Everything finally breaks Blyleven's way

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- That old phrase "Sometimes life throws you a curve" does not necessarily mean something bad. Take it from Bert Blyleven, master of the curveball, who waited 14 years before life made the good turn it took Sunday. This curve brought him to the Hall of Fame.

It had been a frustrating stretch for the former pitcher who came within one year of falling off the Hall of Fame ballot. There were times when it looked as if he never would make it, but he finally received a plaque that referred to his "cruel and knee-bending breaking ball."

"In life, you look forward to things and sometimes you don't get them," he said after the ceremony. "As little kids, I'm sure we wanted candy every day and sometimes our mother would say no. It's kind of like going into the Hall of Fame. You feel like you can get into that store and get a piece of candy, but they won't let you in. Finally, I'm in.

"So you know what? I've got my candy. What has happened in the past is over with as far as I'm concerned. It's an honor to be a Hall of Famer. I had a great day."

The day was just as rewarding for Roberto Alomar, who was inducted for having been arguably the premier second baseman of his generation, and Pat Gillick, the general manager who has won three World Series.

Each gave a speech that was at times very personal, as inductees always do.

Alomar gave the first part of his speech in Spanish, drawing raves from people waving Puerto Rico flags.

Gillick spoke of having given up on his pitching career and going through the ranks as an executive, including a stint as scouting director for the Yankees.

Those two have a connection, because Gillick's signature trade as Blue Jays general manager was the one that brought Alomar and Joe Carter from the Padres for Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez -- a deal that helped Toronto win two World Series.

Blyleven's induction, though, was the one preceded by the most controversy. For years, voters in the Baseball Writers' Association of America had misgivings about whether his 287-250 record and 3.31 ERA were Hall-worthy.

Voters ultimately decided in favor of a career that began when Blyleven was an unsuspecting 19-year-old call-up by the Twins in 1970 -- another one of life's curves.

The former pitcher, now a Twins broadcaster, spoke during his speech about the telegram that told him to meet the team in Boston and report to manager Bill Rigney "immediately." The kid took it literally and woke the manager at about 2 a.m. Rigney "immediately" instructed him to go and knock on the doors of all of his new teammates to say hello, then stop back at the manager's room.

Not knowing that he had been doing a de facto bed check, Blyleven returned and told Rigney that the guys were all out. "I made the manager a lot of money that night," Blyleven said on the stage Sunday. "I didn't make too many friends."

He was a rookie again Sunday, and also a full member. There are no classes or ranks in the Hall, no matter how big a vote a person gets or how long it took. Blyleven is just as much a member as Sandy Koufax, whom Blyleven saluted during his speech for inspiring him to throw the curve, which he called "a drop."

That curve allowed Blyleven to receive that plaque and make the speech, recalling how his late father moved the family from Holland to Canada to Southern California. Along the way, they changed the spelling of the surname from "Blijleven."

"Which means," the Hall of Famer said, "Happy life."