Happy birthday, Bobby Valentine
by Adam J. Morris on May 13, 2009 2:30 PM CDT
Email
PrintHappy birthday to Bobby Valentine, who turns 59 today.
Most of you know Bobby V. managed the Rangers for quite some time in the late-80s and early-90s, when Tom Grieve was the g.m., but you may not know that he was also a stud prospect back in the day, the #5 pick overall in the draft whose career was short-circuited when, as a 23 year old Angels outfielder, he got his spikes caught in a chain in the outfield and suffered a compound fracture of his leg.
He also finished up his career with the Mariners, making him yet another former Ranger with Seattle ties.
48 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Bobby V
possible future manager of the Rangers? He is buds with Nolan. He wants to come back to the States, supposedly. Makes sense to me.
"We live, we die, and the wheels on the bus go round and round." - Tony Romo
No mention of the restaurant chain?
I think the one off of Bowen is still open, isn’t it?
Grieve: The Yanks have struggled so far. - Lewin: Yeah, cry me a bag of money.
Dykstra has all the money!
ElectricOkra.com
It is still open but...
…I have it on good authority that he sold his interest in the Arlington location.
I have no objection to man walking on the moon.
yep
new owners
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
by Dirk Diggler on May 13, 2009 5:48 PM CDT up reply actions
Yeah those were awesome...
…maybe the best fried cheese I’ve ever had. I used to love going there.
The past couple of years… not so much.
I have no objection to man walking on the moon.
I used to go to the N Arlington one every coupla weeks or so.
I saw plenty of players, but never bothered them too much. Chatted with Inky once, and Nolan another time.
Oddest time was me and an old gf were partying pretty hardy, and Bobby was taking orders and running all over the joint. One time I went back for another drink, and Bobby was behind the bar, so he served me. Later on he asked us to try some new menu item out, and we told him it was very good.
Several hours later we went to leave, and the cashier said we didn’t have a bill…wtf? I looked around and Bobby was walking by and I asked him about it…“Thanks for stopping by, have a great night with your lady”…he totally comped a 75-100 bill. Wow.
"Back on the scene, with a gangsta lean" RW
"you gonna lose your horse. seriously." FX2
Yes we can! November 04, 2008
Cool deal.
That’s how we paisans roll, Rodney. There’s at least one thing more important than money. :)
"I saw your act, just didn't make it for me. Just a lot of fluff."
He is also the son-in-law of...
…Ralph Branca (gave up the “Shot Heard ’Round the World”). I was fortunate enough to be introduced to Mr. Branca by Bob in the restaurant one night. A great guy who really enjoyed talking baseball and put up for the better part of an hour with a spare like me asking him question after question.
I have no objection to man walking on the moon.
I loved that place.
I spared Charlie Hough and Ruben Sierra on separate occasions there. I’ve since grown up, can’t believe Bobby started managing the team at the same age I am now. Time flies.
"I saw your act, just didn't make it for me. Just a lot of fluff."
I liked Bobby V's place as well.
I remember going there in late ’86 and Inky was coming back from the bar double-fisted with a couple of Coors Lights.
Bobby V was a pretty important person in Ranger baseball even though the team wasn’t very successful. Most of the early 80’s were godawful and he did a good job of selling the game to DFW when interest was starting to lag.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
Yep. His importance can't be underestimated.
He was a great ambassador for the game in this area after some lean years. Kinda reminded me of Billy Martin in the early 80’s with Oakland. Played a lot of kids, and passionate.
"I saw your act, just didn't make it for me. Just a lot of fluff."
Wash vs. Bobby V
Believe it or not, Wash is now #4 on the all-time WIN list for Rangers managers. That seemed pretty shocking to me.
lol
that’s pretty sad that a manager of a few .500ish teams could be number 4/
By 2028, Mark Teixeira will be in the HOF.
-The Outlaw
I happened to go to the Rangers game the day he was fired
Heard the news on the radio on the way to the game. Some guys in the outfield bleachers had a sign that said, “Hey, Bobby! Winn-Dixie’s hiring!”
I was at that game...
as well. I was in terrifying Arlington Stadium trough bathrooms when it was announced over loud speaker.
by ghostofErikThompson on May 13, 2009 3:45 PM CDT up reply actions
It was only the second Rangers game I'd ever been to in my life.
Aye...
Jeff Frye’s first game, too.
by ghostofErikThompson on May 13, 2009 7:17 PM CDT up reply actions
I worked at the one on Bowen
I got hired a couple of weeks after Bobby got fired. He had just fired the dishwasher and he was actually in there washing dishes. He could be kind of an a$$, but any time he was in the restaurant, he was working… and he usually left a pretty good tip if you waited on him.
interesting
i did not know that…
"if my kid said 'uhh' that much, i would say, Hey! ... stop saying 'uhh' that much..." - dennis miller
The question that always comes to mind
When I see this image is: who the eff has a fake moustache in the clubhouse?? And WHY??
"...like some Russian priest fresh off a bottle of potato vodka and a box of cigars." -t ball
by rangerdanger on May 13, 2009 6:17 PM CDT up reply actions
Chains in the Outfield?
It must have been back in those days of yore when the players left their gloves — as well as 2×4s, box springs, and rusty engine blocks — lying out there. Or maybe the Angels were playing Ricky Vaughn and the ringers from the California Penal league that day.
I don't think it was a chain his leg got caught up in.
He was trying to climb the fence with his cleats and the old Big A used to have either a baggy or some kind of coating on the fences to make them softer. It was an ugly injury.
He was really hyped when he came up (he was with Garvey, Buckner, Cey, Paciorek, Russell, Lopes, Hough et al) but wasn’t that good of a player in The Show. Not sure if it was because he was beaned a couple of times in the minors or really wasn’t that good to begin with plus he supposedly pissed off Walter Alston.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
Come, now, Josey...
it takes a pretty special player to be a good player in The Show at 23.
"I know you're a bit dense but no, it doesn't. Obviously lying isn't a problem for me."
Valentine was fair to spare as a major leaguer
when he was 23 years old.
"Dying ain't hard. It's living that's hard."
Bobby V
was he still the manager the day he was booted from the game and a couple of innings came back into the dugout wearing a fake mustache? That was a funny bit IMO.
I soloed in the Mile High Club!
x
just saw Walter’s link never mind.
I soloed in the Mile High Club!
OT: Best sports night of 2009
Red hot Rangers
Mavs playoffs
Pens v. Caps Game 7
"I saw your act, just didn't make it for me. Just a lot of fluff."
Uh...
Cool beans…
"...like some Russian priest fresh off a bottle of potato vodka and a box of cigars." -t ball
by rangerdanger on May 13, 2009 6:18 PM CDT up reply actions
Valentine
It was the 1991 Rangers who made me a fan. Prior to that I didn’t give a damn about them. I liked the A’s. Dave Stewart was king. But Gonzalez, Sierra, and the rest of the bunch sold me. Gonzalez played center field a lot of days back then if I remember right, and I think it’s also the same year Pudge broke in. Dean Palmer, too? And while he wasn’t a rookie who could forget the fearsome Jeff Huson? In my mind, though, I think of this period as the “Reimer Era”.
Anyway, I didn’t follow the Rangers prior to that so maybe it started earlier, but I remember fans turning on Valentine after that team’s 14-game winning streak was followed by an awful stretch. They fired Valentine the next year even though I seem to remember the team was doing fairly well.
And then there was Kevin Kennedy. Remember when Bob Tewksbury and Charlie Liebrandt?
Ah, the early nineties. Those were more interesting losing teams that what they’ve fielded for most of this decade, that’s for sure.
Dave Valle is a clown....
says we’ve been winning bc of our bats, no mention of the pitching…..
I'm Ron Burgundy?
I made this
a fanshot but Heyman says he loves him some Teixiera trade (after the Clemens stuff)
"He will not coddle them. Nolan Ryan doesn’t coddle." - Jeff Passan
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
- Ku Klux Klan, umpires and bowling: Why the minor leagues tossed out Jim Evans academy
- The Cardinals Hall of Fame can now be found at Bill Clinton’s library in Arkansas (Huh?)
- Will Bryce Harper start the season with the Nationals?
- Mitch Mustain puts football behind him, signs reported rookie deal with White Sox
- Robinson Cano and Denzel Washington face off in Jay Leno’s Yankees trivia contest
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
