CLEVELAND, Ohio – With the Indians’ home opener coming up on Monday, I started thinking about Rocky Colavito.
He was my favorite player who grew up. Perhaps my most memorable home opener was in 1965. That was when my dad took me out of school so we could watch the game. Colavito was just traded back to Cleveland after spending the previous five years in Detroit (1960-63) and Kansas City (1964).
“It was perhaps my favorite opener,” Colavito said. “I hit a homer. Leon (Wagner) hit two homers. We won. I was so excited to be back in Cleveland. ”
When I called Colavito on Friday afternoon, his memory was excellent, as is usually the case. The Indians beat the English 6-5 in 10 overs. Wagner’s homer in the 10th won the match.
Colavito was traded to the Tigers right before the 1960 season by former tribal manager Frank Lane (“a real crook,” he recalled). He never wanted to leave Cleveland. He missed Cleveland. He was ‘excited’ to return to the team in 1965.
“Here’s a strange part of the story,” Colavito said. ‘I came across Lane in the old Hollenden Hotel in the city center. He was looking for someone, in town for the game. ”
According to Colavito, Lane told him, “(Kansas City) you negotiated back to Cleveland because (owner) Charlie Finley did not want to negotiate a contract with you.”
Who knows if that was true.
Former Indian Rocky Colavito, who has hit 190 home runs in Cleveland in eight seasons.The ordinary trader
IT’S ABOUT MONEY
But as I wrote in my book, The Curse of Rocky Colavito, one of the reasons Lane Colavito traded before the 1960s season was a $ 5,000 contract dispute. In 1959, Colavito led the American league with 42 home runs. He also rode in 111 runs, with a bat of .257 (.849 OPS). He was an All-Star and reached number 4 in the MVP poll.
Colavito was 25 and already had 139 careers. He was paid $ 28,000 in 1959. He asked for $ 45,000. Then he dropped his price to $ 40,000.
Lane told reporters: ‘Rocky hit only .257. He batted 0.303 the previous year. I’m not even sure he deserves a raise. He fired the homers and RBI by concentrating on his ‘excessive strikeouts’. Colavito waved 86 times in 664 record shows. This makes him a contact hitter by today’s standards.
Colavito eventually signed for $ 35,000. Lane was still furious about Colavito wanting $ 40,000. This fueled the trade.
Colavito thought about it and more when he saw Lane in front of the home opener in 1965. It was as if his former boss was haunting him.
Sister De Montfort and Rocky Colavito with Parmadale children in 1965.Cleveland Plain Dealer
THE FIRST OPENER
In 1954, when Cleveland won 111 games, Colavito beat 38 HR by 116 RBI in the AAA Indianapolis class while batting 0.71 (0.924 OPS). It was not enough for him to make the major in 1955. Back to Class AAA, where he has 30 HR with 104 RBI, with a bat of .268 (.861 OPS).
After hitting 68 homers in the previous two AAA seasons, he finally opened the year in Cleveland. He was 22 on April 20, 1956, the date of the Tribe’s home opener. They beat Detroit 3-1, and Early Wynn hit a full game. Colavito did not play.
He was in and mostly out of the series. The tribe decides to send him back to the minor.
“I told them I was not going,” Colavito said. “I went to the press box to watch the author with the match.”
General manager Hank Greenberg found him there and asked Colavito to return to the minors again.
“I said ‘exchange me,'” Colavito recalls. “I loved Cleveland. This is where I wanted to play. But if they do not want me, you must exchange me. I did not deserve to go back to the minors. not return. ”
Colavito had an affinity with Greenberg, a former right-handed slugger (331 career HR) who hailed from New York – like Colavito. Greenberg asked Colavito to give him three weeks to work out a roster problem, then he’s back in Cleveland.
“I trusted him,” Colavito said. “He was good at his word. I went to San Diego (Class AAA) and he brought me back to Cleveland when he said he would do it. ”
In 1956, Colavito played 101 games, batting with .276 (.903 OPS) with 21 HR and 65 RBI. He was a runner-up to Luis Aparicio for the American League Rookie of the Year.
Frank Lane (left) succeeds Hank Greenberg (right) as the general manager of the Indians in 1957. Lane is hated by Rocky Colavito, while Greenberg was loved under the former Tribe star.Cleveland Plain Dealer
LET US SPEAK CONTRACT
After the 1956 season, Colavito asked for an increase of $ 3,000. Greenberg came up with $ 1,500. Colavito talked about his 21 HR and his excellent rookie year.
Greenberg came back with this offer: ‘I’ll give you the $ 1,500 increase. And I’ll give you another $ 1,500 if you play 100 games for us (in 1957). ‘
“When I played my 100th game, I went straight to his office,” Colavito said. Hank looks at me and says, ‘I know why you’re here. “Then he told the traveling secretary, Bob Gill, ‘Get Rocky his $ 1,500 check.’ Hank Greenberg was the greatest general manager I ever had. He was always a man of his word. ‘
Rocky Colavito stood behind Herb Score during their inauguration in the Indians’ Hall of Fame at the then Jacobs Field in 2006. The ordinary trader
ROCKY COLAVITO TODAY
Colavito’s voice sounded strong as we spoke for a long time on Friday. He lost his right leg below the knee on 11 August 2015.
“The day after my 82nd birthday,” Colavito said. “Diabetes.” He talked about learning to walk with his prosthesis.
“I look pretty good,” he said. ‘But I’m slow. Then I was always slow. ‘
He laughed.
He talked about the missing Herb Score, the former Tribe pitcher and announcer. Score died in 2008 at 75 after a series of blows.
“We were roommates for seven years and dating the minors,” Colavito said. “We were as close as friends could be. When I made the team in 1956, I told everyone Herb would win 20 games. He was 20-9 that season. ”
Colavito knows Score’s stats as if they were his own. If strokes can cost Kos the score, Colavito still calls his old friend over the phone and talks and laughs. He hit 374 HR with 1,159 RBI in 13 seasons, beating .266 (.848 OPS). It was 1956-68 when the rules favored and dominated the pitcher. Seven times he has hit at least 30 HR in a season.
Now 87 Colavito is honored with a statue in Little Italy. He has lived in the same house outside Reading, Pa. For the past 39 years.
“I love it,” he said. ‘I heard they were going to put it in front of the ballpark, but it’s nice. I really appreciate it. Cleveland will always be special to me. ”
The Talkin ‘Tribe Opening Day event takes place virtually on April 5, 2021 from 12:00 to 13:30 – featuring Indian sports writers and columnists from cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer. Tickets can be booked here. Plus, join us GDP experience and get the chance to mingle with former Cleveland Indians players and more. There are only 150 tickets available for this exclusive experience, and tickets can only be won via our ticket whip.
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