I remember well the confusion which attended the Pilots situation just
prior to the start of the 1970 season, and was shocked by the move to Milwaukee. Thank heavens the '69 Pilots were immortalized, as they truly were, in Bouton's classic book. I wrote such a glowing book report for my 12th Grade English class that my teacher, a serious man, read the book too. I only found out afterward, when he approached me to tell me that he agreed with my assertion that the book was, if not serious literature, at least worth reading, even for a non-fan. That book still ranks among the best I have ever read (somewhere right up there with Steinbeck's "Grapes of Wrath" and assorted Dickens). Two years ago, I bought a copy as a Christmas present for a young co-worker, a keen fan who had never heard of either Jim Bouton or the Seattle Pilots.
Though not surprising, I still find it sad that I am virtually the only
person I know who remembers the Seattle Pilots. They remind me of the Rupert Mundys in Phillip Roth's "Great American Novel", a team whose memory was wiped from a nation's collective consciousness. That's why I was so happy to learn of your site. I was particularly happy to see the photo of the Tommy Harper comic book. I remember it well because it was so corny. In one panel, Tommy is strumming a guitar and singing the lyrics of a popular song of the time "The bluest skies you'll ever see are in Seattle..."(????). Among my prized possessions is a wool Seattle Pilots cap, complete with scrambled eggs, perfect fit, which I spied on the top shelf of a Toronto sports apparel shop around 10 years ago. The dust on the cap indicated that it had occupied its spot on that shelf for many years. When I asked the shopkeeper to retrieve the cap for me, she smiled broadly and told me that she was happy to finally learn the name of the team it represented.
Thanks again for showing me that I am not alone in my memories, and
good luck in your campaign to make that Old Timers game a reality. Bouton has had so many comebacks, it's only fitting that his pitching career should span two centuries.
I was happy to learn of your site via the May 28 issue of "Sports Illustrated." I had been a casual baseball fan throughout my childhood. In the early '60s, here in Canada, I would watch the Saturday afternoon Game of the Week. It seemed that 90% or more of those games featured the powerhouse New York Yankees. Naturally, I became a Yankees fan. Among those Yankees was Jim Bouton.
In 1969, the Expos arrived on the scene, and I immediately fell head
over heels in love with them, and the game. That year, the Expos were even worse (52-110) than the Pilots. Believe me,I checked the comparitive standings every day until I was resigned to the fact that I was a fan of the worst team in baseball (tied with the Padres).
—rhalman
I wanted to give you an update on William "Billy" Williams, who appeared in four games with the Pilots. Billy is currently the hitting coach for the Sioux Falls Canaries of the Northern League, after a long career in the Cleveland Indians chain as a coach at almost every level. The Northern League is a Double-A independent league in the upper Midwest that is considered by many to be the preeminent independent league in the country. Billy currently works under former Indians skipper, Doc Edwards, and the duo just began their second campaign with the Canaries.
Your tribute site to the Pilots is wonderful and I enjoyed tracking down the photo you have of Billy, as we have never seen one of him in his Pilots uniform. Best of luck to you and keep up the good work.
—seymour
As a 6/7 year old during the '69 season (summer
birthday!), I remember the Pilots. I lived in Southern California, where we
watched the Pilots play the Angels on local television. In those days, the
Angels had a couple of announcers named Dave Niehous and Dick Enberg. The
memories of those games are a little vague, but the Pilots' appearance on the
NBC Game of the Week is clear. I remember Joe Sparma pitching a complete
game, and the old fashioned "slow motion" replay of the last out at the end
of the broadcast. I had a Sparma baseball card, and cards of many of the
Pilots players. Boy, I wish I still had them!
Keep up the good work. I hope they have a Pilots old-timers game at Safeco.
Would love to see video reports of the event on ESPN and Fox Sports Net.
Take care, and thanks!
—LAWSONBT
Wow! I'm really impressed by your site on the Pilots. Of particular
interest to me was your John Wheeldon gallery...my next door neighbor worked
for the Pilots in their public relations department, and I was 9 at the
time, a huge pilots fan. She would bring me all of those portraits, and I
had a huge Pilots' scrapbook. I remember reading "Ball Four" where Jim Bouton
wrote about a game against the Orioles...the Pilots batted out of order, and
Earl Weaver brought it to the umpire's attention late in the game and just
like that, four or five runs were taken off the Pilots' score. When I read about
that in Bouton's book, I thought, "I was at that game!" I also remember
meeting Tommy Harper after a game...who could forget his 73 stolen bases?
Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
—Bill
NOTE FROM MIKE: The game to which Bill refers happened on May 28, 1969. Jim Palmer's back stiffened up shortly before game time and Dave McNally started in his place. Joe Schultz re-did his line-up in response, but during the exchange of cards, mistakenly gave Earl Weaver an old one. In the fifth inning, the Pilots were rallying behind Tommy Davis' two-run double. Weaver showed the umpires the card Schultz game him and they called Davis out for batting out of order and nullified both runs. The Pilots lost the game, 9-5.