Yesterday's pregame activities included a ceremony celebrating Rick Monday's fantastic save of an American flag on that date in 1976. Listen to Vin Scully talk about it
here.
You can also go here to check out a bunch of photos from the evening. Per
Tracy Ringolsby at MLB.com:
"They were going to put the match to the flag, and it was soaked in
lighter fluid," remember Monday. "My attitude was if they don't have it,
they can't light it, so I scooped the flag up and kept running. I
didn't know if it was on fire or not, but I did know one of the guys was
not a [baseball prospect]. He threw the can of lighter fluid at me, but
he didn't have a good enough arm to hit me."
Featured above is a photo, via
Bill Shaikin on twitter, of Monday and his wife Barbaralee with that flag.
The story about Rick Monday's deed is well known and roundly celebrated throughout the country - as it should be. What isn't well known, however, is the circumstances surrounding the two protestors who attempted to burn that flag. In fact, no one really knows much about them, but
Vice reporter David Davis does his best to uncover the story. Unfortunately, we don't really know much more than what we already know (which isn't much):
With their disappearance, with their refusal to address the past, they
leave behind questions that seem likely to remain unanswered: What pain
and rage led them out on to the field that day, and what did it have to
do with that mental institution in Missouri? Why burn an American flag
as a method of protest, and why at Dodger Stadium? And, why did a father
use his 11-year-old son as an accomplice? In the long silence that
followed the moment, there are surely other questions—questions of
regret, questions about what it has been like to live with this for 40
years.
Below are more links to check out:
- This Day in Dodgers History: In 2008 Vin Scully received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Pepperdine University. He would later give an stirring commencement speech to the graduating Class of Seaver College at Peppederine that you can watch a snippet of here. Also, during that evenings game in Colorado Brad Penny would hurl an 93-mph fastball that is missed by catcher Russell Martin and knocks out homeplate umpire Kerwin Danley. He would be stretchered off the field.
I'm not sure if I ever pointed this out, but standing in front of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, the home of the Brooklyn Nets and New York Islanders, is the flagpole that once stood at Ebbets Field -- former home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Above is a look at the plaque describing it -- photo via Norman Oder on twitter.
