The great Bob Uecker passed away this week at the age of 90, and a lot of folks may be wondering....what made him great? He was a lifetime .200 hitter so he wasn't a great player. He was a very good broadcaster for the Milwaukee Brewers for 54 years and he received the Ford Fricke award He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame as a broadcaster so that could be it. However, his greatest asset was no doubt as a comedian. If you don't believe me just watch his acceptance speech when he was inducted in the Hall of Fame.
It was a classic and practically everyone was in tears laughing at the guy Johnny Carson named "Mister Baseball."
Here's an example. "The biggest thrill a ball player can have is have your son take after you. That happened when my Bobby was in his Little League Championship Game. He really showed me something. He struck out three times, made an error that lost the game. Parents were throwing things at our car and swearing at us. Gosh I was proud."
"When I `came up to bat with three men on and two outs in the ninth, I looked in the other team's dugout and they were already in street clothes."
"I signed a modest $3,000 bonus with the Braves in Milwaukee and my old man didn't have that kind of money to put out.'
"In 1962 I was named Minor League Player of the Year. Unfortunately, it was my second year in the bigs."
"The best way to catch a knuckleball is wait until it stops rolling and pick it up."
"I spent three of the best years of my life in the tenth grade."
"I set records that will never be broken. In fact, I hope they never get printed."
"I was so slow, I was once thrown out at the plate trying to score from third on a triple."
"I knew when my career was over. in 1965 my baseball card came out with no picture on it."
"Hey I think it's easy for guys to hit .300 and stay in the big leagues. Hit .200 and stay around as long as I did. I think it's a great accomplishment.
"Baseball hasn't forgotten me. I go to a lot of old timers games and I haven't lost a thing. I sit in the Bullpen and let people throw things are me. Just like old times."
Rest in peace, Mister Baseball. We'll miss you.
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