Giving Schmidt His Due

Bill Lyon touches on a point I made yesterday about Philly fans and their love of grit. I mentioned that fans were cool to Mike Schmidt cause they perceived his unemotional yet flawless play as indifference, while they have a special affection for the grinders, guys that make it look hard all the time.

 

Bill Lyon elaborates, “He [Schmidt] played the position with feline grace, with such casual elegance that for much of his career the affection that should have been his all along was denied because they perceived him to be nonchalant. His fluid style was seen as lack of hustle. At last, in the twilight of his career, the fans came to understand that for all those years they had been privileged to witness genius.”