Saturday, March 25, 2000
Concepcion visits Reds
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
SARASOTA, Fla. — When others look at Davey Concepcion, they see a Reds icon, a premier infielder — in short, baseball. When Davey Concepcion looks at baseball, he sees a game in decline.
Both sentiments were evident Friday as Concepcion visited the Reds' spring headquarters to videotape interviews for circulation in his native Venezuela.
Concepcion, the Reds shortstop from 1970-88, was a magnet for former teammates and associates, such as Barry Larkin, Ron Oester and Joe Nuxhall. Ken Griffey Jr. approached Concepcion with an outstretched hand and a respectful, “Hello, sir.” Pitching coach Don Gullett kiddingly called his old Big Red Machine teammate “Mullion,” ballplayer slang for “ugly.”
But Concepcion's mood was hardly light as he considered the game he loves.
“It still looks the same, from home plate to first base. But it has changed,” said Concepcion, citing opponents of his era such as Steve Carlton and Manny Sanguillen. “You have quality baseball players but not as many as in my day. They're stronger now and in better shape; I don't know if they love the game as much as we did or I do.”
Concepcion said the deterioration of pitching is especially noticeable.
“When I played, every team you faced had four good starters,” he said. “It was really tough for me to hit .300, because everybody had good pitching. I'm not taking anything away from these guys who hit 60 home runs, but the quality of pitching is not the same.”
Concepcion's quality was beyond question. A nine-time All-Star who won five Gold Glove awards, he ranks second in franchise history in games (2,488), at-bats (8,723) and hits (2,326); third in stolen bases (321); and fifth in runs (993) and RBI (950).
The Reds will recognize Concepcion's achievements by inducting him into their Hall of Fame in ceremonies before the June 3 game against Minnesota.
Many believe Concepcion deserves a greater honor — a place in baseball's Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y. Concepcion's godson, Jose Luis Mora, has started a bilingual Web site (davidconcepcion.com) to trumpet the former Red's achievements.
Concepcion's offensive statistics compare favorably to those of several of the 18 Hall of Fame shortstops, including Luis Aparicio, Pee Wee Reese and Phil Rizzuto.
“My numbers are there. They can speak for me,” said Concepcion, who runs two ranches and a trucking company in Venezuela when he's not doing TV work.
Asked if having been snubbed in the voting bothers him, Concepcion said, “It should bother the writers who don't vote for me.”
At least one prominent Red would vote for Concepcion.
“He was my mentor,” said Larkin, who succeeded Concepcion at shortstop. “He taught me to bounce-throw, make different pivots, position myself, everything. He helped me tremendously. He had a major impact.”
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