The Fight of Their Lives, by John Rosengren, Lyons Press (February 18, 2014) $25.95
“I wish he could have been my catcher.” That’s how Juan
Marichal ended his eulogy at John Roseboro’s funeral, and John Rosengren ended
the book.
In 1965, TV cameras broadcasting a Giants-Dodgers game
recorded perhaps the most violent moment in modern baseball history when
Giants’ pitcher Juan Marichal clubbed Dodgers’ catcher Johnny Roseboro in the
head with a baseball bat, igniting a huge brawl.
Classic photographs appeared in virtually every newspaper
and magazine: one showing Marichal holding his bat in one hand over Roseboro’s
head with Sandy Koufax in the background; another captured Willie Mays dragging
Roseboro, blood streaming from his forehead over his eye, away from the melee
by his uniform top. No words were needed to identify the villain.
Despite rather weak explanations from Marichal accusing
Roseboro of provoking the battle, Roseboro’s denials, and especially the
photos, damned Marichal in the public’s eye forever. This conclusion was
conclusively strengthened when a lawsuit was filed by Roseboro against
Marichal, which eventually was settled
As far as 99% of baseball fans were concerned, the case was
closed. Another Latin player with a fiery temper went out of control.
But conflicts are rarely that simple.
The first real clues appeared in Roseboro’s book “Glory Days
with the Dodgers”. There, he described a bean-ball war between the Giants and
the Dodgers in which Marichal was a willing participant. With Sandy Koufax
pitching (he with a reputation of not throwing at batters) Roseboro decided to
take matters into his own hands. He waited until Marichal batted, then
deliberately dropped a pitch, stood up, and threw the ball back to Koufax very
close to Marichal’s face, which Marichal claimed hit his ear. When Marichal
protested, Roseboro moved toward him aggressively, with the pre-planned
intention of fighting. Marichal reacting in fear, made a poor decision to swing
his bat to defend himself.
Amazingly, Roseboro’s admission never seemed to make it into
the public consciousness.
Marichal, while a fierce competitor on the field, was a
devote Catholic – attending mass several times a week. He loved his family and
his homeland, the Dominican Republic, and was suffering greatly at the time due
to severe political unrest in the country. He was forever remorseful for his
action.
Roseboro, while from a small town in Ohio that knew little
racial bias, had begun to react to the civil rights movement sweeping the
nation in the 1960’s, and especially recent riots in Los Angeles, becoming more
aggressive. He experienced a growing discomfort while he watched the
never-ending attacks on Marichal far after their playing days, as his
conscience knew the real story
Eventually, Roseboro and his second wife started a very
successful PR firm in Los Angeles, with many famous clients. Marichal spent
most of his time in the Dominican Republic. They crossed paths periodically at
old timer’s games and functions and past animosity gradually died.
With a baseball career that clearly merited entry into the
baseball Hall of Fame, Marichal watched bitterly as he fell short of election.
Consensus was that the Roseboro Incident was preventing some writers from
voting for him. Eventually Marichal
approached Roseboro for help in promoting his Hall of Fame candidacy – not only
for himself, but for his people, as the first living Latino to be elected. The
families visited with each other and connected on many levels. The former combatants
became friends, as did their wives and children.
Roseboro’s campaign strategy resulted in Marichal’s election
to the Hall of Fame. Their close friendship was ultimately demonstrated when
Marichal was asked to speak at Roseboro’s funeral.
Author John Rosengren did baseball, Marichal and Roseboro a
great service by re-opening this horrific episode and shedding light on the
entire story. He presents us almost a fairy tale – two good people brought together
in a significant conflict which got resolved over the years and everyone lived happily
ever after.
This is a beautiful story of forgiveness,
told factually, yet sympathetically, with a very emotional ending.