Steve Blass
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
was unbelievable.
I had just finished high school in 1960, signed with the Pirates.
He hit that home run.
I said, well, I'm signed up with a pretty good bunch.
But that was kind of the cherry on the cake for Bill.
But you can't lose track.
In my mind, in a lot of people's mind, arguably the best second baseman that ever played the game.
The way he played, the way he just misdirected the baseball game
when it came from third or short.
It seemed like it never touched his gut.
It just changed directions coming from third or short over to first base.
And I watched him.
I learned from him.
I'm going to miss him so much because he was part of that group that when I was a rookie in 1964, those leftover guys, Maz and Bob Friend and Vernon Law and all those guys,
helped me go from being a ballplayer to a major leaguer.
And Bill was at the forefront of that.
We roomed together.
We laughed together.
We cried together when I couldn't pitch anymore.
He was in my corner, and it's been a tough day.