Daaaarrryl!

Found this on line. Reminds me that even as a kid reading about Daryl Strawberry in the newspapers before he had made his debut, I thought the hype was too much for one man to bear.Imagine - compared to Willie Mays, Micky Mantle (guys who really meant something to New York. Imagine people saying he'll make us forget those other guys ever played the game. Maybe I missed it. Did Strawberry ever buy into the hype? Claim to be the greatest like a young (and old) Muhammed Ali?

There were all the headlines about "Ripe for the Picking". And anyone woul have to admit there were some really rgeat games. Some great seasons even. He smacked some homeruns so hard they should have counted for double. And he had a powerful arm though as the aarticle pointed out that whole thing about hitting the cutoff man just eluded him. And he was fast. Fast as you'd want him to be though with his long legs he never looked it. It was a pretty swing though he missed far too often. And I don't think it can be said that he was a clutch hitter - I don't remember that at least, though I'd be happy to be proven wrong.

Whatever his faults as a player, he brought instant legitimacy to a Mets line up that was deperately short on that. Whatever his faults as a person, well, those he shares with many of his brothers in the human race and I wish him well.