Blogging at Bedtime

I'm writing this in my pajamas with teeth brushed and face washed. I made it into the bedroom and even under the covers without posting.  My eyes just wouldn't stay shut knowing I was neglecting my baseball-blogging duties.

I listened to the game on the radio today- the Sox rallied in the ninth when Adrian Beltre hit an RBI single, but ended up losing it 3-2 to the Blue Jays. I planned to post about it after the baby went to sleep, but my husband and I started in on some serious discussions about a job offer he received. Let's just say the night got away from me. 

So instead of posing an intriguing question and answering it with ground-breaking research (like I normally do), I decided to take the easy way out. My mom-in-law is a huge Yankee fan, but very supportive of this effort. She gave me "365 Oddball Days in Boston Red Sox History" a while ago. I decided to open it to today's date and hope whatever occurred on May 12th however many years ago was something I wanted to write about.

Odd(ball)y enough given the family topic du jour, May 12th and May 13th both involved employment issues. Center fielder Dom DiMaggio retired from baseball on this date in 1953. DiMaggio was the starting center fielder for the Sox for twelve years, minus three years in the service. In 1953 he was replaced by 23-year-old Tom Umphlett. I guess DiMaggio decided the Sox could kiss his a#@ if they wanted him to sit on the bench and let some kid play his position.

Quite the opposite happened on May 13th. September 26, 1954, was supposed to be Ted Williams' last game. He even hit a home run to commemorate it. On May 9, 1955, his divorce to wife Doris was finalized. On May 11, 1955, he reached a financial settlement with her. And on May 13, 1955, he signed a new contract with the Red Sox.* Was William's telling his wife to kiss his a&% by making sure the contract was excluded from the settlement?

Unfortunately this does not clarify anything about my husband's employment decision, but it is an interesting coincidence, don't you think?

*He didn't retire again until 1960.