Sports: Football, Baseball, Bball, Hockey, Etc. Vol. II

[Lyle (Mooska)]

^^^

Yes, indeed, Fritz!

I mention Chris Taylor (he's from Virginia, Fritz) because I immediately liked him when he came to the Dodgers in 2016 and then sometime later I saw a video where he was interacting with fans and he was so gracious and charming it made me like him more. Then a couple years ago I was watching video of some kind of a more private event at Dodger stadium...it may have been a fundraiser or something. There was a stage set up and during the video each player was introduced along with a significant other, girlfriend or wife or whatever, and they's come out on the stage and walk down the stairs to the field. During all this they introduced Chris Taylor and he came out on the stage by himself. No wife. No girlfriend. No one else. He seemed somewhat embarrassed. But it made me start wondering. At some point I googled things about him to see if he was dating or anything. Since 2016 this is basically the most current information you get:

Chris Taylor is a professional baseball player who has maintained his reputation in baseball as he is never involved in controversies. Being a clean and disciplined player, he has managed to gain a lot of fan following.  So his personal life is always a matter of discussion among his fans.

Well, so far the famous player seems to be single as no details are suggesting that he is dating someone. Moreover, Taylor hasn't shared and only hints on his social media accounts about his relationship status, and neither has he mentioned anything in any of his interviews. He might be guessed single due to the lack of information about his relationship status. However, unless he shares something in the media about his current relationship status it is hard to assume anything. Furthermore, Taylor might have had a relationship in the past, but any details are still unknown.

So... I am assuming he's gay unless told otherwise.

?

He will be a free agent after the upcoming season, which means trade possibilties, so I'm going to enjoy him all the more this season, but I wish he'd come out!   

Chris Taylor:



And guess what? !!! I just realized right this second that Chris Taylor's uniform number (3) is the same number that Glenn Burke wore. Coincidence? Or Kismet?

[Lyle (Mooska)]

Glenn Burke was a Dodger from 1976 - 1978.

I thought I posted about this once, but a search doesn't find anything, but I once looked up when Burke played and when he was sent to Oakland in 1978.

I have no evidence when I first went to a Dodger game after coming here in 1977. April 1st! I was trying to remember any info at all. 77? 78? I know I went to 2-3 back then with a couple people from work who got the tickets. I even remember their names, Katy Al, Ken...and one other. The only thing I could pull out of my memory is that I know I was at one in the spring of 1978 because with the crowds in the aisles we were making jokes about a scene like that in Close Encounters, which came out the fall/winter of 1977.

So, what are the chances that I saw Glenn Burke play in 1978?

Burke was traded on May 17, 1978, to Oakland. (Burke was born in Oakland!)
From opening day to May 17th the Dodgers played 34 games.
Baseball almanac says Burke appeared in 16 of those games.

Of those 34 games, these were the home games for the Dodgers:

7   04-14-1978   vs Atlanta Braves
8   04-15-1978       vs Atlanta Braves
9   04-17-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds
10   04-18-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds
11   04-19-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds
12   04-20-1978   vs Houston Astros
13   04-21-1978   vs Houston Astros
14   04-22-1978   vs Houston Astros
15   04-23-1978   vs Houston Astros
27   05-09-1978   vs St. Louis Cardinals
28   05-10-1978   vs St. Louis Cardinals
29   05-11-1978   vs St. Louis Cardinals
30   05-12-1978   vs Chicago Cubs   
31   05-13-1978   vs Chicago Cubs
32   05-14-1978   vs Chicago Cubs
33   05-15-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates
34   05-16-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates

According to Baseball Almanac's Box Scores, these are the 9 games Burke played in:

8   04-15-1978       vs Atlanta Braves
9   04-17-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds
10   04-18-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds
15   04-23-1978   vs Houston Astros
27   05-09-1978   vs St. Louis Cardinals
31   05-13-1978   vs Chicago Cubs
32   05-14-1978   vs Chicago Cubs
33   05-15-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates
34   05-16-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Now I can eliminate any game that was on a Saturday or Sunday (because we went after work)

9   04-17-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds (Mon.)
10   04-18-1978   vs Cincinnati Reds (Tues.)
27   05-09-1978   vs St. Louis Cardinals (Tues.)
33   05-15-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates (Mon.)
34   05-16-1978   vs Pittsburgh Pirates (Tues.)

That leaves 5 possible games I may have seen Glenn Burke play. Memories aren't what they're cracked up to be. When I began this endeavor I was trying to think if I could recall any team I may have seen play against the Dodgers. The Pirates came to mind. Why? I don't know. Was it because I recall going to a Pirate game in the 90's and was sitting in the same general section that I recall sitting in when I saw a game in 77-78? Who knows?

So this is as far as I can get at the moment. Conclusion: There is a very slight possibility that I saw Glenn Burke play an MLB game and for any of those other games that Spring I may have been at, he would've been in the dugout.

Wish I had a program. Or a ticket. Or kept a journal!

Looking at other statistics, Glenn was only around 25 at the time!  Seems so young now. Let's see, I was only 23-24!

[Lyle (Mooska)]

I looked up some info about the Glenn Burke documentary.  It once played at the Castro Theatre in San Francisco!

Even better, I found you can watch the whole thing on Vimeo:
https://vimeo.com/171518513

I will do that sometime this week!

On youtube: a trailer for it...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFiekJb2HLQ

From last year:
Dear Glenn Burke: A Letter from Billy Bean
June 26, 2020
Billy Bean, MLB's VP of Social Responsbility & Inclusion, pens a letter to Glenn Burke, MLB’s first openly gay player.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AD5qF4w2RM

[fritzkep]

^^^

Yes, indeed, Fritz!

I mention Chris Taylor (he's from Virginia, Fritz) because I immediately liked him when he came to the Dodgers in 2016 and then sometime later I saw a video where he was interacting with fans and he was so gracious and charming it made me like him more. Then a couple years ago I was watching video of some kind of a more private event at Dodger stadium...it may have been a fundraiser or something. There was a stage set up and during the video each player was introduced along with a significant other, girlfriend or wife or whatever, and they's come out on the stage and walk down the stairs to the field. During all this they introduced Chris Taylor and he came out on the stage by himself. No wife. No girlfriend. No one else. He seemed somewhat embarrassed. But it made me start wondering. At some point I googled things about him to see if he was dating or anything. Since 2016 this is basically the most current information you get:

Chris Taylor is a professional baseball player who has maintained his reputation in baseball as he is never involved in controversies. Being a clean and disciplined player, he has managed to gain a lot of fan following.  So his personal life is always a matter of discussion among his fans.

Well, so far the famous player seems to be single as no details are suggesting that he is dating someone. Moreover, Taylor hasn't shared and only hints on his social media accounts about his relationship status, and neither has he mentioned anything in any of his interviews. He might be guessed single due to the lack of information about his relationship status. However, unless he shares something in the media about his current relationship status it is hard to assume anything. Furthermore, Taylor might have had a relationship in the past, but any details are still unknown.

So... I am assuming he's gay unless told otherwise.

?

He will be a free agent after the upcoming season, which means trade possibilties, so I'm going to enjoy him all the more this season, but I wish he'd come out!   

Chris Taylor:



And guess what? !!! I just realized right this second that Chris Taylor's uniform number (3) is the same number that Glenn Burke wore. Coincidence? Or Kismet?

Yay! That would be great!