Herb Score

Herb Score died a few days back.
Herb had been in ill health for quite a few years after injuries from an auto accident,so I knew that he had been having some problems,but it still hits you whenever things like that finally happen..

Herb Score was universally thought of as a nice guy in two businesses (Baseball and the Media) that are not exactly filled with universally loved people....
Score had three careers.
The young fireballer that looked to be Sandy Koufax before Sandy Koufax was such was career number one.
That career ended in 1957 when a line drive exploded off the bat of the Yankees Gil McDougald and crashed off the right eye of the 23 year old Score.
Score had already racked up the Rookie of the Year award from 1955 and followed it up with a 20 win season in 1956,but from the instant that the ball struck Score,that career was over....

Score always said that the McDougald liner was not the cause of his downfall and his vision returned normal over time,but rather the bad arm that was developed by mechanical troubles that occurred after the injury.
In any case,Score's second career started right after impact-one that turned him into a under.500 pitcher that was capable of occasional brilliance,but that struggled to find the plate.

Herb was just 30 years in 1963 and was in AAA Indianapolis attempting to put things back into place,when he was told of a return to Cleveland in the Indians TV booth.
Score would remain as an Indian television or radio announcer until the conclusion of the 1997 season,where his announcing would end with the Cleveland game 7 loss to the Florida Marlins.

Score was far from a classic announcer,he often made crazy comments that you had to be listening to pick up on because they were never said in an out of control voice,more matter of fact.
Indians fans never minded much though,after all-who watched more bad baseball than Herb Score?
That would have been enough to make any of us a little goofy!

I spent many nights in childhood listening to Indians games and Herb and those evenings rank among my fondest childhood memories.
The autograph card above is actually part of my collection....
Part of aging means watching the people of your youth pass on,so some of these hit harder than others,but Herb Score always seemed to be such an inherently good person that it is easy to look back and smile at the memories......


Slow news day other than the Devils playing Washington tonight in a home and home over the next two days.

Photo Credit
Score:Topps