No not those carnies you see selling cotton candy for meth money promising to one day be promoted to operate rollercoasters or man the dunk tanks.....but THE ONE, THE ONLY, Carney Lansford. Yesterday, He was named THE San Francisco Giants hitting coach. Ok, as a bay area guy I am THRILLED that this happened. First off, and Shane can vouche, Carney is easily one of my top 5 favorite players of ALL TIME!! The others being Will Clark, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and Mr. Ricky Henderson (see a bay area theme?). Carney was the main reason I didnt want to commit suicide in 1989. I always said "I love Carney, how can I not be upset that we got swept". Hell, when I was a kid, my dad was a Whitesox fan. That being said he cheered for the A's (He never admitted liking the Sox but then again, nobody from Chicago admitted to that). He would tell me if I was gonna play baseball, I should play like him. He was intense, never made excuses, and was the quintessential definition of team player.
In his day, he played the hardest baseball I ever saw. He played masterful third base and always seemed to perform like an all-star under the shadows of Mark McGuire, Jose Canstrikeout, and Terry Steinbach. A bash brother himself, he batted more in the 7-8 spot (he did bat 2nd, but in the early 80's) and maintained a career batting average of .290. Not to shabby for an everyday 3rd baseman in the 80's and early 90's. He wasnt a homerun threat but the visions of his Dave Stewart-like eye stares to the pitcher when he was at bat, the constant shacking of the bat before a swing, and the hardest line drive ropes ever will always be good memories.
I just hope the Giant rookies and veterans take notice of his teachings and take advantage of having this guy around. We will have a much younger team next year. I know what Shane is gonna say "Your teams average age is 50 so of course". But the loss of Bonds, Ortiz, and Feliz will in fact, put our average age closer to 40.
