My 100 all-time favorites - #1

I've decided to start another series on this blog, but it is more for my personal purpose than anything else.

I have always had a list in my head of my favorite baseball players of all-time. But it's never been a concrete 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 ... etc., etc., list. It's more of a jumble of names and reasons.

But I thought if I could categorize it here, I would be able to figure out who my 100 all-time favorite players are and why. And then I would have it for posterity. Then, if someone was to pull me aside on the street and say, "quick, name your 100 favorite baseball players of all-time or I will start yammering something about 'Jon & Kate' in your face," I would be able to avert disaster.

I know who some of those players are already. You know who some of those players are already. Ron Cey will be there. Sandy Koufax will be there. There will be more Dodgers than players on any other team. But there will be players from other teams. And you're going to be surprised by some of the people I list.

First of all, you're going to see some players on teams that you know I don't like. I can already think of one Yankee that will be on the list. And there's another player who played for my least favorite team ever. Fortunately, he's not known for playing for that team.

Secondly, they're not all going to be stars. A player doesn't have to be the greatest ever for me to like him. Some of the greatest players are absolute jerks, and you won't find them anywhere on this list just because they're great players. Plus, the more human aspect of a player interests me quite a bit. I am a writer after all.

That brings me to the first player on my list (these aren't ranked in any order. It's totally random).

Bob Welch has been one of my favorite players since he first came up to the Dodgers. He was a mid-season call-up in 1978. He went 7-4 with a 2.03 ERA. But everyone remembers Welch's 1978 season for his strikeout of Reggie Jackson in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the World Series, clinching a 2-0 series lead for the Dodgers.

It was one of the more dramatic moments in World Series history. I didn't see it live as Welch threw his pitches to Jackson between 11:09 and 11:16 p.m. east coast time, and little night owl was in bed. But I sure remember reading about it in the paper the next morning.

Welch's 1979 season was a mess. Alcoholism had taken over his life and after the season he was admitted into a treatment center. In the spring of 1980, he revealed publicly that he had an alcohol problem since he was in high school. The 1980 season was a triumphant return for him. I particularly remember him one-hitting the Braves in May and the large headline that heralded Welch's performance the next day.

I bought Welch's biography "Five O'Clock Comes Early," co-authored by George Vecsey, as a teenager in 1982. It was probably the most eye-opening book I had read at the time. True-to-life baseball books were the rage then, with "Ball Four," followed by "The Bronx Zoo." They were much different than the usual glossy, almost fictitious treatment of ball players up until then.

But "Ball Four" was issued before my time, and "The Bronx Zoo," while very revealing, seemed more about clubhouse hijinks and the inner workings of a team and a clubhouse.

"Five O'Clock Comes Early" was about the player: Robert Lynn Welch. And he didn't hold back. It was the most revealing personal portrayal that I had ever read at the time. Probably because his treatment involved revealing everything, he was comfortable doing the same in the book. It was a very interesting read.

I have always been fascinated by people with addictions. I don't watch a lot of non-sports television. But if I come across one of those intervention shows or something similar, I am glued. I come from a fairly stable background and there isn't much addiction in my family, so I'm not sure where the interest is. Perhaps my hobby is related somehow.

But I'm fascinated by the inner workings of an addict. I'm always rooting for them to get better. And I always want the people they love to continue to help them. I hate it when people label someone as "worthless" or "scum" because they have an addiction. Yes, addiction can lead to criminal behavior, but in most cases the person is worth being treated.

Anyway, that's a tangent. Welch went on to have a successful career for the Dodgers, then was traded to Oakland in the big 1987 offseason deal with the A's and Mets that brought Jay Howell, Alfredo Griffin and Jesse Orosco to the Dodgers for their World Series run in 1988. I was crushed that the Dodgers traded Welch. But a World Series title helped me get over that.

Welch went on to have a 27-win season for Oakland, win a Cy Young Award, and win a World Series, too. But none of Welch's time with the A's is the reason why he's one of my all-time favorites.

For each of these all-time favorite players, I plan to show my favorite card of that player. Welch's 1979 Topps card -- his first card -- is my favorite of his. He wasn't clean and sober then, but he had an interesting career ahead of him.

I am still waiting for Welch to return my TTM request to me. I don't know if I'll ever get it back. But even if I don't, he'll remain on my list forever.