Fergie

You could look it up, as Casey Stengel used to say.

Ferguson Jenkins, the only Canadian in the MLB Hall of Fame (1991), spoke at our conference luncheon today and recounted his first win in the major leagues: September 10, 1965. He relieved Jim Bunning, now his fellow Hall of Famer. (Bunning has gone on to a post-MLB career that ought to earn him a spot in the Senate Hall of Shame, too.) The starter for the losing team that day: Bob Gibson. Cool.

Then Fergie signed a couple of books and, at her specific request, a baseball for Younger Daughter. "Peace," he inscribed with his personalized salutation. Even cooler.

I love this annual event! Can't wait 'til next year...

P.S. My session went very well, too.
P.P.S. I've been reading Fergie's book. He's a greater inspiration off the field in retirement, as I learn of his charitable activities and his resilience in the face of horrible personal loss (a wife and a daughter). Baseball is "only a game," life is about so much more. But Grantland Rice was right: it's all about how you play, how graciously you bear defeat as well as victory, and how you pick yourself up and get back in the game.