Submitted by Rick B, Jul 17, 2007 11:32

Too many reporters talk about Rickey as if he were an idiot or evil incarnate, while every player you ask has nothing but great things to say about him. He might be unsophisticated, but he is a true savant at baseball. Well before OBP was a stat, he knew the most important things were to get on base, to get to the starting pitcher, and score runs. He used every resource at his disposal to beat every catcher, pitcher, and coach on the opposing teams he played against to break Lou Brock's all time record in 2/3 the time, something unheard of in a sport the age of Major League Baseball. How many all time records in any sport have been beaten by a factor of 50%?!? People talk all the time about Tony Gwinn and Wade Boggs as hitters, but Rickey's total productivity blows them so far out of the picture as to render them minor leaguers. The walks, the steals, the power, etc., dwarf their numbers. And beloved players like Cal Ripken, who frequently played to the detriment of his team when hurt, when September call-ups should have had a chance to play, etc., have bad stats, like most double plays all-time, more caught stealing than safe, etc. Overall productivity, when all stats are factored in, is mediocre and definitely not Hall of Fame worthy. On the walks alone, because nobody would ever intentionally walk the all-time greatest base stealer, he deserves to be considered the all time leader. They should separate intentional from unintentional walks, and then he would be the king in that category too, as he is in runs, steals, and lead-off homers (no one is close here, either).

Rickey was money, and Rickey put up great stats every year but it was never enough. If Cal had to steal and dive back to first as much as Rickey, he would never have played more than one full year without a day off. Rickey knew his body and took days off when he was hurting. The guy is small, probably 5-9. People called him a dog. If he was as well-spoken as Gwynn he would be one of the most beloved players ever. Rickey used psychological warfare (street ball) on pitchers to upset their games, and he made the players around him better. He wasn't mean or a vile idiot like Lenny Dykstra, cursing out congressmen and crashing cars while drunk, who people loved because of the press. He suffered because in his heyday, many statisticians struggled to create ways to quantify what he was accomplishing as compared to big sluggers. He helped create many of the Sabermetricians out there. He should have won at least one more MVP, possibly two. He was Billy Martin's ultimate weapon and together they created "Billy Ball". Rickey will help the Mets and belongs in baseball until he decides to quit. "Educated" sports writers may dislike a kid who grew up in the ghettos of Oakland without a father and wasn't well-spoken enough to effectively emulate his hero, Muhammad Ali, but educated fans and the players that played with Rickey all love him and know he is the real deal, a once in a lifetime gem.

The Mets will be looser and play better, especially their speed guys. Hail to the Mets! Hail Rickey!

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