I saw a Inside the Lines or some show like that about him. He was homeless and drug addict. Anyone know if he is still with us?
J R Richard Update Chron columnist Ken Hoffman provides a nice update on former Astro star J.R. Richard, who is now helping teach kids how to pitch at the Sports House athletic facility in southewest Houston. Richard began coaching kids last year. He happened to drive by the Sports House and stopped in to talk over an idea with owner Ivan Shulman. "He said he wanted to teach kids how to pitch," Shulman said. "This was J.R. Richard talking! Of course I knew who he was, and I knew his story. I jumped at the chance to get him here. "You should hear him. He's pretty straight with them. He says, 'Look, your father is paying me to teach you how to pitch. Don't waste his money or my time.' The kids do listen to him, I'll say that." The kids may not know that Richard struck out 15 Giants, including Willie Mays three times, in his big-league debut in 1971. They probably don't care that he struck out 300 batters in 1978 and 1979. Or that he put together the best winning streak in Astros history. He won 20 games in 1976 and 18 games each year 1977-79. His students can plainly see that he's 6 feet 8 inches tall, wears a sleeveless T-shirt that shows off his muscles, has hands the size of skillets and, at age 53, can still throw a fastball 90 mph. And he still has that glare. He was perhaps the most frightening pitcher ever. A batter would have been crazy to dig in against Richard. He once walked 10 batters in a game -- and still pitched a shutout. His teammate, mind you, his teammate Bob Watson once said, "I've never taken batting practice against him, and I never will. I have a family to think of." As you may know, Richard went through some tough times a few years ago, winding up homeless and living on the street. He's back on his feet now, and it's good to see. There's been a grassroots effort for some time to get the Astros to retire his uniform number 50, but they haven't done so. Richard was quoted by Chron columnist Mickey Herskowitz last year as saying he doesn't feel welcome by the Stros. That's a damn shame, and I can only hope they change their minds. Here's an interview from 2001 with Richard, conducted by the same fan who's pushing for his number to be retired. Richard's career stats are here. It's pretty clear that had he gotten another five or six seasons like the ones he had between 1976 and 1980, he'd have been a Hall of Famer.
This is the interview that was mentioned in my previous post. Thanks to the Honor J.R. campaign, I was fortunate enough to be put in contact with J.R. Richard himself. After a brief introduction, J.R. was gracious enough to answer a few questions and agreed to have them put up on The Astros Daily. I want to thank J.R. for being so willing and open, and I want to apologize to Astros fans everywhere for my brutally poor interviewing technique. My original plans involved putting up an audio file so you could hear the interview itself, but I quickly realized that a lot of editing would be required as our discussion changed topics back and forth. I did my best to ask all of the questions that I thought Astros fans would ask, but I am sure I left many good questions out. Here is an edited transcript of our conversation: Ray Kerby: In high school you turned over 200 basketball scholarships to sign with the Astros. Is there a reason why you chose baseball over basketball? J.R. Richard: At that particular time I talked to a lot of my coaches and we decided that baseball would be the way to go. Being a middle-class black in those days, we didn't have that much money and the money looked real well at that time, and it was one of the things that helped me make that decision. I have no ill regrets; I'm glad I chose baseball but I think I could have been the first ballplayer to play two sports if I had really went that route because my abilities spoke for themselves. I felt very comfortable with basketball and baseball. RK: Some of the things I've read about you in high school seem incredible... JR: I didn't lose a game throughout my entire baseball career in high school. RK: Did you pitch every game, or did they play you in different positions? JR: I played outfield also. My thing was to be the very best in the world, to be second to none. That's the way I practiced and the way I played. I gave my best to be that, and it gave back to me. RK: When you first came into the majors, was there a particular player you looked up to? JR: I used to worship Bob Gibson when I was in high school, but then I started looking to myself as being what I should be and not what other people thought I should be. RK: You threw to several catchers in your career: Johnny Edwards, Milt May, Joe Ferguson... JR: Alan Ashby was my catcher in my heyday. I admired Alan Ashby and Craig Reynolds; some of the guys on that ballclub were real, real nice. RK: You had a lot of great moments in your career: the no-hitter in Cocoa, the 15 strikeouts in your first major-league start, 20 wins, 300 strikeouts... JR: And I would have ended up with 300 strikeouts six or seven seasons in a row if I had kept on playing. RK: (laugh) It's possible. If anyone could have done it, you could have. JR: I think that I would have broken Nolan Ryan's record for strikeouts if my career hadn't ended. RK: I dunno, JR. Did you see how many he ended up with? JR: I don't care (laugh) RK: I also remember the All-Star game that you started, and I still swear to this day they clocked you at 103 mph. Are there any of those great moments in your career that stand out more than the others? JR: Well, what really stands out in my mind is when I struck out Reggie Jackson because it was power against power, with the best man coming out on top, and I wasn't backing down and he wasn't backing down. RK: That was in the All-Star game? JR: Yes, and fortunately I got a break. He was trying to catch up to the fastball, and luckily he swung and I got the K... luckily. That's one of the things that stand out in my mind. When I struck out 15 in my major-league debut, I didn't think nothing about that. In high school, I had done it so many times back-to-back, it wasn't a big thing. I had pitched so many no-hitters in high school, it was unbelievable. RK: Another thing we point out in the Tribute is how you totally dominated the Dodgers throughout your career. Can you explain that incredible streak you had against them? JR: I cannot pinpoint anything in particular. I didn't get up for the Dodgers any more than I got up for the Cincinnati Reds, the San Diego Padres, or any other ballclub. The main thing I got up for every game was to be the best that I could be. And unfortunately, some or most of them happened to be the Dodgers, and I wasn't going to be beat. And that was it. RK: There were a lot of ugly rumors about you leading up to the time when you had the stroke... JR: There's always going to be rumors. There was one thing out that it was drug-induced, but a hematologist checked my blood and the stroke was caused by a simple blood clot in my shoulder. I was such a powerful pitcher that the muscles in my right shoulder had overdeveloped and it was pressing a blood vessel against my [inaudible]. Everytime I would throw it would cause an irritation and it began blockage. But I kind of still blame it on the doctors because when they send the ballplayers in to take a medical it ain't about crap. They go in there and say "Are you hurting anywhere?". You say "no" and they check you off to keep on going. RK: A lot of players in the Eighties were involved with drugs. Did you experiment with cocaine during the time leading up to the stroke? JR: No, I did not. But when people can't find nothing on you, they begin to come up with something to condemn you. RK: There was also a lot of talk about you and Nolan Ryan. What kind of a personal relationship did you have with Nolan Ryan in 1980? JR: Well, I didn't have much of a personal relationship with Nolan Ryan; matter of fact, I didn't have too much of a personal relationship with anybody on the ballclub. I basically was a loner and I didn't bother nobody. If I messed with anybody on the ballclub, it was Enos (Cabell). He and I were real close at that time. RK: I know you went through a period when your were homeless; who do you credit for helping you get out of that? JR: A friend of mine named Chris Clark. He came by one day after work and saw me out there and he brought me home to live with him until I could stand on two feet. From then on, everything has been kind of peachy. RK: Are you involved with baseball now in any way? JR: Not at all. I do a little teaching every once in a while but I would really like to become a coach, possibly in the major leagues, because I think that I have a lot to offer them, knowledge-wise. RK: What kind of a relationship do you have with the Astros now? JR: Not too much of anything. RK: Is there any legal action between you and the team right now? JR: No, nothing. RK: You pitched in the Old-Timer's Game a few years ago. How did that go over? JR: That went real well. I enjoyed it, very much so. RK: How do feel about your fans wanting to start up a campaign to get your number retired? JR: (listen) Well I think that is unbelievably great. Definitely satisfying, it shows that some people out there still care in spite of what has happened and what people have done to you -- that somebody out there is still on your side. It makes me feel great, it makes me want to jump up and holler and I just feel just unbelievably glad and I will do whatever I can to see that they succeed. RK: Is there anything else you'd like to say to your fans? JR: Well, just keep me in your prayers. I'm doing fine and everything's gonna be alright. Regardless of how dimly it looks today, the sun will come up tomorrow and it's a new day. RK: Thanks, JR. JR: Thanks and God Bless.
I don't know why, but I like this cover... Irony, how I love thee. The only pro wrestler to appear on SI...
Jeesh...if JR's still pitching at 90 mph at 53...I'm sure we've got a middle reliever spot open on the Astros for him. Bring it on!
You guys are exactly the reason Alabama will never be that good again, no coach will ever make you forget the Bear.
In some ways, I'd be inclined to agree. I just grew up watching Alabama football from the time I was a little tike and Coach Bryant was revered as a deity in the state. So his shadow has hung over every coach since, but it's now gotten to the point where fans I think realize that there will never be another Coach Bryant and that national championships are much harder to come by in these days of scholarship limitations. Bama will be back, mark my word.
I still think they hired the wrong Shula. I guess we'll see next year. If that fails, I may be defecting and, gulp, become a Mark Richt fan.
Happy anniversary Alabama! This day one year ago Alabama named Mike Price as their head coach. [from PTI]
They don't have EVERY cover, right? I wonder if I'm just not seeing a place for them on the site....seems like some of the ones posted in this thread I couldn't find on the site.
It's like I said on my radio show a couple of weeks ago. Either they hired Don Shula's son.......or David Shula's brother.
I disagree. Alabama just has to find the right coach, that's all. I will now take this opportunity to remind everyone on this BBS that the mighty Longhorns of the University of Texas at Austin handed Bear Bryant his last loss in his last game as coach at Alabama in the 1982 Cotton Bowl....and I was there!
