-old right-hander Wayne Garland was called up from Dallas-Ft. Worth, where he had gone 19-5. Beene went the second game and when the Wings fell behind 4-0 after four frames, the crowd of 7,065 began to get a little nervous. A three-run single (with an error) in the fifth by Parrilla gave the Wings a 5-4 win and evened the series heading to Virginia. The rookie Garland was called on to start Game Three and he responded by pitching eight strong innings, allowing one run, six hits, five walks and seven strikeouts. The Red Wings took a 2-1 victory on an 11th inning sacrifice fly. Scott got his second save of the series and right fielder Parrilla made “Ron Swoboda”-like diving catches of line drives in both extra frames. The Tides knotted the series the next day, scheduled to be the last game of the season for Oates, who was returning to military duty. Tidewater scored two in the bottom of the eighth to take a 4-2 win. Grich hit a two-run homer in the third to account for Rochester’s runs. The deciding Game Five in Norfolk was to match Wings’ sometime-starter Manz, who had clinched the pennant against Syracuse, against Tidewater ace John Matlack. But two straight rainouts allowed Altobelli to give the ball to Beene, 9-1 since his return to Rochester, including the playoffs. Beene went a gutsy 6 1/3 innings, leaving in the seventh, when a ground-rule double cost the Tides the tying run. Grich and Crowley had home runs, and Parrilla had two, including a two-run shot in the top of the ninth which gave the Wings the needed insurance runs in an 8-5 victory. The victory game the Wings two legs of their “Triple Crown.” They went on to face the Denver Bears in the Junior World Series. The Bears were only 73-67 during the American Association regular season, but beat the pennant winners from Indianapolis in the playoffs. All games would be played at Silver, as the Bears lost use of Mile High Stadium to the Denver Broncos. The teams would alternate home and visitor status. The Wings matched their clincher against Tidewater with an 8-5 win in Game One. Once again Rochester was down early — 4-1 — but tied the game with three in the fifth, behind a Coggins two-run double. The game stayed even at four until the Wings scored four in the bottom of the eighth, half of those on a home run by Crowley. Oates entered the game in the fifth inning after coming up from Fort Devens, Massachusetts, where he was fulfilling his reserve duty. After the game he took a plane to Syracuse, then drove to the Boston-area base, returning at 5 a.m. in time for two hours of sleep before seven o’clock reveille. The Wings took Game Two in similar fashion. The Bears surrendered 3-1 and 4-2 leads, and the game was tied at four heading into the eighth. This time pinch hitter Larry Johnson doubled in Hutto with the go-ahead run. Beene was inserted as a pinch runner for Johnson and scored on a Coggins single for the final run in a 6-4 victory. Garland battled for the win, allowing 10 hits in seven innings. Pena got the save, pitching despite the news of his father’s death. In Game Three, Grich hit his fifth home run in five games, but the Bears, facing the prospect of going down three games, walked away with a 3-2 victory over Kirkpatrick. Beene answered with a complete game, fanning 12 Bears en route to an 11-3 win in Game Four, giving the Wings a commanding 3-1 series’ lead. Denver bounced back the next night, downing Rochester 9-5 in front of 11,993, the largest crowd of the series. It was a see-saw affair. Denver put four on the board in the third, only to see the Wings tie with three of their own in the third, and a single run in the fourth. The third-inning rally was sparked by a pinch-hit single by Pete Ward, a non-playing coach during the year. The Bears put another crooked number up in the seventh, pushing across three runs to take the win and make the series 3-2. The final margin could have been wider, as rocket-armed Parrilla threw out two men at the plate. As damaging as the loss was the recall of Grich, due to an injury to Baltimore shortstop Mark Belanger. Grich, hitting .428 in the series with three home runs, started the next night for the Orioles and had three hits. O’s skipper Earl Weaver defended the move, arguing that by all rights Grich should have been in the majors all year. “I hope the people understand. I love Rochester. There isn’t a better baseball town in America,” Weaver further stated. “When the big leagues start talking expansion they should forget Dallas-Ft. Worth and take Rochester. Stick a new stadium between Rochester and Syracuse or Buffalo and you’d have a franchise.” Weaver’s affections didn’t soothe feelings, but two days of rain helped. Game Six was pushed back, allowing some rest for the beleaguered Rochester starting corps. The staff was nonetheless stretched to the breaking point in the game, a wild 12-11 Denver win. Ten pitchers between the two teams surrendered 33 hits. Each squad blew four-run leads. The “visiting” Wings had a 4-0 lead after an inning-and-a-half, keyed by a Baylor inside-the-park home run to the notch in left center. Denver rallied to take an 8-4 lead, but the Wings answered with four in the top of the fifth. Baylor led off the inning with another home run, and later in the frame Ferraro smacked a three-run shot to tie. The Bears again surged ahead and took a 12-8 lead into the ninth. The Wings scored three to pull within one run, but pinch hitter Beene made the final out. Parrilla threw out another runner at home plate, his third of the series. The game was also notable for the conduct of the Rochester fans, Aware of the fact that the Bears had to play the entire series on the road, the 7,517 in attendance cheered each Denver player during the introduction of the starting lineup, and in fact gave the entire team a standing ovation. The fans were less likely to be as charitable for Game Seven, as any discussion of a place for the ’71 Red Wings on the list of all-time great Rochester teams would be dependent on a Junior World Series championship. The omens weren’t positive. It would be the 13th game played without Grich in the lineup, and the Wings were 0-12 without him. Rochester started fast, with two in the bottom of the first, but the Bears pushed across four in the third, and held a 5-4 lead going into the sixth. Beene, available to start due to the two days of rain, played a large role in the Wings’ three-run sixth; first hitting a run-scoring bad-hop single to tie, then wiping out the Bear shortstop on a potential inning-ending double play ball. The Wings put up a single run in the seventh, and Beene lasted until the eighth, when he tired, giving up hits to the first two batters. Pena took the ball, and prevented a big inning, but Denver pushed across a run to close to 8-6. Rochester added a run in the bottom of the inning and Pena pitched a perfect ninth, closing out the 9-6 win. It was the franchise’s fourth Junior World Series championship.