Page 153 - 1975 BoSox

HE WAS ONE OF BASEBALL’S freer spirits, whose akiness could drive management crazy. But Bernie
Carbo’s biggest legacy is hitting one of the all-time clutch home runs in World Series history, setting the stage for Carlton Fisk’s more memorable blast that ended Game Six of the 1975 World Series.
Bernardo Carbo was born on August 5, 1947, in Detroit. His father, Joe, was, in Bernie’s words, “an abusive and sadistic alcoholic” and his mother, Carmen, was a coal miner’s daughter who lost her father in the mines when she was 7. Bernie had seen his mother try to kill herself at least once. Joe had served in the US Air Force in World War II, worked as a ghter in the circus, and later found work in the steel mills, while Carmen worked on the assembly line for Cadillac.1 Bernie overcame an extremely stressful childhood, including child abuse, sexual molestation by another relative, and neglect. He became an alcoholic at age 16 himself and battled any number of demons through- out his life, as he detailed in his autobiography Saving Bernie Carbo.
During his sandlot days, Carbo developed the oppo- site- eld batting stroke that served him well in later years. He often played pickup games at Edward Hines Park in Nankin Township, a Detroit suburb. Often the teams were short of players and right eld had to be left unmanned, any ball hit there was deemed an automatic out. us Carbo, perhaps the only left- handed batter, was forced to develop an
ability to hit to left eld. He described his rst Little League hit to Herb Crehan: “First time up I hit a ball that went between the out elders. I slid into second base, I slid into third base, and then I slid into home plate for a home run.”
e major leagues’ rst amateur free- agent draft was held in June 1965. Rick
Monday was the rst player selected. e rst player drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the rst round was the 17-year-old Carbo, the 16th overall pick in the draft. To demonstrate what an inexact science the baseball draft is, the second-round pick of the Reds was future Hall of Fame catcher Johnny Bench.
Carbo was slow to justify his selection as the rst- round pick. His temper, combined with his failure to take the game seriously enough, retarded his progress, while Bench took the fast track to the majors, making his debut in 1967. Carbo’s teammates labeled him “ e Idiot,” a title that would have probably made him feel right at home on the 2004 Red Sox. In 1965 at Tampa (Class A Florida State League), Carbo hit a mere .218 with no homers and only 19 RBIs. e following year, he demonstrated some pop in his bat at Peninsula (Class A Carolina League) with 15 homers, 57 RBIs, and a .269 batting average.
In 1967 at Knoxville (Double-A Southern League), Carbo’s average took a tailspin to .201 with just two homers and 27 RBIs. At Asheville (also the Southern League) the next year, Carbo was now known as “ e Clown,” but it was at this stop in the minors that he began to put it together. Carbo became the rehabilita- tion project of his manager, Sparky Anderson, who moved him from third base to the out eld. Under Anderson’s tutelage, Carbo’s numbers improved to a .281 batting average, 20 homers, and 66 RBIs.
e next year in Triple-A Indianapolis, Carbo played for Vern Rapp. He hit .359 with 21 home runs and 76 RBIs and was named Minor League Player of the Year by e Sporting News. He earned a call-up to the Reds, and made his major-league debut on September 2. In an 8-2 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Crosley Field, Carbo pinch-hit for pitcher Dennis Ribant in the sixth inning against Ferguson Jenkins
Bernie Carbo
By Andrew Blume
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