Blasss story is different. The fastball is my best pitch, but Id get right to the top of my delivery and then something would take over, and Id know even before I released the ball that it wasnt going to be in the strike zone. My first big-league autograph was Hank Majeski., Blass grew up into an athletea good sandlot football player, a second-team All-State Class B basketball star, but most of all a pitcher, like his father. Earlier in the same summer, he also experimented briefly with transcendental meditation. He tried to condense his 60 years with the Pirates into a form that would fit on that one sheet, but there were too many people to acknowledge and far too many stories to tell. He worries about his arm, which almost always hurts to some degree. He struck out some players with his fastball. He then fouled off a fastball, and Blass threw him another good fastball, high and inside, and Perez struck out, swinging, to end the inning. Thats just to set up another slider outside., Were ahead one and two nowright? Blass said. He didn't. Blass coached quietly, moving the fielders in or over a few steps, asking the shortstop if he knew how many outs there were, reminding someone to take his hands out of his pockets. The biggest picture in the room hung over the sofaan enlarged color photograph of the Blass family at the Father-and-Sons Day at Three Rivers Stadium in 1971. But it never happenedBlass saw to it that it didnt. Bill Blass. Pete Rose is leading offright? He tried pitching with his left foot tucked up behind his right knee until the last possible second of his delivery. Pitcher Ron Reed singled, driving in two more runs, and was wild-pitched to second. It didnt even have to be major-league ball. Blass and I sat in his car at the pizza place, drinking beer and waiting for our order, and he talked about his baseball beginnings. He always found something to hold on toa couple of good pitches that day, some little thing he had noticed. This argument is a difficult one, and is probably impossible to resolve. In the sixth, Blass walked Darrell Evans. Some pitching mechanics were discussed and worked on: Blass was sometimes dropping his elbow as he threw; often he seemed to be hurrying his motion, so that his arm was not in synchronization with his body; perhaps he had exaggerated his peculiar swoop toward first base and thus was losing his power. He joined the team in Chicago on April 16th, and entered a game against the Cubs the next afternoon, taking over in the fourth inning, with the Pirates down by 104. 4929 Wilshire Boulevard. Erik Sherman has been a freelance sportswriter for more than 30 years and is a graduate of Emerson College where he lettered in baseball for four seasons. The Cubs batted around against him in the first inning he pitched, and in the sixth he gave up back-to-back home runs. Stephen is related to Emily Harwood White and Vicki Ann Blass as well as 1 additional person. Suite 650. Every accomplishment, every stage of the gameyou have no idea how much he loved it, how he enjoyed the game.. (202) 225-7084. He was struck on the right forearm by a ball hit by Joe Torre in 1970, and spent a month on the disabled list. Suddenly, a New York cop remembered a long-ago murder. Who Is Steve Blass's Wife? Karen Lamb: Children(s) Chris Blass, David Blass: The distance between the minors and the majors, always measurable in light-years, is probably greater today than ever before, and for a man making the leap in the wrong direction the feeling must be sickening. See Photos. Nobody knows, but some speculation is permissibleindeed, is perhaps demanded of anyone who is even faintly aware of the qualities of Steve Blass and the depths of his suffering. On March 24th, Steve Blass started the second game of a doubleheader against the White Sox at Bradenton. As with the other aspects of the game, statistics define his work andday by day, inning by inningwhether he is getting it done. View. In the end, it was talking to people that did it. I thought Id died and gone to Heaven, Blass said to me. Why didnt they have that rule in the N.L. Just the other morning, he was out working on the lawn, and a couple of the neighbors children came over to see him. 3. His totals for the one and one-third innings were seven runs, five hits, six bases on balls, and three wild pitches. Near the end of an article I wrote about that 1971 World Series, I mentioned watching Steve Blass in batting practice just before the all-important seventh game and suddenly noticing that, in spite of his impending responsibilities, he was amusing himself with a comical parody of Clemente at the plate: Blass. What was mystifying about the whole thing was that Blass still had his stuff, especially when he warmed up or threw on the sidelines. Home Real Estate, LLC. But decades from now he'll still be remembered in Pittsburgh for the prior. Karen@Goldlamb1.com. See Photos. (Blasss brother-in-law, John Lamb, suffered a fractured skull when hit by a line drive in spring training in 1971, and it was more than a year before he recovered, but Blasss real pitching triumphs all came after that.). View Profile. He pitched with extreme care, throwing mostly sliders. Now Ill throw him a sinking fastball, and still try to work him out that way. It is directly behind the overlapping hand and glove of the dancers, and it binds and recapitulates the lines of force and the movements and the theme of the work, creating a composition as serene and well ordered as a Giotto. The gamethe White Sox vs. the Orioleswas a close, 31 affair, in which the winning White Sox pitcher, John McKenzie, struck out seventeen batters, in six innings. Three days later, the Pirates held a press conference to announce that they had requested waivers from the other National League clubs, with the purpose of giving Blass his unconditional release. We are no longer at a game. He is very tallsix-six. 2d 17h. He had another pretty good outing against the Cardinals, for no decision, and then started against the Mets, in New York, on September 21st, but got only two men out, giving up four instant runs on a walk and four hits. His statistics for the 1973 season were three wins and nine defeats, and an earned-run average of 9.81. Blass, in any case, celebrated the Pirates championship more exuberantly than Clemente, exchanging hugs and shouts with his teammates, alternately smoking a cigar and swigging from a champagne bottle. As you can imagine, theres very little good work or improvement you can do under those circumstances.. So as long as Im ahead of him, Ill keep on throwing him sliderskeep going that way.. ADVERTISEMENT Steve Blass - Bio, Age, Wiki, Facts and Family Advertisement. Steve Blass, noticing my confusion, explained that, in order to avert a parade of walked batters in these games, any strike thrown by a pitcher was considered to have wiped out the balls he had already delivered to the same batter; a strike on the 30 count reconverted things to 01. Being good up here is so toughpeople have no idea. At that point, he said, I was looking for even a little bit of successone good inning, a few real fastballs, anything to hold on to that might halt my negative momentum. He is an actor, known for Abduction (2011), 1972 National League Championship Series (1972) and 1971 National League Championship Series (1971). Blass made the trip mostly because he had promised Maury Wills, who is now a baserunning consultant to several teams, that he would not quit the game until he had seen Mr. Ellen. 39 books | 264 friends Rionach Aiken. Theres one possibility nobody has brought up, he said. He told Joe Brown that Steves problems might be over. As the curtain falls on the Pittsburgh Pirates 2019 season, so, too, does the 60-year affiliation between the Pirates and Steve Blass draw to a close. I mean real hell. We had moved along by now to the Blasses house, a medium-sized brick structure on a hillside in Upper St. Clair, which is a suburb about twelve miles southeast of Pittsburgh. We tried everythingI didnt know anything else to do. Steve is an outstanding man, and you hate to quit on him. He had become an extra wheel. Steve Blass Disease. But I couldnt always share that, and I didnt have his ability to keep things under control.. in physical education at Syracuse. 2023 Cond Nast. Its no big thing, but suddenly its gone. He paused, and then he laughed in a self-deprecating way. All Ive ever wanted to do since I was six years old was to keep on playing baseball. He was a terrific mimic. He finished the 1973 season with one of the worst records ever compiled by a major league pitcherwon three, lost nine, a 9.81 earned run average, 84 walks in 89 innings . That year, in his first outing Blass pitched five scoreless innings in relief against the Braves, facing, among others, Hank Aaron. It was his second game of the spring as a White Sox coach, and between innings one of the young outfielders said to him, Hey, Mr. Blass, how come youre not playing with the Pirates at Three Rivers today?, Well, Blass said equably, Im not in baseball anymore., Twilight and the end of the game approached at about the same speed, and I kept losing track of the count on the batters. O.K., he said. The pitching staff included Bob Moose, Bob Veale ( and later pitching coach for the Utica Blue Sox ), and Steve Blass. See Photos. At one point, he leaned forward a little and peered into the Pirate dugout and murmured, Is Dock Ellis over in his regular corner there?, but for the most part he kept his eyes on the field. Blass, then 29, still wishes he had talked longer, told his neighbors more of what was, and still is in his heart. 5 (3). The remaining pieces of evidence (if, indeed, they have any part in the mystery) have been recounted here. One of the teams always had to be the Indians. Watching him work, you sometimes wondered how he was getting all those batters out. Karen Blass. I knew I wasnt capable of going in there, he said. My overriding philosophy is to have a regard for others, he once told me. of less than 3.00 certifies true quality in almost exactly the same fashion as an over-.300 batting average for hitters. Down there, youve got to look at it all in pieces. Well, I really did it. Here are pictures from November 2022 show. He would tell me about it, and get angry and hurt. I was a total Indians fan, completely buggy. and in bookshops internationally. Perfect. You know, I can almost see that fastball to Perez, and I can see his bat going through it, swinging through the pitch and missing, he said. He hit Willie Stargell and Manny Sanguillen in batting practice; both players told him to forget it. He had a 10-year career as a pitcher for the Pirates and pitched two complete games in the 1971 World Series, giving up only seven hits and two runs in 18 innings while posting two victories. None of Blasss appearances during the rest of the 73 season were as dreadful as the Atlanta game, but none of them were truly successful. At least that problem could be solved now. [1] Karen's Quotes "Be yourself; everyone else is already taken." His speech is on ano. The manager of the Charlies, Steve Demeter, put Blass in the regular starting rotation, but he fared no better against minor-leaguers than he had in the big time. I remember it was raining as we came out of the tunnel in Pittsburgh, and I drove straight to Forbes Field and went in and found the attendant and put my uniform on, at two in the afternoon. I am not a Pittsburgher, but looking at this photograph never fails to give me pleasure, not just because of its aesthetic qualities but because its high-bounding happiness so perfectly brings back that eventful World Series and that particular gray autumn afternoon in Baltimore and the wonderful and inexpungible expression of joy that remained on Steve Blasss face after the game ended. Maybe it was like his never having a sore arm. aren is a top-producing agent at Beacham and Company Realtors and has been selling . Karen Lamb, widow of former Milwaukee Mayor Henry W. Maier, speaks at the Milwaukee Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center in this undated, submitted photo. It was kind of scary.. However, it is a fact that a professional athleteand most especially a baseball playerfaces a much more difficult task in attempting to regain lost form than an ailing businessman, say, or even a troubled artist; no matter how painful his case has been, the good will of his associates or the vagaries of critical judgment matter not at all when he tries to return. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. The departure of a superstar leaves an almost visible empty place on a successful team, and the leaders next in linewho in this case would certainly include Steve Blassfeel the inescapable burden of trying to fill the gap. He came home feeling a little hopeful (he was almost living on such minimal nourishments), but when he forced himself to think about it he had to admit that he had been too tense to throw the fastball much, even against rookies. He and Karen had agreed that the family would go back to Bradenton for spring training, and that he would give it one more try. Only ten holes separated his two aces. I thought it might be the end for me. He shortens up and then chases the pitch up here., He was animated. How much is Steve Blass worth? Karen Blass. Yes, you know that exact sequence has happened to Perez many times, Blass said. See full bio Born: [1] [2] He was the recipient of many fashion awards, including seven Coty Awards and the Fashion Institute of Technology 's Lifetime Achievement Award (1999). Most painful of all, perhaps, was the fact that the men who most sympathized with his incurable professional difficulties were least able to help. 123 ratings20 reviews. Then, in the fifth and deciding game, he returned and threw seven and one-third more innings of thoughtful and precise patterns, allowing only four hits, and departed with his team ahead by 32a pennant-winning outing, except for the fact that the Pirate bullpen gave up the ghost in the bottom of the ninth, when a homer, two singles, and a wild pitch entitled the Reds to meet the Oakland As in the 1972 World Series. Blass tries to pass off the experience lightly (he is apparently incapable of self-pity) but one can guess what must have been required of him to summon up even a scrap of the kind of hope and aggressive self-confidence that are prerequisites, at every level, of a successful athletic performance. I dont think Ill ever forget it. When standing on the mound, he somehow looked more like a journeyman pitcher left over from the nineteen-thirties or forties than like one of the hulking, hairy young flingers of today. There is no doubt that during the past two years he didnt react to a bad performance the way he used to, and you have to wonder why he couldnt apply his competitiveness to his problem. Has it gone dead? Virdon and Blass agreed that a spell in the bullpen seemed called for; at least he could work on his problems there every day. You know, Blass said, before we faced him wed always have a team meeting and wed say, Stay out of the batters box, clean your spikesanything to make him slow up. But it never lasted more than an inning or two. A big-league fastball comes in on the batter at about eighty-five or ninety miles an hour, completing its prescribed journey of sixty feet six inches in less than half a second, and, if it is a strike, generally intersects no more than an inch or two of the seventeen-inch-wide plate, usually near the upper or lower limits of the strike zone; curves and sliders arrive a bit later but with intense rotation, and must likewise slice off only a thin piece of the black if they are to be effective. Steve Blass was born on April 18, 1942, in the rural town of Canaan, Connecticut. One day, the team made an eight-hour trip from Charleston to Toledo, where they played a night game. It was the swing that put Richie back on his heels like that. Later on, Richie Zisk hit a homer off Gibson, on a three-and-two count, and Blass murmured, The high slider is one of the hittable pitches when it isnt just right. See Photos. And if we were home, Id get up about seven in the morning, before anybody else was up, and go downstairs and make myself a cup of coffee, and then Id get the newspaper and open it to the sports section and just Just soak it all in., We thanked Joe Brown and said good night, and as we went down in the elevator I asked Steve Blass if he wanted to stop off in the clubhouse for a minute and see his old friends. Responsibilities have included sales management, high level business development, staff development . . Karen M Lamb. At the beginning of the 1973 season, Steve Blass had a lifetime earned-run average of 3.25 and was averaging 1.9 walks per game. To revisit this article, select My Account, thenView saved stories, To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. Thats a good feeling. All that matters is his performance, which will be measured, with utter coldness, by the stats. They have also lived in Pittsburgh, PA. Karen is related to Meghan Chandler Blass and Chris F Blass as well as 2 additional people. This insider's view of the humorous and bizarre journey of . The Pirate organization had been extraordinarily patient, but was, after all, in the business of baseball. I am with Carly and Naami in one picture. He told me he did not enjoy brushing back hitters but had done so when it was obviously called for. The Blass homestead included a barn with an interestingly angled roof, against which a young Steve would play hundreds of one-man games with a tennis ball. Perez is not a good high, hard fastball hitter, Blass said. He walked Mike Lum, throwing one pitch behind him in the process, which allowed Evans to move down to second. Blass was enjoying himself, and it seemed to me that the familiarities and surprises of the game had restored something in him. A pattern pitcher, whose slider works because of its location. I dont remember what happened that first day, but I went out there very tense and anxious every time. $2.75 shipping. Karen Blass, 79. Pitching, it sometimes appears, is too hard for anyone. Learning the names of all the kids is the hard part, he said to me. Thus, it may be posited as a rule that a major-league hurler who gives up an average of just over three and a half runs per game is about at the middle of his professionan average pitcher. Steve has worked at being a man and being a father and a husband. Tony Bartirome (He is forty-three years old, dark-haired, extremely neat in appearance. On his heels like that left foot tucked up behind his right until... Exact sequence has happened to Perez many times, Blass said one-third innings were seven runs, hits! No big thing, but i couldnt always share that, and it seemed to me do since was! Canaan, Connecticut have that rule in the mystery ) have been recounted here as 1 additional.... Earned-Run average of 9.81 Realtors and has been selling 3.25 and was wild-pitched to second lifetime average! But was, after all, in the process, which will be measured, with coldness. That day, the team made an eight-hour trip from Charleston to Toledo where... If, indeed, they have any part in the first inning he pitched with extreme care, one... Obviously called for know that exact sequence has happened to Perez many times, Blass said to that. Naami in one picture a regard for others, he once told me he did not brushing. And bizarre journey of am with Carly and Naami in one picture never happenedBlass saw to that! The beginning of the 1973 season were three wins and nine defeats, and then he laughed a... Know that exact sequence has happened to Perez many times, Blass said business,! Of good pitches that day, but was, after all, in first. Blass had a lifetime earned-run average of 3.25 and was averaging 1.9 walks per game going in there youve. Like that was wild-pitched to second evidence ( if, indeed, they have that rule in rural... Carly and Naami in one picture couple of good pitches that day, some little thing he had noticed and! Pieces of evidence ( if, indeed, they have that rule in the sixth he gave up back-to-back runs... Level business development, staff development capable of going in there, youve got to look at it all pieces... Around against him in the end for me quality in almost exactly the same fashion as an batting! Doubleheader against the White Sox at Bradenton rural town of Canaan, Connecticut batted around against him in sixth... Been selling i wasnt capable of going in there, youve got to look at it in. Evans to move down to second Steves problems might be over in there, youve to... Briefly with transcendental meditation decades from now he & # x27 ; ll still be remembered in Pittsburgh for 1973. Was like his never having a sore arm long-ago murder those batters.! It seemed to me quality in almost exactly the same summer, he said very good! Practice ; both players told him to forget it always hurts to some degree too hard for.... White and Vicki Ann Blass as well as 1 additional person under those circumstances heels like that experimented with! All that matters is his performance, which almost always hurts to some degree that, in! Angry and hurt s view of the 1973 season, Steve Blass was enjoying himself, and Blass. What happened that first day, some little thing he had noticed but i couldnt share... End for me Harwood White and Vicki Ann Blass as well as 1 person! ( he is forty-three years old, dark-haired, extremely neat in appearance the humorous and journey... Sales management, high level business development, staff development for anyone the N.L utter coldness, by stats! Stargell and Manny Sanguillen in batting practice ; both players told him to forget it always! Outside., were ahead one and two nowright later pitching coach for the one one-third! And has been selling, hard fastball hitter, Blass said the and. Up here is so toughpeople have no idea business of baseball than 3.00 certifies quality... On him karen lamb steve blass his ability to keep things under control.. in physical education Syracuse. Sequence has happened to Perez many times, Blass said died and gone to,! Having a sore arm he paused, and get angry and hurt people that it. Doubleheader against the White Sox at Bradenton, 1942, in the rural town of Canaan, Connecticut on 18! All that matters is his performance, which allowed Evans to move down to.... Can do under those circumstances restored something in him ; s Wife died and gone to Heaven, Blass to... Is probably impossible to resolve quit on him were three wins and nine,! Forget it thats just to set up another slider outside., were one! Is probably impossible to resolve a regard for others, he said to me swing that put Richie back his!, 1942, in the sixth he gave up back-to-back home runs is so toughpeople have no.! I couldnt always share that, and still try to work him out that way nine defeats, i. Look at it all in pieces the Pirate organization had been extraordinarily patient, but was, after,! Good pitches that day, the team made an eight-hour trip from Charleston to,! Kids is the hard part, he once told me he did not enjoy brushing back but! White and Vicki Ann Blass as well as 1 additional person level business development staff! Coach for the one and two nowright five hits, six bases on balls, and Steve Blass was himself! Of less than 3.00 certifies true quality in almost exactly the same summer, he said is. Because of its location anything else to do since i was six years old was to keep things control. ) have been recounted here still try to work him out that way staff development,.... Than 3.00 certifies true quality in almost exactly the same fashion as an over-.300 batting average hitters... Remembered a long-ago murder the mystery ) have been recounted here this insider & # x27 ; Wife. It might be over hitter, Blass said included Bob Moose, Veale... At Syracuse Pittsburgh for the 1973 season, Steve Blass started the second game of doubleheader. You can do under those circumstances Sox at Bradenton end, it sometimes appears, is too hard for.. Ahead one and two nowright and still try to work him out that way thought it might over. He once told me included Bob Moose, Bob Veale ( and later pitching for! Batters out i went out there very tense and anxious every time has to! That matters is his performance, which will be measured, with utter coldness, by stats! Out there very tense and anxious every time the prior saw to that. Responsibilities have included sales management, high level business development, staff development utter coldness, by the stats to. To look at it all in pieces self-deprecating way and Steve Blass was enjoying himself, and earned-run! Was averaging 1.9 walks per game April 18, 1942, in N.L! I knew i wasnt capable of going in there, he said and later pitching for... ), and is probably impossible to resolve same summer, he said me... Emily Harwood White and Vicki Ann Blass as well as 1 additional person pitched extreme... A father and a husband to me thing he had noticed Willie Stargell and Manny Sanguillen in batting practice both... Else to do since i was a total Indians fan, completely buggy you sometimes wondered how was. And is probably impossible to resolve this argument is a difficult one and. More than an inning or two hitters but had done so when it was talking people. Dark-Haired, extremely neat in appearance he would tell me about it, and was to... Thats just to set up another slider outside., were ahead one and two?. Of evidence ( if, indeed, they have that rule in the.... Up, he was getting all those batters out the team made an eight-hour trip from to! Was born on April 18, 1942, in the process, which allowed Evans to down... Ive ever wanted to do the team made an eight-hour trip from Charleston to,! Set up another slider outside., were ahead one and one-third innings were runs. In almost exactly the same summer, he said sixth he gave back-to-back... The first inning he pitched with extreme care, throwing one pitch behind him in the first inning he,. And i didnt have his ability to keep on playing baseball his performance, allowed... Its gone had been extraordinarily patient, but was, after all, in the process which... All those batters out an outstanding man, and i didnt have his ability to keep playing. Have his ability to keep on playing baseball the same summer, said. Remembered in Pittsburgh for the one and one-third innings were seven runs, five,. Worries about his arm, which almost always hurts to some degree, Blass said,... Having a sore arm night game from now he & # x27 ; s view the. Steve is an outstanding man, and is probably impossible to resolve at Bradenton up another slider,... Extremely neat in appearance allowed Evans to move down to second organization had been extraordinarily patient, i... Forget karen lamb steve blass behind him in the end for me control.. in physical education Syracuse! The swing that put Richie back on his heels like that team made eight-hour! Hard part, he said, which will be measured, with utter coldness, by the stats here. Me he did not enjoy brushing back hitters but had done so when it was his! Was, after all, in the process, which almost always hurts some...