Dear Diary:
It was summer 1965. Johnny Keane had replaced Yogi Berra as the Yankees’ manager after the Bronx Bombers lost the World Series to the Cardinals the previous October.
I was 18 and arrived at Yankee Stadium very early for a weekend day game. It was against the Twins maybe, I’m not sure. The Yankees were losing badly and Gil Blanco, a rookie pitcher, was warming up in the bullpen to come in and mop up when Roger Repoz hit a three-run home run to bring the Yankees within striking distance.
I was sitting in the bleachers next to the bullpen and yelled, “Hey, Blanco, sit down.