January Pickups

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by DBesse27

I had heard Feller was actually quite gracious in his later years and he sure seemed that way when he was at a Hall of Fame Classic a couple of years before his death. Great card!

Unfortunately, there are plenty of stories out there about exactly how un-gracious Feller could be to fans in his later years. But there are the same stories about Mantle, Mays, and Ted Williams...just to name a few. I think it goes back to having to remember that ballplayers may be heroes but they are also human beings. There is a fine line in what we realistically can expect from them. In Feller's example you have to consider that he had been a celebrity since he was a teenager, and likely had some trouble getting with the changing times when he was still out there signing autographs in his late 80's. Feller also was a quiet but steady critic of Nolan Ryan when he began to surpass some of his strikeout records in the 1980's. I think that perception where it was noticed gave Feller the image of a grump as well.