Why no Bench or Morgan on field?

[REDJAKE]

During the intros i was surprised they weren't introduced at the AS Game.

[Unassisted]

See earlier speculation in the game thread beginning here.

[Chip R]

I didn't see the game or the intros but it is curious why they weren't there.

[OnBaseMachine]

I was also quite surprised to not see them there. Other greats like Tom Seaver and Carlton Fisk were also missing...I guess they didn't want to invite all of the Hall of Famers from rivals like the Mets and Red Sox.

[Chip R]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

I was also quite surprised to not see them there. Other greats like Tom Seaver and Carlton Fisk were also missing...I guess they didn't want to invite all of the Hall of Famers from rivals like the Mets and Red Sox.

Didn't Seaver play for the Yankees a year or two?

[George Anderson]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

I was also quite surprised to not see them there. Other greats like Tom Seaver and Carlton Fisk were also missing...I guess they didn't want to invite all of the Hall of Famers from rivals like the Mets and Red Sox.

Oh I am sure Seaver, Fisk and even Yaz were invited. It would have been very bad publicity for the event had they not been. I can only speculate but I doubt if Fisk and Yaz wanted to go out on a field in front of 50,000 people and get booed for being Red Sox. Seaver played for the rival Mets but I am guessing he still would have been cheered by the Yankee faithful, so I am not real sure why he wasn't there.

[Jpup]

I wondered the same especially since Joe was there the night before. Did he do the game on the radio? That could be an explanation.

[NJReds]

Bench was on ESPN Radio in NY plugging his new book yesterday afternoon. I only caught the end and didn't hear him say that he wouldn't be there.

[OnBaseMachine]

Originally Posted by Chip R

Didn't Seaver play for the Yankees a year or two?

Nah. After he left the Reds in 1982 he went back to the Mets for one year and then to the White Sox for 2 1/2 seasons before being traded to the Red Sox for a half year in 1986 and then called it quits after that season.

[George Anderson]

Originally Posted by NJReds

Bench was on ESPN Radio in NY plugging his new book yesterday afternoon. I only caught the end and didn't hear him say that he wouldn't be there.

I wish I had a nickel every time I heard JB was on the radio plugging his new book.

Maybe JB didnt show up last night because they wouldn't let him hold up his book when they introduced him

[cumberlandreds]

IIRC, I read a while back that every living HOFer was invited. I commented in another thread that it was very disapointing that Bench and Morgan weren't there. Maybe they had prior commitments? Seaver would have been cheered if he had been there. According to Retrosheet he was cheered wildly back in 1977 at the ASG that was held in Yankee Stadium. This was his return to NYC after being traded to the Reds.
Also is Sparky in too poor of health now to travel? It would have been great to see him there too.

[George Anderson]

Originally Posted by cumberlandreds

Also is Sparky in too poor of health now to travel? It would have been great to see him there too.

If I recall Sparky came back to Cincy just last year when Daveys number was retired. I am just guessing but I am sure at his age he picks and chooses where he goes and a cross country flight from California to New York isn't at the top of his priority lists right now.

[OnBaseMachine]

Originally Posted by cumberlandreds

Also is Sparky in too poor of health now to travel? It would have been great to see him there too.

I believe so. I remember in spring training when Dusty invited him to Reds camp but Sparky had to turn it down due to health issues.

[OnBaseMachine]

Perhaps, but the occasion fell short of matching the similar ceremony before the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park, when baseball honored its All-Century team. Despite the many Hall of Famers who took the field Tuesday night, the ceremony was also notable for its many absences, including Johnny Bench, Tom Seaver, Sandy Koufax, Joe Morgan, Nolan Ryan, Stan Musial, Carlton Fisk and Carl Yastrzemski.

Compare that to the 1999 gathering. In addition to many of the players at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, the Fenway ceremony had Bench, Koufax, Ryan, Morgan, Roger Clemens, Ken Griffey Jr., Pete Rose, Stan Musial, Randy Johnson, Warren Spahn, Tony Gwynn, Mark McGwire, Pedro Martinez, Robbie Alomar and, of course, Ted Williams.

That night could have been topped only if the players had entered the ballpark through a cornfield.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/allsta...jim&id=3491424

[George Anderson]

Originally Posted by OnBaseMachine

I believe so. I remember in spring training when Dusty invited him to Reds camp but Sparky had to turn it down due to health issues.

I am pretty sure watching Dusty manage would have made Sparky's health much worse.