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mchenrycards
Featured Contributor, Vintage Corner, Senior Membe
Its been awhile since I have posted a photo of the day but I ran across a photo I thought was pretty cool. This photo shows New York Mets skipper Casey Stengel no doubt trying to impart his wisdom on Mets rookie Ed Kranepool in 1962.
Now there is a great deal going on in this photo. First of all it was shot at the old Polo Grounds, former home of the New York Giants and home of the Mets until Shea Stadium was ready for action in 1964. When one thinks about the ghost of players past that haunted that old ball park it is very cool to see it in full color and imagine what tales the steel would tell tales of what it saw if it could. Kranepool was 17 years old when this photo was shot and his storied Mets career was only starting when one of the legends of the game sat him down on the steps of that old dugout to talk baseball. One only has to wonder if Kranepool understood anything old Casey was actually saying as Stengel was known to speak in Stengel-ese (look it up on YouTube) and was known to never really give a straight answer.
Stengel was no stranger to the Polo Grounds as he played many games for Legendary manager John McGraw at the oddly shaped field for the New York Giants from 1921-23 and hit two home runs in a winning effort in the 1921 World Series. The Yankees and Babe Ruth Battled the Giants in the best of nine game series (yes...nine games) with all games of that series being played at the Polo Grounds. This series would be the first of many appearances for the Yankees in the post season and the making of a dynasty that exists even today.
Casey Stengel was usually pretty good at comments for the reporters and he never failed to provide them what they wanted. About Ed Kranepool he was to have said:
I hope you enjoy today's photo!
Now there is a great deal going on in this photo. First of all it was shot at the old Polo Grounds, former home of the New York Giants and home of the Mets until Shea Stadium was ready for action in 1964. When one thinks about the ghost of players past that haunted that old ball park it is very cool to see it in full color and imagine what tales the steel would tell tales of what it saw if it could. Kranepool was 17 years old when this photo was shot and his storied Mets career was only starting when one of the legends of the game sat him down on the steps of that old dugout to talk baseball. One only has to wonder if Kranepool understood anything old Casey was actually saying as Stengel was known to speak in Stengel-ese (look it up on YouTube) and was known to never really give a straight answer.
Stengel was no stranger to the Polo Grounds as he played many games for Legendary manager John McGraw at the oddly shaped field for the New York Giants from 1921-23 and hit two home runs in a winning effort in the 1921 World Series. The Yankees and Babe Ruth Battled the Giants in the best of nine game series (yes...nine games) with all games of that series being played at the Polo Grounds. This series would be the first of many appearances for the Yankees in the post season and the making of a dynasty that exists even today.
Casey Stengel was usually pretty good at comments for the reporters and he never failed to provide them what they wanted. About Ed Kranepool he was to have said:
- "He's only seventeen and he runs like he's thirty" -Stengel on why he kept Kranepool on the bench in 1962.
- "We've got a couple of kids here named (Ed) Kranepool and (Greg) Goosen, and they're both 20 years old. In 10 years Kranepool has a chance to be a star. In 10 years Goosen has a chance to be 30!"
I hope you enjoy today's photo!
