Damn Yankees by Edward Drobinski - HTML preview

Damn Yankees

Page 286

standings, and when a sportswriter asked Martin if he thought the Brewers were legitimate contenders, Martin hotly replied, "If the Brewers can win with that club, then I'm a Chinese aviator." This comment irked Brewers fans, and when the Tigers next visited Milwaukee, Brewers fans displayed signs responding to Martin's comments, such as "Fly the Friendly Skies of China with Billy Martin," while Milwaukee County Stadium's organist would play the theme to Chinatown whenever Martin walked out to the pitching mound, as the crowd booed him. In August, when the Tigers returned to Milwaukee, the Brewers hosted a "Chinese Aviator Night," with fans dressing up and Martin serving as a judge in a "Chinese Aviator look alike" contest. Despite being in first place in June, the Brewers ended up with a losing record.

On August 30, frustrated that umpires were not calling Indians

pitcher Gaylord Perry for spitballs, Martin ordered his pitchers to do the same, and told the media what he had done after the game. He was suspended by AL president Joe Cronin for breaching league rules. This was the last straw for Campbell, who fired Martin before the suspension ran out.

No one didn’t know Billy Martin. Billy must have been on a first

name basis with 10,000 notable Americans. Senator Eugene McCarthy, the presidential peace candidate who had become chums