http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Britt,
  J'adore ta page!  Comme elle est belle et douce...:)
(I love your page, it's so sweet and beautiful!)

Sometimes when I'm really touched I express my emotions in French...:)

Penny--  Thanks for the article...it really was very good...lots of great
quotes!!

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~

                             --KC :)

I didn't hear him on the show last night... I don't know if any of you did, 
but in any case, here's a transcript:

http://gehrig4.com/Cone_interview.htm

--Britt

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hi everyone...I just wanted to write a little note to inform you all that
I am in the process of remodeling the picture gallery, so if you have any
troubles accessing certain photos this is why.  Other site updates will be
coming over the course of the remaining offseason....:)

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
                 --KC :)

Thanks!!
we all look forward to some new David pix :P

Have a good one!
Laura

I happened to be web surfing tonite because I can't sleep, and since there has
been not much to talk about since the aftermath of the Boston signing, I
figured I'd satisfy anyone's withdrawl by sending this article I happened to
come across from the '98 series, right after Chuck made the famous arguing
"error" (Bergen Record).

Cone reminded of similar blooper 
Thursday, October 8, 1998

By STEVE ADAMEK
Staff Writer

NEW YORK -- The play was eerily reminiscent of another more than eight years
ago, on a July night in Atlanta, when David Cone -- then a Met still in need of
maturity -- chose to argue a call at first base with umpire Charlie Williams
while two runners scored.

Yet he insisted he did not flash back to it Wednesday night, when Yankees
teammate Chuck Knoblauch chose to plead an interference case with the umpires
instead of pursuing a loose ball, the 12th-inning play that turned a 1-1 game
into an eventual 4-1 Cleveland victory in Game 2 of the American League
Championship Series.

"Not really," Cone said when asked if Knoblauch's play reminded him of his that
night in Atlanta. "Not until everybody mentioned it. I put that behind me."

It took time, he would later admit, years, and perhaps future events will leave
the memory of Wednesday's play lingering that long.

If not for Cone, however, the Yankees don't even get to that point, for when he
left after allowing a run on five hits in eight innings, he left them with a
chance. This was trademark Cone who turned a 1-1 game over to the bullpen,
sometimes near unhittable, sometimes with just enough to fight his way out of a
jam.

"David was spectacular," manager Joe Torre said.

Cone's only mistake was an 0-1 curveball to David Justice that was deposited
over the right-center field wall in the fourth inning for the game's first run.

Other than that, he walked a tightrope twice, leaving the bases loaded after
Justice's homer and surviving a one-out triple by Omar Vizquel in the eighth.

"I felt good," he said. "I got out of a couple tough spots here and there. The
curveball kind of stayed up to Justice. I threw him back-to-back curveballs,
something I almost never do."

But he also threw five pitches that caught Cleveland hitters looking, that
clipped corners -- at least in the eyes of plate umpire Ted Hendry, whose
strike zone was rather generous. Three of those called third strikes froze Jim
Thome, the first two busting him on the inside corner, the third snatching a
piece of the outside corner.

His biggest pitches, however, came in the fourth and eighth innings.

Two walks and a single juiced the bases in the fourth with two outs before he
got Sandy Alomar Jr. to ground out to first.

Four innings later, Vizquel's triple with the score tied 1-1 meant all the
Indians needed from Justice was a fly ball to break that tie. Instead, he threw
three straight balls in an obvious attempt to pitch around him, then strike
one, and then he refused to give in and threw Justice another breaking ball.
This time, though, Justice pounded it into the dirt in front of the plate for a
catcher-to-first putout.

Five pitches later, Cone got Manny Ramirez to bounce back to the mound. After
he threw Ramirez out at first to end the inning, Cone punched the air.

"I got pretty emotional there," he said. "I threw a couple of big pitches to
get out of that jam."

But all he could do was watch in the 12th when Knoblauch's brain seemed to
lock, much as Cone's did that night in Atlanta.

Perhaps he wasn't being truthful, perhaps deep down inside he relived that
nightmare moment, one he carried around like an albatross.

The albatross is Knoblauch's now. Cone chose to forget. He did all he could. He
just couldn't do enough.

Stottlemyre Free of Cancer, Son Says

By RAFAEL HERMOSO

Long before Ralph Branca and Bobby Thomson ended the evening
with a song they sang nearly 50 years ago, Todd Stottlemyre told the
audience in a crowded hotel ballroom in Midtown that his father, the
Yankees pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre, no longer had cancer.
"Today, it gives me great pleasure to tell all of New York that Pops
is cancer free," Todd Stottlemyre said last night at the annual awards
banquet of the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of
America. Stottlemyre was accepting the chapter's You Gotta Have Heart
award for his father, who was told by doctors to avoid large crowds
while his immune system is restored.

Mel Stottlemyre continued as the Yankees' pitching coach for most of
last season even as he fought cancer of the blood. Joe Torre, the
Yankees' manager, said Stottlemyre would be with the Yankees when they
open spring training later this month.

"He wanted me to tell you he's happy to get back to work and there is
life after cancer," Todd Stottlemyre said.

Steve Phillips, the Mets' general manager, said the team made a
mistake when it traded Jeff Kent in 1996. Phillips, who presented
Kent, San Francisco's second baseman, with the National League Most
Valuable Player award, was the assistant general manager to Joe
McIlvaine at the time of the trade.

"If they say it takes a big person to admit he was wrong," Phillips
said, "I stand up here as tall as Randy Johnson, as wide as Mike
Piazza and Jason Giambi, to admit for the New York Mets we were
wrong."

Kent and Jose Vizcaino were traded to the Indians for Carlos Baerga,
who never regained the form he had shown in Cleveland.

David Cone, the former Yankee who signed as a free agent with the Red
Sox, was presented with the Joan Payson award for helping charities.
Cone issued a pre-emptive strike on what is sure to be an emotional
return when he next pitches at Yankee Stadium. "I'm sure I'll take
some heat when I come here, but if you can dish it out, I can take
it," Cone said.
          

susan peters ~ [email protected]

awww.. Susan.. this is such a nice way to end a Monday.. first hearing Mel
is cancer free, then hearing Coney getting an award for his charitable works
is just too sweet!

Although, I am still saddend that he will be wearing a Boston uni in just a
few weeks (yikes).

Have a great night!
Laura

Okay, I'm not a fan of Garth Brooks at all but I heard this song and it 
reminded me of this whole situation, and how I've (mostly) come to peace 
with it.  (Just substitute "perfect game" for "dance"... ;o)

Come to think of it, it applies to a lot of my personal relationships 
too... :o/


The Dance

Looking back on the memory of
The dance we shared beneath the stars above
For a moment all the world was right
How could I have known you'd ever say goodbye

And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss the dance

Holding you I held everything
For a moment wasn't I the king
But if I'd only known how the king would fall
Hey who's to say you know I might have changed it all

And now I'm glad I didn't know
The way it all would end the way it all would go
Our lives are better left to chance
I could have missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss the dance

Yes my life is better left to chance
I could have missed the pain but I'd have had to miss the dance

I'm just too impatient for baseball to begin, and since I haven't read
anything new about David in a while I've been perusing the Daily News
archives.

To me the highlight of David's career was his Perfect Game. I thought
I'd share a couple of posts that bring back a lot of wonderful
memories for me. Hope you enjoy them - if not, just hit delete!


Monday, July 19, 1999
Wells Raises Glass to Cone 
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS 
TORONTO 

Minutes after David Cone pitched his perfect game yesterday, David
Wells got his buddy on the phone.

"I've got bigger goose bumps than you do," yelled Wells, who pitched
the only other regular-season perfect game for in Yankees history last
season. "I'm glad you did it. Welcome to the club." The two chatted
for a while before the Blue Jays pitcher handed the phone to another
ex-Yankee, Graeme Lloyd.

 Wells then walked over to a refrigerator and yelled: "Wow, I'm going
to have a beer for Cone."

When Wells pitched his perfect game against the Twins  on May 17,
1998, Cone sat next to Wells between innings, calming his teammate.
The two also played together for part of the 1992 season with Toronto.

 As Cone was pitching his perfect game, Wells was throwing batting
practice to his son in the Blue Jays' clubhouse. An attendant told him
Cone had a perfect game through seven innings and Wells saw the final
two. 

"That was a thing of beauty," Wells said. "He's overcome a lot of
obstacles in his career and for him to do it in New York, where he is
well-loved �€” He is the man of New York City."

Cone appreciated the call from Wells, who had been his closest friend
on the Yankees. "He said he wanted to fly down here and party with me
all night," Cone said.

Wells, however, had to stay in Toronto with his son.

After Wells pitched his perfect game, New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani
gave him a key to the city. Wells said he expects Cone to get one,
too, and that he can't wait to celebrate with him.

"We'll crawl into every spot we want, if we get into trouble we'll
unlock ourselves," he said.

He also expects to do commercials with Cone.

"Chicks dig perfect games!" Wells said.


susan peters ~ [email protected]

hee-hee.. we sure do dig perfectos!!

thanks susan.. I never get tired of reading stuff about the perfecto!

have a great night! BTW...9 days before coney officially reports to the red
sux :(
Laura

Knobby, Scotty and Joe G. talk about the Perfecto from their
perspectives:

Monday, July 19, 1999
This Time Knob Turns in Beauty 

Chuck Knoblauch's 16 errors this season haven't won him many fans at
Yankee Stadium. If he had committed No. 17 yesterday, he might have
ended up the most hated Yankee of all time. Instead, Knoblauch made
perhaps the most critical play of David Cone's perfect game. In the
eighth inning, he fielded a hard ground ball by Jose Vidro up the
middle with his backhand, turned, planted his feet on the outfield
grass and made a perfect throw to nail Vidro at first. Only then did
the crowd of 41,930 breathe.

"In that situation you're thinking about diving for it and saving a
hit," Knoblauch said. "Things do happen rather quick out there. It was
hit pretty hard."

Knoblauch said he had just taken a step to his left on Cone's 2-0
pitch to Vidro, making it an even more difficult play. It was made
even tougher by the wet grass thanks to a 33-minute rain delay.
But the second baseman insisted none of that, nor his throwing
troubles this season were on his mind on that play.
"In that situation you're just thinking about saving something," he
said. "You're not really nervous. Not when you're actually making the
play."

------------------------

Monday, July 19, 1999

Last Out Is Least Of Scott's Worries 

Watching the final out of a game like yesterday's is a dream of every
child that ever put on a glove. So what was going through Yankee third
baseman Scott Brosius' mind yesterday when he settled under the final
out?

"I was glad it went up," he said, "and not down."

On a day when David Cone got only four ground ball outs, Brosius was
thrilled it wasn't five. It's a lot more difficult to drop a fly ball
in foul territory than it is to boot a hard chopper on the ground.
And Brosius wasn't even thinking about making the final out with two
outs in the ninth of Cone's perfect game. Really, he said, he wasn't
thinking much except to do anything possible to keep it intact.

"More than anything else, you kind of feel like you'll be diving for a
foul ball," Brosius said. "You're so anxious not to let anything by
you."

And when he didn't, he had an important post-game job - to present
Cone with his perfect game ball.

"I'm not sure if I really said too much more than 'Congratulations,'"
he said. "I think I might have said, 'You want this ball?'"

------------------
Monday, July 19, 1999

Girardi Protects His Ace - No need to jump over Cone's gem 

If Joe Girardi had any intention of jumping into David Cone's arms at
the end of his perfect game, the catcher never got the chance. Cone
was on his knees when Girardi arrived at the mound. Then he dragged
his catcher down to the ground.

"I've been on the bottom of the pile before and I didn't want him to
be on the bottom," Girardi said. "Obviously he's more valuable here
than I am. We kind of need him. I was somewhat just trying to protect
him."

Girardi did a great job of that all day, though the way Cone was
pitching he didn't need much help. And by the time Cone got through
the fourth inning after a 33-minute rain delay, he thought Cone might
have something special going. "When you get to the eighth," Girardi
said, "then you start shaking a little bit."

"Obviously with the few that have been thrown, to be able to go
through one you've got to feel pretty fortunate," said Girardi, who
was a spectator for David Wells' perfect game 14 months ago. "To be
able to go through two is unbelievable.

"And I did have (Doc Gooden's) no-hitter in '96. It'll never get old,
that's for sure."


susan peters ~ [email protected]

Monday, July 19, 1999
Larsen's Timing Is Still Perfect 

Even on an ordinary day, David Cone looks like a nervous wreck working
the mound. There is a restlessness in the eyes and the body language,
as he mines perfection from a game that is always reluctant to yield
the mother lode.

The nearer he burrowed to his elusive goal yesterday at Yankee
Stadium, the more uneasy Cone became. He paced the dugout. He walked
back into the clubhouse. He stared off into space for inspiration.
Cone even hoped that his good friend and teammate, Chili Davis, would
hit into a double play in the bottom of the eighth, just so he could
get back to the rubber and finish his own business.

When his guilty wish was granted, Cone rushed out there for the ninth,
three outs to go, a pitcher possessed.

"I figured the heck with it, I'm going to throw fastballs," Cone said.
"I could feel my heart pumping through my uniform."

About 40,000 fans were taking his pulse right along with him, pitch by
pitch, beat by beat. There is a crowd noise that comes with a perfect
game, one that increases in passion and hysteria at the sight of each
out. Far from assuring, the sound can be unsettling, unless you thrive
on that sort of wild medicine.

Cone loved it, lived the moment. He struck out Chris Widger on three
pitches. Ryan McGuire flied out to left.  Finally, with the place near
madness with anticipation, Orlando Cabrera lifted a pop foul outside
third, where so many famous outs seem to land for the Yankees.
Scott Brosius squeezed the ball. Cone dropped to his knees, waiting to
be swallowed by pinstripes. His catcher, Joe Girardi, sacrificed his
own body in the pileup of teammates, hoping to protect the franchise
star. 

Cone beat the Expos, 6-0, on 88 pitches. He reached for the stars.
Nobody reached base.

There have been a lot of little disappointments for the Yankees this
season in the starting rotation. Everybody is still waiting for Roger
Clemens to remember his place in history, and Andy Pettitte has been
lost in a fog for too long.

Nobody has ever lifted an eyebrow in Cone's direction. He is 10-4,
with a 2.65 ERA, with 97 strikouts in 122 1/3 innings pitched. At age
36, after two serious operations on his pitching shoulder, Cone is the
guy holding the Yankees in place. Yesterday, finally, after three
career one-hitters, he received the great gift of personal glory to go
along with everything he has done for a fabled franchise. 

The perfect-game club is small enough to hold its meetings in a modest
visitors' clubhouse. There are 16 pitchers now, with Cone fresh among
them, always ready to welcome a new member who survives the initiation
rites.

News travels fast when 27 come up, and 27 go down. Five minutes after
Cone got Cabrera on the foul pop to third, David Wells was on the
phone to congratulate him and Don Larsen was parked in front of his
locker, big mitt of a hand outstretched.

"Super job," Larsen told Cone. "It was a great way for me to be back
here."

"I'm glad you were here to see it," Cone said. "The World Series was
still bigger. I bet you're still thinking about it."
"It took me awhile," Larsen said. "Sometimes, I still can't believe it
happened."

It happened for Cone, too, an overpowering performance from a
consistent pitcher. He threw 16 first-pitch strikes.  Cone was so
commanding, the thought of a perfect game was in the forefront of most
minds by about the fifth inning.

"I still thought I had a better chance of winning the lottery than
this happening today," Cone said. He almost apologized for his effort
in front of Larsen and Yogi Berra.

"I didn't want to upstage anybody," he said.

Cone got great help from Paul O'Neill, Chuck Knoblauch and Ricky Ledee
in the field, the way that Larsen once got help from Andy Carey. The
perfect games are never perfect without assistance.

While it was going on, Larsen knew exactly what Cone was going
through. He worried for Cone during the Yankees' lengthy rally in the
eighth, what that delay would do to the pitcher's mind. He worried,
too, that the big lead would play with Cone's mind.

"If I had bunch of runs, I'd have screwed it up," Larsen decided.
Larsen was talking to a reporter, but he was really praising the
newest member of the clubhouse. Cone walked in through the front door
yesterday. He'd paid his dues long ago.

susan peters ~ [email protected]

(read on - David's mentioned)

by Michael Silverman


Righthanded reliever Bryce Florie threw from a mound on Feb. 6 for
the first time since being struck by a batted ball on Sept. 8, a
horrific accident that traumatized Florie's right eyeball and
shattered his eye socket. 

Florie's vision has improved dramatically since the accident and
after two separate surgeries, and he flew down to the Red Sox's
spring training facilities in the middle of last month to begin
working out in the hopes of making the 2001 bullpen. 

With four -- Derek Lowe, Rod Beck, Hipolito Pichardo and Rich Garces
-- of the six bullpen spots already spokken for, Florie faces plenty
of competition for the long-reliever/spot starter's job. 

Beyond that traditional fight, Florie must also face new challenges
this spring and he is not yet ready to predict how he will fare.
Facing a live batter and reacting to a batted ball concerns Florie,
who has been fitted with a prescriptive and protective goggle to wear
this season. 

Florie's vision also still suffers at night and in bright sunlight,
so he must still learn to adapt to those circumstances. . . .

Third baseman John Valentin, who missed all but 10 games last season
after blowing out his left knee, said he expects to be the club's
starting third baseman by opening day. 

The club had plenty of doubts about Valentin's optimism this
offseason, and proved it by first pursuing third baseman Ken Caminiti
and then trading for Chris Stynes from the Reds. 

While Stynes is not as good a fielder as Valentin, he has been more
productive and certainly more healthy than Valentin the last couple
of years. Valentin has been working out in Ft. Myers since late last
month and said that as long as he is healthy, which he expects to be,
he will not have to worry about any competition from Stynes or anyone
else this spring. . . .

GM Dan Duquette said he did not believe that the presence of Troy
O'Leary and Trot Nixon -- both competing for one outfield spot -- at
spring training would be a distraction. . . .

Duquette said one unanswered question going into spring training was
who would hit in the Nos. 1 and 2 spots. Candidates include Nixon,
Valentin, Jose Offerman and Chris Stynes. . . .

Righthanded starter Bret Saberhagen, also in Ft. Myers, has been told
that he will throw from the mound for the first time on Feb. 10.
Saberhagen missed all of last season because he was rehabbing from
rotator cuff surgery. . . .

Given the monster deal shortstop Alex Rodriguez signed this winter in
Texas and the mammoth deal Derek Jeter is expected to sign soon with
the Yankees, is there anyone willing to bet against the Red Sox
picking up Nomar Garciaparra's final option for 2004 by the April 1
deadline? 

When the club does sign off, Garciaparra will be in the middle of a
seven-year, $45.25 million deal worth an average of $6.46 million a
season. . . .

The club has made no progress with any of its three remaining
arbitration-eligible players: starter Rolando Arrojo, catcher Jason
Varitek and reliever Rich Garces. . . .

Red Sox legend Ted Williams, 82, grew more responsive and was
breathing on his own for much of the time as he continued to recover
from his open-heart surgery at a New York hospital. A move to a rehab
center was the next plan of action. 

HEAD-TO-HEAD

Who, and in what order, the starting rotation will be after Pedro
Martinez will be one of the most interesting developments in camp.
Nine players are vying for four positions. 

Hideo Nomo and Rolando Arrojo figure to be pitching somewhere in the
middle of the rotation. David Cone, if he can return to form this
spring, would likely be the No. 2 starter. If Cone makes the team,
Frank Castillo, Tim Wakefield, Saberhagen, Tomo Ohka, Paxton Crawford
and Pete Schourek would be in the running for the fifth spot. 

At first base, Brian Daubach is the incumbent but faces competition
from Morgan Burkhart, Dernell Stenson, Juan Diaz and even Scott
Hatteberg. 

Third baseman John Valentin must prove he is healthy or else Chris
Stynes moves into his spot. 

ACHING

Valentin is recovering from a ruptured tendon in his left knee, and
is questionable to be game-ready by the end of March. 

Saberhagen (right shoulder surgery in 1999) did not throw a pitch in
the majors last season. He should know by the middle of March if he
has a shot. 

Florie (traumatized eye, facial fractures) is recovering from two eye
surgeries. He expects some setbacks but plans on making the team. 

Second baseman Offerman, who had a bruised left knee for most of the
second half, has to demonstrate that it has healed after an
arthroscopic procedure by showing that he can steal a base. He stole
none last year, 18 the year before. 

Catcher Jason Varitek (torn cartilage, right wrist) had an offseason
arthroscopic procedure. The injury hampered his power from the right
side in the second half last year. 

Righthanded starter Juan Pena (Tommy John surgery) is expected to be
throwing every five days by the end of May. He could contribute to
the major-league team by the end of the season, but a minor-league
season is more likely. 

GRADING THE OFFSEASON

For a team that has never made a significant free agent acquisition,
the signing of Manny Ramirez to an eight-year, $160 million contract
makes up for almost every other name the team has passed on in the
last quarter century. 

However, as much as the Red Sox can and will benefit from Ramirez'
prodigious slugging abilities, their No. 1 offseason concern was to
find a No. 2 pitcher. They lost out on Mike Mussina, and simply made
do with free agents Hideo Nomo, Frank Castillo and David Cone. 

While one of those arms could surprise or in Cone's case, bounce
back, on the surface none of them resembles the sure bet as a Pedro
Martinez back-up like Mussina would have. 

That being said, Ramirez will provide a tremendous lift to an offense
with a crying need for one. The trade for Chris Stynes to fill in for
John Valentin at third base cost the Red Sox little but could pay off
nicely. Grade: B-plus

SLEEPER

Daubach came out of nowhere to become the first baseman-DH in 1999.
Two years later, Juan Diaz has a shot at taking away Daubach's job at
first. Diaz, who will be 25 this season, hits for decent average and
has tremendous power. He does strike out a lot but the slick fielder
will get a close look this spring. 

SPRING THING

Pedro Martinez is only one starter -- the Red Sox need four more to
compete with the Yankees' starting five. 


susan peters ~ [email protected]

Cone Is Perfect!
Monday, July 19, 1999
41,930 fans watch ace record feat 
By VIRGINIA BREEN, BILL EGBERT and DAVE GOLDINER 
Daily News Staff Writers

David Cone tossed a perfect game on a perfect day at Yankee Stadium
yesterday.

The rapier-sharp Cone mowed down 27 straight Montreal Expos to win,
6-0 -joining the exclusive club that includes Yankees Don Larsen and
David Wells - on a day the Bombers honored Yogi Berra.
A wide-eyed Cone clasped his hands against his cap, fell to his knees
and raised his arms in triumph as the final out fell into the glove of
third baseman Scott Brosius.

"Maybe there is something to that Yankee aura," the 36-year-old
right-hander said breathlessly after the game, which Larsen attended. 
"Maybe there's something to this magic, this great legend of Yankee
Stadium."

Seconds after Cone was carried off the field by catcher Joe Girardi
and second baseman Chuck Knoblauch, he took a call from Wells, who was
traded to the Toronto Blue Jays before the season. 

"Wow, I'm going to have a beer for Cone," Wells said.

The perfect game came on a day to remember for the 41,930 fans, who
cheered as World Series perfect pitcher Larsen tossed out the
ceremonial first ball to his old batterymate Berra.

Rain held up the game for 33 minutes in the third inning, and Yankee
fans gasped when left fielder Ricky Ledee was handcuffed and barely
made an awkward basket catch to save the perfect game in the ninth
inning.

But the steely-eyed Cone never wavered, baffling the Expos with an
array pitches including his trademark side-arm Laredo slider. 

The atmosphere inside the Stadium on a sticky midsummer day turned
electric as Cone - who had tossed three one-hitters but never a
no-hitter - aced untouched into the final innings. 

Cone, who exudes a stubborn intensity every time he steps on the
mound, needed only 88 pitches to seal the 14th - and possibly last -
perfect game of the century.  He didn't go to a three-ball count all
day and struck out 10 batters.

"I've been to at least 100 baseball games in my life, and I have never
felt a feeling like that," said Ryan Burke, 28. "It couldn't have
happened on a better day." 

"I wasn't nervous," said fan Carmine Ciccone, 25. "I felt like it was
meant to happen."

Keith O'Donnell, 27, started dialing up his friends on his cellular
phone in the bottom of the eighth inning.

"I wanted to tell them I was at David Cone's perfect game," he said.
Yankee fans exhaled as pinch-hitter Orlando Cabrera waved at a wicked
slider and sent the lazy pop up headed toward Brosius. 

Then the place exploded as only Yankee Stadium can.

"I feel really lucky," said Joey DePeri, 10. "I don't think I'll ever
see another perfect game."

Cheering fans poured out onto the street as hundreds of thousands of
fans cheered in backyards, sports bars and living rooms across the
city.

"From the seventh inning on, everybody was standing and clapping and
getting really psyched," said Amy Bachman, manager of Micky Mantle's,
where 30 Bombers devotees crowded around several television sets.

At Engine Co. 50 in the Bronx, firefighters crowded around the tube
after returning from a blaze in time for the ninth inning.

"There was some serious screaming going on," said firefighter Steve
DiMaggio. "Everyone was so happy for David Cone."


susan peters ~ [email protected]

In a message dated 2/10/01 11:48:40 AM Eastern Standard Time, 
[email protected] writes:

<< Hideo Nomo and Rolando Arrojo figure to be pitching somewhere in the
 middle of the rotation. David Cone, if he can return to form this
 spring, would likely be the No. 2 starter. If Cone makes the team,
 Frank Castillo, Tim Wakefield, Saberhagen, Tomo Ohka, Paxton Crawford
 and Pete Schourek would be in the running for the fifth spot. >>

ISN'T IT WORTH REPEATING??? #2!!!! That's something the Yankees never 
would've been able to give him! (Not to belittle the fact that he's not 
coming to our camp this summer :,( but good for him!!!!)

<< Pedro Martinez is only one starter -- the Red Sox need four more to
compete with the Yankees' starting five. >>

LOL, I'm glad someone finally noticed...;-P

~PEN~
T<:)

Tuesday, July 20, 1999

Vitamins Every Day, Sliders on Sunday 

At 36, David Cone is old by the standards of professional ballplayers,
but geriatric for a starting pitcher. Coming into this season, Cone
had pitched 2,502 2/3 major-league innings. His shoulder had been
surgically repaired. The preseason speculation seemed certain: It was
only a matter of time before his arm blew up for good. 

"People were wondering when my arm was going to fall off," said Cone.
He understood as well as anyone. The prognosticators' doubts were his
own worst fears. "There was a lot of self-doubt, too," he said
yesterday. "I sort of wondered how much I had left."

He was 20 wins against seven losses last season. But he spent the
winter months dwelling on his final two starts. He gave up a grand
slam to Jim Thome in Cleveland in the ALCS. And against San Diego in
the World Series, he remembers walking off the mound feeling "more
pain than ever."

As a pitcher, Cone considers the arm a metaphor for youth, or in this
case, lost youth. His wasn't a young man's arm anymore. It hadn't been
young for long time, almost four years. 

In October '95, Game 5 of the divisional series against the Mariners,
Cone threw 143 pitches, the last of which, an attempt at a splitter,
fell a foot short of the plate. He had walked Doug Strange to tie a
game the Mariners would win in 11 innings. Cone figured he cost the
Yankees even more than a shot at the ALCS. 

"Losing that game," he said, "I remember feeling it right then." 

No getting around it, no way of conning himself: He was old. 
"I left a lot on that mound that day in Seattle," Cone said.  "Jobs
were lost. Don Mattingly played his last game as a Yankee. On the
plane ride back, I'm talking to Donnie, and it hit me. I almost
couldn't lift my arm over my head."

Cone has thrown thousands of pitches since then. And after each, he
wonders if his next will be his last. 

When he was coming up with the Royals and the Mets, Cone never even
bothered to ice his arm after starts. But for the last several seasons
he has resorted to a variety of therapies, some less desperate than
others. 

"If there's any small possibility it (helps)," he once said, "I'll try
it."

His attempt to stave off the years has led him to sample every kind of
designer protein powder. He tried creatine.  He ingested enormous
amounts of vitamins. He did weight training. He swam. He stretched. He
tried this Bowflexer contraption. Most recently, he went in for deep
tissue massage and acupuncture. There's also this stuff called Red
Hot, a flesh-cooking liniment he was applying liberally to his right
arm and shoulder in between innings on Sunday. 

"I think it's especially made for old pitchers," he said.

But then, on Sunday, he wasn't an old pitcher. Something happened on
Sunday. It had little, if anything, to do with liniment or protein
powder or acupuncture, and a lot to do with heart. He pitched as he
had pitched a decade ago, the pitching prodigy who performed at Shea. 

"I had kind of a throwback day," he said. "It's been a while since I
had that sharp, breaking slider."

Certainly the young, eager Expos had never seen it. 

"There were pitches that looked like they were going to be on the
outside corner and ended up two feet outside," he said. "That's the
sign that my slider was breaking really late. It looked like it was
going to be there - and then it was gone."

That was Cone's everyday stuff when he was a kid. He just didn't use
it as well. But as his arm has weakened, his heart has become
stronger. The young Cone, the kid with all that stuff, wouldn't have
walked off the mound on Sunday with a no-hitter. There would have been
a squibber or a blooper or a cue shot or, most likely, a walk followed
by a clean single. But in his advanced years, Cone needed only 88
pitches to throw a perfect game.  Even after a rain delay, his
fastball only got faster. 

It was great to be perfect and it was even greater to be perfect in
New York. But most of all, it was great to feel so young again.

Boston Herald

by Tony Massarotti 

Tuesday, February 13, 2001

FORT MYERS - For pitchers, especially, spring training has always been
about psychology as much as it has been about stuff. So maybe that is
why Red Sox pitching coach Joe Kerrigan made a pair of interesting
offerings yesterday upon arriving at the team's minor league complex.

First: Though he is in camp on a non-guaranteed contract, David Cone
will open the spring in the spot immediately behind irrepressible ace
Pedro Martinez.

Second: Other than Martinez, only Hideo Nomo will arrive in camp
relatively assured of a rotation spot, a detail that should be
pertinent to, among others, Rolando Arrojo.

Let the (mind) games begin.

"Right now, as a working order - and unless things change - I think
we're probably going to go with Cone as the No. 2 and then we'll go
from there," Kerrigan said.

But given the fact that Cone is among the many candidates with
something to prove, isn't it safe to assume that only Nomo and Arrojo
are virtually assured places somewhere behind Martinez in the starting
five?

"Let's just say Nomo will," Kerrigan said.

So began the first unofficial workouts of pre-spring, the week leading
up to Saturday's official reporting date for pitchers and catchers. 

Since becoming the Red Sox pitching coach prior to the 1997 season,
Kerrigan typically has used this time to get a head start on the
newest season. Today, for instance, he expects another six or eight
big leaguers to arrive in camp.

Among the group already in attendance are Rich Garces, Derek Lowe,
Juan Pena and Bryce Florie. Yesterday's notable arrival was Cone, who
spent roughly 10 minutes throwing to Kerrigan. Cone revealed later
that he has been throwing off a mound for more than two months.
Clearly, he is taking this opportunity quite seriously.  And clearly,
the Red Sox are intent on helping Cone rebuild his confidence after a
terribly uncharacteristic 2000 season in which Cone won just four
games and finished with an unsightly 6.91 ERA. The preliminary report?
"You could tell right away that he was better than last year when Jimy
(Williams) and I saw him in Tampa right after the holidays," said
Kerrigan.

Offered Cone of his intentions during this camp and, hopefully,
season: "I'm not looking to save face and leave with a little dignity.
I'm looking to come up big."

As for Arrojo, Kerrigan clearly seems to be using the opposite
psychology. Though he went 5-2 in 13 starts for the Sox last year
after being acquired from the Colorado Rockies, Arrojo seemed
distracted at times, disinterested at others. Kerrigan was reluctant
to say that the pitcher's inconsistencies resulted from mental lapses
- "I don't know that yet, we weren''t together long enough," he
stressed - but it seems clear that the club may try to challenge
Arrojo.

Such methods are not unusual for Kerrigan, who can be as deft at
exploring the psyche of his pitchers as he is at analyzing their
video. Kerrigan routinely seeks books on coaching philosophy, last
season reading a book written by acknowledged football genius Bill
Walsh.  (One can only hope he skipped over the offerings of Rick
Pitino.)

"The one segment (of a game) he had trouble with was the second time
through the order, so we have to do something about that," Kerrigan
said of Arrojo.  "Whether it's pitch selection or something else, we
have to do something about that."

The rest of the rotation? Kerrigan believes there are eight legitimate
candidates for the four rotation spots behind Martinez, adding Tim
Wakefield, Tomokazu Ohka, Bret Saberhagen and Paxton Crawford to the
group of Nomo, Cone, Arrojo and Frank Castillo. He believes the
bullpen will be as strong as last season, despite the loss of
left-handed specialist Rheal Cormier, who signed with Philadelphia as
a free agent.

"It's not a priority," Kerrigan said of finding a left-hander to take
Cormier's place. "It would be more of a luxury."

And at this time of year, what you believe can be more important than
what you see.

Tuesday, July 20, 1999
To Cone, Gem Is Priceless 

Don't expect to see David Cone hustling perfect-game baseballs on the
Home Shopping Network anytime soon.

The righthander could easily make a fortune off his achievement, but
instead of hawking his signature or any perfect-game memorabilia, he
has chosen to make a stand. Though he may sell some items for charity,
Cone said he has no plans to cash in for himself.

"The whole other side, the memorabilia game to me is just enormous
nowadays," Cone said. "I've always been leery about signing autographs
for money. We're going to sit down and talk about it and try to figure
out a way to tie it in to charities. If I can sign some baseballs and
some pictures and do some good for some charities, then I'll probably
consider that heavily."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Tuesday, July 20, 1999
Ricky Realizes He Caught a Break 
By KRISTIE ACKERT 
Daily News Sports Writer

Ricky Ledee would have had to keep on running had fate not slammed
into his glove Sunday afternoon.

With a perfect game for New York's most-popular pitcher on the line,
the Yankees' young left fielder ran in on Ryan McGuire's lofted fly
ball.

Ledee made an awkward underhanded catch, dramatically squeezing the
ball in his glove as he lurched forward to save David Cone's perfect
day. Cone went on to close out Montreal with a perfect game and credit
the Yankee magic that was created by the presence of the Yankees'
first perfect-game battery of pitcher Don Larsen and catcher Yogi
Berra.

He should have thanked a few of the Yankees' outfield angels who were
looking out for him as well - because Ledee said he never saw the
ball.

"The first time I saw that ball was when I threw it back in to Jeter,"
Ledee said with a laugh.

The play, which was rerun in highlights again and again Sunday night,
seemed even more dramatic as players dissected it in the clubhouse
prior to the Bombers' 6-4 loss to the Expos last night.

"I had told Luis Sojo early in the game that if there was a low line
drive I would not be able to see it," Ledee said.  "The only thing I
saw was (third baseman Scott) Brosius waving me in."

Brosius sensed Ledee was having some trouble finding the ball, but he
had no idea how lost the left fielder was. 

"I didn't realize that he did not see it until much later," said
Brosius. "We just wanted to make sure everything was right."

What Brosius did realize quickly was that the sightlines Sunday were
difficult. The humid weather cast a haze over the Yankee Stadium
field, one reason the ball may not have carried as far into the
outfield as normal.

"It was hit much softer than it seemed," Brosius said. "It can be
really hard to see short balls like that, because a lot of the fans
are wearing white."

Ledee charged in not knowing where the ball was, with Brosius yelling
directions and Cone and 40,000-plus fans holding their collective
breath.

"And then it just landed in my glove," Ledee said. "Just like God put
it in there. It did not hit the side or bounce back, it just laid in
there perfectly. Which kind of figures, since everything else was
going so perfectly."

Things didn't go nearly as well last night for Ledee. The young left
fielder made an error in the third inning when he misplayed Rondell
White's double, allowing Terry Jones to score all the way from first
base. He also went 0-for-4 one day after hitting a monster home run
into the upper deck in right.

Susan
these are so heart-warming to read.. and on such an appropriate day too!

Happy Valentine's day everyone!

Laura