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Where Have
You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?
Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you. America will miss
you terribly.
The morning that Joe DiMaggio passed away, my little three-year-old
son saw that his Daddy was sad, so he asked me why. I said, "because
a great baseball player has died." He responded, "Don't worry, Daddy,
there are still a lot more baseball players!" But what he didn't
know is that none are as gifted, as loved, as legendary as this
one.
God has blessed me in many ways. As you skip around this site,
you'll see that. Because I love baseball so much, God has allowed
me to visit many, many ballparks and see lots of superstars and big events.
I have countless autographs and souvenirs -- none more treasured than a
signed 8x10 photo of the Yankee Clipper himself that hangs on the wall
in my office. I've been to Cooperstown, League Championship Series
(in both leagues) and, of course, the World Series. But one of the most special days of all
for me was February 23, 1996, when
I was in Plantation, Florida on business. I hadn't planned on returning
home until the next day. When one of the employees at the office
in Plantation learned that, he said, "Are you going to the old-timers'
game tonight?"
 I
didn't know what he was talking about. Upon further checking, I learned
that the Joe DiMaggio Legends Game was that night in nearby Ft.
Lauderdale. In a flash, I raced over to the ballpark and bought a ticket,
then returned well before game time that evening to obtain some autographs
and soak in the atmosphere.
You see, there's a wing of a hospital in Hollywood, Florida named
after Joltin' Joe because he raised so much money for it, and because he
loved children so dearly. And the proceeds from this old-timers game
were going directly to that institution: the Joe DiMaggio Children's
Hospital.
Before the game that night, DiMaggio, 81 at the time, brought Cal
Ripken, Jr. out to the mound before the game to throw out the ceremonial
first pitch. The fans cheered wildly, as Cal had broken Lou Gehrig's
unbreakable record just a few months before. All-time Yankee favorite
Phil Rizzuto was introduced to a thunderous ovation (half of south Florida
is from New York, it seems). But the warmest and most prolonged applause
of the night was reserved for the Yankee Clipper himself. Has there
ever been a more gifted athlete? Has there ever been a baseball player
whose combination of skill and power were as legendary? What more
can you say about a player who played in ten World Series and eleven All
Star Games during a 13-year career -- a career that saw three prime years
('43, '44 and '45) lost as he served in World War II?
"I thank God I saw the best of DiMaggio," Yankee teammate Tommy Henrich
was quoted as saying in the local paper the next day. "You've got
no idea how great he was."
Following the pre-game festivities that memorable evening in '96,
DiMaggio passed through the middle of the packed stands to get to his box
to watch the game. An electricity surged through the crowd as he
walked among us common folk. Everyone leapt to their feet to applaud
him -- partly to thank him for his fund-raising efforts, partly to thank
him for what he meant to the sport he loved, partly out of adoration.
I was blessed to be in his presence that night. When I get
to heaven, I intend to tell him so.
Joltin' Joe has left and gone away. There will never be another
like him.
As Bob Klapisch of the Bergen, NJ Daily Record wrote on the
day of DiMaggio's death, "Full of grace and magic and mystery, DiMaggio
will be with us. If we can no longer share his company, his legacy will
enrich us, always."
Amen.
Other remembrances of Joltin' Joe by
BASEBALLPARKS.COM visitors
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