Way back in 1962, the New York Mets redefined the word futility. The Mets starting shortstop was Elio Chacon (shown at right), from Venezuela, who spoke no English. Time after time, a pop fly would be hit out to shallow centerfield. Mets centerfielder Richie Ashburn would run in, yell “I got it” and because Chacon didn’t understand English, Chacon would run into Ashburn and the ball would fall for a hit. Finally, Ashburn got wise and asked another Hispanic player how to say “I got it” in Spanish. The reply was “la tengo”. So, sure enough, the next time the ball is hit into shallow centerfield, Ashburn runs in and yells “la tengo”, and Chacon comes to a dead stop. However, Mets leftfielder Frank Thomas, who didn’t understand Spanish, ran into Ashburn and the ball fell for a base hit.
Friday, September 26, 2003
La Tengo
I was reminded of one of the funniest baseball stories ever, one that Mets announcer Ralph Kiner was very fond of telling, when I read a column by John Donovan, writing for Sports Illustrated about the similarities between the 1962 Mets and the 2003 Tigers.
Way back in 1962, the New York Mets redefined the word futility. The Mets starting shortstop was Elio Chacon (shown at right), from Venezuela, who spoke no English. Time after time, a pop fly would be hit out to shallow centerfield. Mets centerfielder Richie Ashburn would run in, yell “I got it” and because Chacon didn’t understand English, Chacon would run into Ashburn and the ball would fall for a hit. Finally, Ashburn got wise and asked another Hispanic player how to say “I got it” in Spanish. The reply was “la tengo”. So, sure enough, the next time the ball is hit into shallow centerfield, Ashburn runs in and yells “la tengo”, and Chacon comes to a dead stop. However, Mets leftfielder Frank Thomas, who didn’t understand Spanish, ran into Ashburn and the ball fell for a base hit.
Way back in 1962, the New York Mets redefined the word futility. The Mets starting shortstop was Elio Chacon (shown at right), from Venezuela, who spoke no English. Time after time, a pop fly would be hit out to shallow centerfield. Mets centerfielder Richie Ashburn would run in, yell “I got it” and because Chacon didn’t understand English, Chacon would run into Ashburn and the ball would fall for a hit. Finally, Ashburn got wise and asked another Hispanic player how to say “I got it” in Spanish. The reply was “la tengo”. So, sure enough, the next time the ball is hit into shallow centerfield, Ashburn runs in and yells “la tengo”, and Chacon comes to a dead stop. However, Mets leftfielder Frank Thomas, who didn’t understand Spanish, ran into Ashburn and the ball fell for a base hit.
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