Remembering Billy Martin

It is my personal view that a better Major League Manager than Billy Martin has not been born yet. I was lucky enough to see Billy Martin at work in the Bronx in the old Yankee Stadium. He was a man with a vision and a mind suited to inspire others to be the best they could be. Many coaches and managers have tried and failed to emulate his unique insight, winning philosophy and implementation of game plans in the mind of his players. Certainly, Billy Martin was a man with poise for he knew how to strike a pose, and many a time he used his disposition to kick up a fuss if things were going against his team, especially against the umpires who denounced him as a man who disregarded conventions. As one might have expected, many Mets’ fans had a colourful opinion of the man I called Odysseus, the architect of a Greek subterfuge that brought Troy to its knees in the time before Christ; to those people Billy Martin was the most unpleasant and rude man that anyone could possibly had the misfortune to meet.  On the other hand, in the eyes of the diehard Yankees’ fans Billy Martin could do no wrong, and whenever he was dismissed by the blues it became a cause for jubilation in the old Yankee Stadium as many fans used to think that he was a cool dude for his bad behaviour after having been dismissed. Indeed. Billy’s performance in front of his fans often became a long whine as he used to shout his thoughts to the wind in the hope it would pass them to Zeus and the rest of the baseball world. Still, Billy Martin remains an idol to me and many more people around the globe. Long live his accomplishments and sentimental memories.

P.Figueras