In 1975 Billy Martin was hired for the first of five times by the Yankees. We had a lot of young players on that team. The word on Billy was that he was tough on young players.
In 1976 we traded veteran pitcher George Doc Medich to the Pirates for veteran pitcher Dock Ellis and the key to the trade, twenty-one-year-old second baseman named Willie Randolph.
In 1975 I had been drafted by the Pirates in the second round and got to meet Willie during spring training.
I remember taking ground balls with the very graceful infielder and realizing how good you really had to be in order to get to the big leagues. It was a wake-up call for me!
In 1976 Willie literally carried me back to the Yankees. Willie because of the trade and me because I was released.
I was back to working in the clubhouse and observing the greatness of what that time in Yank’s history was all about. Willie once asked me how do I remember everything that happened at that time. I told him because since I didn’t have to play I would come in every day strap in and watch the greatest show on earth!
I got to see firsthand the wonderful relationship that developed between Billy Martin and the rookie second baseman. I will never forget that Billy told Mr. Steinbrenner that we should keep veteran second baseman Sandy Alomar on the team so that he could mentor the young Randolph.
The move paid off because the teacher Alomar and the pupil Randolph were absolutely great together and Willie took his game to another level. It’s not surprising that Sandy’s little boy Robby Alomar would grow up to become the greatest second baseman of all time and is enshrined in the Baseballs Hall of Fame. Let me add that many true baseball experts and historians feel that Willie belongs in the Hall also.
In the clubhouse, at that time Willie was known as Teenager… a Knick name that was given to him by the fun-loving Dock Ellis.
Let me say that Billy loved Willie very much. He loved the man that Willie was becoming right before his eyes. It’s ironic that they were both second basemen, that they were both built the same, that they actually had the same first names, and their wives were named Gretchen. I must add that Billy loved Willies wife very much because he knew that she was tough and would always take care of his student.
Like Billy Martin, Willie understood the importance of loyalty.
When Willie became the first black manager(thanks to the first Latin GM Omar Minaya) in New York’s baseball history,( the Mets ) the first thing Willie did was hire Sandy Alomar as his coach.
The student never forgot his mentor Alomar and all he had done for him. I must add that he will never forget the love he had for his baseball Guru Billy Martin.
Happy birthday Willie Wonder!
