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Showing posts from August, 2012

Former Mets Reserve Player: Gerald Williams (2004-2005)

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Gerald Floyd Williams was born August 10, 1966 in New Orleans, Louisiana in a family of ten brothers & sisters. The six foot two right hand hitting outfielder was drafted out of Grambling State University by the AL New York club, in the 14th round of the 1987 draft. His career started out well in the New York Penn League batting .385 at Oneonta. He struggled the next season but hit 20 HRs with 100 RBIs & 37 steals in 1990 between A & AA ball. By 1992 he hit .285 with 37 more stolen bases at AAA Columbus getting a call up to the big leagues. Williams would play sparingly, his first three seasons with the A.L. New York team, getting into the most 57 games in 1994. In 1995 he saw action in 100 games batting just .247 with6 HRs 28 RBIs. In 1996 Williams was batting .270 in August when he was traded along with Bob Wickman to the Milwaukee Brewers for Graeme Lloyd, Pat Listach, and Ricky Bones. The next year he hit a career high 32 doubles, while stealing 23 bases in Mil...

Former Italian American Player of the Day: Oscar Melillo (1926-1937)

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Oscar Donald Melillo was born on August 4, 1899 in Chicago, Illinois. His parents had emigrated from Tuscany, Italy in 1883 settling in the Chicago area raising their five children. Oscar wasn’t much for school dropping out of high school and working instead. He earned the nickname “Ski” after a local football hero he rooted for, and later the nick name of “spinach”. He began playing organized ball in Canada & eventually at AA Milwaukee getting better each year. He raised his average to .291 in 1925 & was an outstanding defensive second baseman that some writers called the next Napoleon Lajoie. Manager George Sisler was trying to strengthen his St. Louis Browns defense and according to two different reports , either traded five players for Melillo or paid the Brewers $50,000. Either way he began his MLB career in 1926 and would play ten seasons with the Browns. That year he suffered from a kidney disease known as Brights disease, and was told by a doctor he would only ...

Remembering Woodstock 43 Years Later - Day Three: Sunday August 17, 1969

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Sunday August 17, 1969 330PM: JOE COCKER (with the Grease Band)- Delta Lady-Somethings Going On- Lets Get Stoned- I Shall Be Released- With A Little Help From My Freinds Joe Cocker Opens the Third & Final Day. It's still sunny out and as soon as he finishes his set, the skies open up with another torrential thunder storm. Wind gusts were reported at over 40 mph and the rain lasted about two hours. The equipment had to be protected and the crowd was urged to find shelter. Unfortuantley there wasn't much shelter any where. The crowd amused themselves by starting their own music, performing the famous Rain Chants. 800 PM: Country Joe & the Fish- Rock & Soul Music- Thing They Call Love- Barrys Caviar Dream- Not So Sweet Martha Lorraine- Love Machine- Fish Cheer (Feel Like I'm Dying To Fix A Rag) Country Joe McDonald had played an acoustic set, sans the Fish on Day Two. The West Coast Band were big political protesters at the time and a pou...

Remembering Woodstock 43 Years Later- Day Two: August 16, 1969

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Saturday starts out a hot humid Catskill summer day An approximate 1/2 million people are at the site with probably another million on the way somwhere in Upstate NY but can't arrive. All set lists are approximates. 130 PM: QUILL- That's How I eat- They Live the Life- Driftin'- Waiting For You Quill's management was promoter Michael Lang, so the band played the venue. The week prior they were busy entertaining the stage crew & festival workers. Also a a good will gesture Woodstock ventures had them play local prisons, mental hospitals & 1/2 way housed to appease the locals. Quill handed out percussion instruments to the audience and played a good set. They didn't make the film because the audio & video was malfunctioning during their set. 220 PM: COUNTRY JOE McDONALD- Janis-All Around the World- Flying High All Over The World- Seen A Rocket- Fish Cheer / Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die Rag Country Joe, Janis Joplin...

Remembering Woodstock 43 Years Later- Day One: Friday Agust 15th, 1969

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It was billed as Three Days of Peace & Music, and it became the biggest concert in rock & roll history. The show starts later than expected on Friday evening. The throngs of people are still coming, hundreds of thousands are already flooding the town of Bethel and Max Yasgur's farm has become a history making seas of humanity. Far out man. Here is what the music looked like on the first day which was pretty much a bill of folk artists. Day One (Friday August 15, 1969) 500 PM- RICHIE HAVENS- Minstrel From the Gault- High Flyin' Bird- I Cant Make It Anymore- I Had a Woman- Handsome Johnny- With A Lit tle Help From My Friends- Strawberry Fields Forever- Hey Jude- Freedom The traffic jams had the roads blocked and the musicians who were staying at a Holiday Inn a few miles away couldn't get to the site, until the helicopters started flying them in. Obviously there were many delays on Friday afternoon. Havens was asked to go on first because he ...