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NYU DICE Lab 10

And I would say a good, strong double-A at that time because we had some guys who were, you know, a farm player, you know, from the farm team, rather, you know, and other elements, you know.

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When you got out in 1970, Ted Williams gave you a tryout with the Washington Senators.

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I was a very young sportscaster in Washington, D.C., when Ted was the manager there.

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I'd like to get your thoughts about the great Ted Williams and your relationship with him, Pedro.

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Well, you know, he was one of my baseball idols as I was growing up in Cuba because I used to see a lot of sports, you know, on the Gillette, Colorado sports.

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We used to see a lot of all-star games.

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They'd come out, you know, and they were all cast by a fellow by the name of Buck Connell.

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And so I had him as my idol.

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I had my fellow soccer players as my idol.

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and, you know, Coach Mendoza and Jackie Robinson.

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And it was, to me, a very, very emotional thing to meet him because, actually, when I got out of the service in 62, I was on the Twins organization for about four or five years, and I went to play on to—we had a little argument, so I went on to Canada—

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And it was funny that a friend of mine by the name of who had passed sort of a serious We were very good friends and he said I will talk to Ted Williams glad I'd come from a very successful season in Canada where I Had a Canadian League the Provincial League with my last year there in 1969 I was you know, 14 or 3 and

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I let the league in wins.

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I was a runner-up for MVP in the league.

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I was my team's MVP.

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And I said, I'm ready to get back to organized baseball.

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So I looked up to Ted.

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He asked me to come in.

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I picked right in practice.

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I threw to my four guys.

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And he pulled me off.

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And then, you know, he says, I'm going to sign you.

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Just like that.

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But it was funny because the funny part about this is that I had been – I used to live in Washington area at that time.

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And I was going –

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to the ballpark every year after my Canadian season, I will go and ask the fund director, a fellow by the name of Howard Keller, you know, to give me a chance.

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And he said, no, we don't have any spots, blah, blah, blah.

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So I will go back to Canada.

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And then when I came up to practice that year, I guess it was 69, the latter part of the season of 69, George Soucy was a bullpen coach for the Senators.

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And then he said to me,

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Don't tell anybody you play baseball.

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I said, okay, fine.

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So, you know, when they asked me, where have you played?

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I said, no place.

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They said, no place.

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But, you know, you've got good potential, blah, blah, blah.

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So I continued for two weeks.

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I was fishing mountain practice for Washington.

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And then almost at the end of the season,

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He called me one day.

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I was in the outfield, you know, chasing fly ball.

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And then he said, I want you to meet the farm director.

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Lo and behold, it was a guy who had been asking, telling me that he didn't have a spot.

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So when he told Ted, I know this guy.

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He played ball before.

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And Ted said, what do you mean?

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I said, you told me you never played ball, professional ball.

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So then, sorry to interject, but I said, look, Ted,

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What's the big difference?

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Now, if you have an old car, it would take you places.

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And if you have a new car, it's a lemon.

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One of the craziest things that he used to say.

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So I said, oh, get out of here.

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So anyway, I did go to spring training.

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He said, you're going to be in our spring camp.

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And when I first got there, he called me in the office.

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And he said, are you in?

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I said, no, I'm not scared.

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I said, well, this is major league, you know.

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Then he gave me some tips about how to, if I were to make the team, you know, how to pitch in the major leagues.

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It's not that you throw hard all the time.

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You just say, you know, you've got spot pitch, you know, 70 miles, 80, 90 miles an hour, then 87 the next time, and you pitch here and there.

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And it was very gracious, you know, and I was very impressed.

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Of course, you know, he was the greatest hitter in baseball.

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I was impressed by the way he would talk to the guys about, you know, their hitting skills, and he would talk, you know, and then, so at the end of spring training, he said, you know, I'm going to have to send you to a minor league camp because you're not going to be able to crash, you know, the starting rotation that I have here.

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So I was sent to Pittsfield.

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It's a double-A ball in the Eastern League.

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I was there

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for two years, and every year I picked out a practice at the end of the season to come up to Washington.

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Then when they moved to Texas, my contract was sold to the Mexican League, and I was in Mexico for five years.

SPEAKER_16

Thank you very much for joining us on Sports Byline.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, and I guess I'm available for any speaking engagement, and you can get through me to...

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to a sports celebrity marketing.

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Pedro Sierra with us.

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He left his native Cuba at the age of 16 to come to America to play in the Negro Leagues, and he did so with the Indianapolis Clouds back in 1954.

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Also played for the Detroit Stars where he was an all-star, and he was one of those kind of pitchers that was an aggressive pitcher who really didn't hesitate to strategically throw the brushback pitch.

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We'll continue with more of you and America's Sports Talk Show.

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Let me begin with the news of the day by thanking a grand new affiliate.

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And I say grand, not brand, because it's in the hometown.

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It's in the land.

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I really love having the talk of the town, News Talk 97.7 FM and WHTX 1570 AM.

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If you're in Youngstown, Warren Niles, you can finally get me without the static from 1420 up in Cleveland.

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You can go directly to 97.7 FM and WHTX 1570 AM.

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Hugh Hewitt, weekday mornings from 6 to 9 AM.

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I'm Radio Pastor Ernie Sanders, and indeed this is the voice of the Christian Resistance.

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Thus saith the Lord, the heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool.

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Where is the house that you builded unto me?

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And where is the place of my rest?

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For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been saith the Lord.

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What's Right, What's Left with Pastor Ernie Sanders.

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Live weeknights from 10 p.m.

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to midnight.

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If you miss the live show, you can catch the replay every morning from 10 a.m.

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to noon.

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Right here on the Talk of the Town, 97.7 FM and 1570 AM.

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If you love them enough to listen to them practice the same song on tuba... Please be done.

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...over and over and over and over and over, then surely you'll check NHTSA.gov slash the right seat to make sure they're correctly buckled in the back seat.

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