Saturday, August 1, 2009

Thurman Munson

It was one of those "remember where you were when..." moments. I was on the living room couch thirty years ago, August 2nd, watching WDAU's 5:30 PM news, when I learned Thurman Munson was killed in a plane crash in Ohio.

I wasn't a Yankee fan, but I grew up in a house filled with them. My friends were Yankee fans, and I made a few trips to Yankee Stadium as a kid. Yankees' games were on TV at least four times a week. Thurman Munson was a familiar face.

He was part of a Yankees team filled with character and characters. They fought with each other, but they won. Personality. Entertaining. Never a dull moment.

Munson bought his plane so he could visit his family back in Ohio on off days. He was practicing take offs and landings at the time of the crash. I've read Munson wasn't the most likable guy, but he gets major points in my book for attempting to spend as much time with the wife and kids as possible.

The Yankees limped to the finish line in 1979. The Pirates and the Orioles wound up in the World Series that year. It broke the Yankees streak of three straight World Series appearances. The series that year wasn't the same.

Thirty years have passed in an instant.