centerfieldmaz Remembers actor Robert Hegyes (Welcome Back Kotter's -Juan Epstein)

Today, centerfieldmaz  remembers Robert Hegyes who portrayed the character Juan Epstein, in one my favorite classic sitcoms Welcome Back Kotter.

Robert Hegyes was born May 7th, 1951 in Perth Amboy,New Jersey. He grew up in nearby Metuchen, NJ, attending high school there, then going to Rowan University at Glassboro, NJ. He began acting in a Greewich Village Theater group as a teen & got the part for Welcome Back Kotter at age 23 in 1974. In reality Hegyes was of Italian / Hungarian decent although he portrayed the Puerto Rican / Jewish "Sweat Hog" Juan Epstein.

On "Welcome Back Kotter"- Juan was one of many Epstein brothers & sisters. He usually wore cut off denim vests & sported a high afro. He was the tough guy of the sweat hogs, walking around with a bad ass strut & a red bandanna hangin out of his pocket. He was voted  "most likley to take a life" at Brooklyn's Buchanan high school by his classmates. The actor Hedgyes was a fan of the Marx Brothers & his resembelence to Harpo Marx made his impersonation of him on the show even stronger.

The funniest of all Epstein's antics was that he that he always had an excuse note for every occasion. "Hey Mr. Kotter I got a note". The note would be lip synched by Juan as Mr. Kotter read it aloud. The notes were always forged "Juan's mother" as it was obvious he had written them.

Welcome Back Kotter aired on TV from 1975-1979 reaching #18 in the ratings in its first season & #13 in its second season, before falling off. The show became a huge hit with a large cult following, spawning off comic books, lunch boxes, action figures & trading cards. The show has since  remained popular in reruns & in 2011 all living cast members (except Horseshack) were on hand to recieve a TV Land Award for its 35th anniversary. John Travolta is also godfather to Hegyes children.

The actor Robert Hegyes also had a recurring part in the show Cagney & Lacy. He made appearances on The Streets of San Francisco, Chico & the Man, CHIPS, Diagnosis Murder, the Drew Carey Show, News Radio, the $20, 0000 Pyramid & Saturday Night Live. He also was a star in the award winning Volkswagon commercial "The Chase" as well as making appearances in movies; Honeymoon Hotel, The Purpose & Bob Roberts.

Hegyes later taught acting, writing & public speaking at his alma mater Rowan University in New Jersey, as well as at Brooks College in Long Beach, California. Sadly, Hedgyes  passed away from a heart attack yesterday, January 26th in Edison New Jersey, he was 60 years old.

Short Time Met Jose Offerman & All His Troubles (2005)

Jose Antonio (Dono) Offerman was born on November 8, 1968 in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican, Republic. The six foot infielder was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1986 as an amateur free agent. He made it to the big leagues by 1990, hitting a HR in his first MLB at bat on August 19th against the Montreal Expos.

He began by playing behind Alfredo Griffin, taking over as the Dodgers main short stop from 1992-1995. He led the NL in errors three seasons at short (1992-1993-1995) but did steal 30 bases in 1993. That season on Opening Day he became the first batter to ever face the new Florida Marlins. He made his first All Star game in 1995, hitting .287 on the year posting a .389 on base %. At the end of the season he was traded to the Kansas City Royals for Billy Brewer when the Dodgers acquired Greg Gagne via free agency to play short.

Offerman spent three years in Kansas City having his best years. He hit .303 in his first season, and then followed up with his career year. He batted .315 in 1998 with 191 hits (7th in the AL) 28 doubles & 89 walks (5th in the AL). He led the league in triples (13) for the first of two straight seasons posted a .414 on base %, with 45 stolen bases (5th in the AL) &.

In 1999 he signed on with the Boston Red Sox & made another All Star team, led the league in triples again (13) and hit .294. He had a good post season batting .389 against the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS driving in six runs, with a HR & five RBIs in the Red Sox 23-7 win in Game #4 at Fenway Park. In the ALCS he hit .458 going 11-24 with two RBIs & four runs scored. He spent three and one half seasons in Boston but his numbers fell off drastically never hitting above .267 in that time.

Offerman was sent to the Seattle Mariners to finish the year. He was signed by the Montreal Expos but was cut from the team & played 2003 in the Independent League with the Bridgeport Blue Fish. He returned with the Minnesota Twins in 2004 batting .256, then signed with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2005. He was released at the end of May after 33 games batting just .182.

In early June he was signed by the New York Mets. Offerman was used mostly as a pinch hitter getting nine hits & five walks in that role with 32 at bats. In his Mets debut he got a hit & drove in a run against the Phillies who had cut him a month earlier. In his last career game he had a pinch hit single & then lined out for the final out of the Mets 2005 season in Colorado. In his Mets career he played in 53 games batting .250 with two doubles, six walks & ten RBIs.

In his 15 season career he batted .256 with 1551 hits, 252 doubles, 72 triples, 57 HRs 172 stolen bases, 772 walks & a .360 on base %. At short he 149 errors posting a .943 fielding % in 607 games. In his career he also played first & second base as well as outfield.

Retirement & Drama: In 2007 he was back with the Bridgeport Blue Fish and in a game on August 14th he was thrown out of a game after going after Long Island Ducks pitcher Matt Beech after he hit Offerman with a pitch. He broke the pitchers finger as well as injuring catcher John Nathans, both were taken to Bridgeport Hospital.

Offerman was arrested by Police & suspended indefinitely by the Independent League. He was sentenced to two years special probation but Nathans filed a $4 million law suit against Offerman, claiming he ended his playing career because of the incident.

In 2008 Offerman won a championship as manager of the Lacey Tigers in the Dominican League. In 2010 in game against the Cibao Giants being umpired by an American umpiring crew, Offerman hit one of the umpires. He was detained by Police & eventually banned for life from Dominican Baseball. The umpires had to leave the country due to safety issues the next day.

Giants Are Going to their Fifth Super Bowl

The Party continues, this week it took place at San Francisco, the same place where they did it twenty years ago when they knocked Joe Montana unconscious & won that NFC Championship game on a Field Goal.

All through these playoffs everyone whispered how it looked like 2007 all over again. No one gave them a chance, they got hot at the end of the season, then a hot playoff run. Beating Green Bay at Lambeau Field, winning the NFC Championship game on the road, in overtime, with a field goal. Now it's on to the Super Bowl in a rematch with the Patriots, yea it's deja vu' all over again!

Go Giants, thanks for the great season so far, one more win to go- Eli shall lead us, he is the greatest! Our defense has stepped up & kept the Giant Defensive Legacy Alive! And oh the special teams, Tom Coughlin always stated how important they are & once again it proves it. Hats off to the coaches as well, especially Mr. Coughlin.

Giants Beat the Packers In Green Bay Once Again: Advance to NFC Championship Game

Today It's all about the football New York Giants. Another upset to another team that was suppose to be so good. The Giants continue to roll & beat whoever gets in their way, especially when it counts.

The Giants went North to Green Bay a place that has become very comfortable for them to play in, winning their second playoff game there in four years.

The defense removed Aaron Rogers silly imaginary belt & sacked him four times while taking the ball away another four times. 

There were Fumble recoveries by Antrel Rolle,  Deon Grant (who also had a late 4th Quarter intercetion) when he recovered the ball after Osi Umenyiora swatted it away from Rodgers, and then Chase Blackburns 4th Quarter recovery after after Kenny Phillips yanked it away from  Ryan Grant. That led to a Mario Manningham TD.

Now maybe everyone realizes how good Eli Manning is & that he is one of the NFL's elite quaterbacks. He completed 21 of 33 passes with three touch downs & his personal playoff best 330 yards. Also Eli was good enough to convert eight of sixteen trys (50%) on third down.

Hakeem Nicks made seven receptions for 165 yards, two touch downs including a 37 yard Hail Mary catch that will go down as one of the greatest in team history. Lawrence Tynes may have missed a field goal but he did get three others though the goal post.

The Packers, just like each team in the last month also tried to convert against the Giants defense in desperation on fourth down. As usual they were stopped, this time on a sack by Michael Boley.

As coach Coughlin always says, special teams are so important; so lets not forget the two on side kick recoveries for the Giants special teams.One by Victor Cruz who may not have had a touch down but did make a big fourth quarter third down catch as well (5 receptons for 74 yards).

It took a while for the running game to get going but in the end Ahmad Bradshaw put up 63 yards including a big fourth quarter run which led to Brandon Jacobs TD run.

Giant fans sit back, bask in the glory of victory for another week & get ready for the NFC Championship game next week!!!!!

The Losing Pitcher In the First Game Ever Played at Shea Stadium: Ed Bauta (1963-1964)

Eduardo (Galvez) Bauta was born on January 6th, 1935 in Florida, Cuba. The tall six foot three right hander was signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1956. Bauta was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals on May 28, 1960, along with Julian Javier for Dick Gray and future Met & politician Vinegar Bend Mizell.

He spent four years with the Cards pitching as a reliever going 3-0 over his first three seasons with seven saves. In 1963 he saw the most action, first pitching in 38 games going 3-4, while finishing 19 in St. Louis through August 5th. He was then traded to the New York Mets for pitched Ken MacKenzie.

Bauta debuted with the Mets on August 11th, 1963 pitching four innings of relief in an 8-1 loss against the Chicago Cubs in the first game of a double header at the Polo Grounds. He would allow two runs that day as well as allow two runs in three of his first four appearances. Over in nine appearances with New York he posted no recordfinished one game while posting a 5.21 ERA.

In 1964 he began the year with the Mets in the brand new Shea Stadium, and was the losing pitcher in the first game ever played there. Bauta relieved Jack Fisher in the top of the 7th inning and immediately gave up a single to future Mets star Donn Clendenon tying the game. In the top of the 9th inning he allowed singles to Willie Stargell & Clendenon, then with two outs Bill Mazeroski also singled driving in Stargell in what would be the game winning run.

On April 26th he earned a save against the Pirates in Pittsburgh lowering his ERA to 1.59. He took another loss at Cincinnati on May 3rd in the first game of a double header, but then would allow five in runs in his next three outings over just four innings pitched. He was sent down to AAA Buffalo after going 0-2 with a 5.40 ERA in eight appearances. Bauta would pitch in the minor leagues through 1973 going 70-49 there with a 2.94 ERA in 450 games over 14 seasons total.

Forer Met & Current Long Island Ducks Manager: Kevin Baez (1990 / 1992-1993)

Kevin Richard Baez was born January 10,1967 in Brooklyn New York. Baez rode his bike from Coney Island to play in the Gil Hodges Little League as a kid, making the All Star team. When asked what he wanted to do when he grows up, he said “be a ball player”.

He is another in the long line of baseball players to come out of Brooklyn’s Lafayette High School. Sandy Koufax, John Franco, Pete Falcone, The Aspromonte Bothers, Al Ferrara, plus Fred Wilpon, Larry King, Rhea Pearlman & Goodfella’s Paulie Sorvino. Baez went to Dominican College in Rockland County & was drafted in the 7th round of the 1988 draft by the hometown New York Mets.

All glove with no hit, would probably best describe the shortstops quick MLB career. Baez began his first two seasons at A ball going to AA in 1990 making his MLB debut that season in just five games batting.167.

He would spend the next eleven seasons in the minor leagues, hoping for another chance at the big leagues. Another cup of coffee in 1992 got him into six September games, where he hit .154 (2-13). In 1993 he saw the most action of his career when he was called up after Tony Fernandez went to Toronto in early June. Baez got into 52 games but only hit .183 & lost his job to Tim Bogar. At short he made six errors in 180 chances good for a .967 fielding %.

Baez played at AAA Norfolk through the 2001 season, never making it back to the major leagues. After that he spent four years with Bud Harrelson on the Eastern end of Long Island with the Long Island Ducks of the in the Atlantic League. There he won a Championship in 2004 getting named Atlantic League All Star batting .256 with 40 RBIs & 36 runs scored in 98 games played.

He found a home there, and after coaching with the Mets in 2007, he has been a coach for the Ducks ever since. In December of 2010 he was named the new manager of the Ducks for the 2011 season. In his first year as manager, he guided Long Island to the Liberty Division championship after compiling the best record in the Atlantic League (78-47) and winning both the First and Second Half Liberty Division titles.

Baez posted a .248 minor league career average with 1371 hits 15 HRs & 595 RBIs. In the majors he hit .179 with 27 hits in151 at bats with ten doubles & seven RBIs in 63 big league games.

Baez says he loves teaching the game to young kids & still teaches baseball clinic at Bayside Batting & Pitching in Queens on Fridays. I never laugh at a kid who says he wants to be a pro ball player, because that’s what I wanted no matter what the odds were.

In Memory of the Passing of New York Giants Don Mueller (1927-2011)

Don Frederick Mueller was born April 14, 1927, at St. Louis, Missouri. The tall six foot outfielder was known as "Mandrake the Magician" because he always found a hole to hit into. His father Walter Mueller played for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the twenties batting .275 over four seasons.

Don was signed by the New York Giants in 1944 and would hit well over .300 every season by the time he arrived at AAA Jersey City.

He made his debut in August 1948 when Leo Durocher had replaced Mel Ott as manager. Mueller hit got a hit and an RBI in his first at bat against the St. Louis Cardinals as a pinch hitter. On the year he would hit .358 (29-81) playing in 36 games making a good impression. He made the Giants team the next season but was only hitting .232 in August when he was sent down to finish out the year back at Jersey City.

1950 would be his official rookie season & he would bat .291 with 7 HRs 15 doubles & 84 RBIs. Mueller was mainly a singles hitter, hitting 125 that season (6th in the league) & leading the league twice (1954 & 1955). He was one of the most difficult men to strikeout during his playing days, never striking out more than 26 times in a season. In 1951 he only struck out 13 times in 493 at bats, batting .277.

In the Giants amazing pennant run that summer Mueller hit well. On the seasons he hit a career high 16 HRs, with 69 RBIs, something team mate Sal Yvars credited to the Giants sign stealing in the Polo Grounds.

On September 1st, the Giants were seven games back when the two teams faced off in the Polo Grounds. Mueller had a career day bashing three HRs, two off of Ralph Branca as well as driving in five runs in the Giants 8-1 victory. The next day Mueller hit another two HRs, a three run shot off Don Newcombe & a two run shot off Phil Haugstad whom he had homered off the day before as well.

The Dodger lead was now down to five & throughout the month they would battle ending up tied on the last day of the season forcing the classic three game playoff. In the month of September Mueller hit 6 HRs & drove in 22 runs.

In the final 1951 playoff game against Brooklyn Mueller singled in the bottom of the 9th inning with New York trailing 4-1. With one out, Whitey Lockman doubled to scoring a run and advancing Mueller to third. As he slid into third base Mueller broke his ankle and had to be carried off the field on a stretcher.

Bobby Thomson's was the next batter, “Instead of thinking about being the next hitter, I see Don lying on the ground,” Thomson told The New York Times. “It took my mind completely off the game.” He then hit his famous game-winning (shot heard round the world) HR that won the pennant. Mueller did not play in the World Series because of the injury.

His replacement had a horrible Series especially with runners in scoring position. Monte Irvin said years later the Giants would have won the 1951 Series had Mueller been in the lineup.

Two seasons later he hit .333 (5th in the league) with 160 hits 12 doubles 6 HRs & 60 RBIs. Although he didn’t strike out much & was a good hitter, he didn’t walk much so he put up low on base percentages. That season he posted a .360 %.

In the Giants 1954 Championship season he had his best year leading the league with 212 hits, and finishing second to teammate Willie Mays in the NL batting race batting at .342.

He made his first All Star appearance, finished twelfth in the MVP voting and had career highs in doubles (35) runs scored (90) triples (8) & on base % (.363) He also had 71 RBIs with 4 HRs playing in all but one of the Giants 154 games. In the outfield he led all NL outfielders with 14 assists posting .979 fielding % second best in the league.

Post Season: In the 1954 Fall Classic Don hit .389 going 7 -18 scoring four runs in the Giants to sweep over the Cleveland Indians.

In Game #1 at the Polo Grounds Mueller went 2 -5 scoring a run & driving in the Giants first run of the series. In Game #3 at Cleveland he went 2 - 5 and scored two more runs. In the fourth & final Game #4 he had his best day getting three hits & scoring another run.

In 1955 he made his second All Star appearance, coming in fifth in the league with 185 hits, batting .306 and driving in a career high 83 runs. He struck out just twelve times in 605 at bats, giving him the lowest strike out ration in the league for the third of four straight seasons, five times leading the league in that category overall. His seven sac flies were 8th best in the league.

He did not hit well after 1955 dropping to .269 in 1956 and then into the .250 area the next two years. In the outfield he led the league in fielding two more times (1956 & 1957) as well as having 13 more assists from the outfield in 1957. His contract was purchased by the White Sox in 1958 as the Giants left New York & he retired the next season at age 32.

In his 12 year career, he hit .296 lifetime, only striking out 146 times in 4,364 at bats. He had 1292 hits with hit 65 HRs 139 doubles 37 triples & drove in 520 runs while scoring 499 in 1245 games played. In the outfield he posted a .981 fielding % (63rd all time) with 69 assists.

Mueller passed away right before New Year's at the age of 84 in suburban St. Louis.