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-Short Attention Span Theater-
Today in History: baseball's greatest play
2008-04-25
On April 25, 1976, during a game at Dodger Stadium, two protestors, a man and his son, ran into the outfield and tried to set fire to an American flag they had brought with them. Monday, then playing with the Cubs, noticed they had placed the flag on the ground and were fumbling with matches and lighter fluid; he then dashed over and grabbed the flag off the ground to thunderous cheers.



When he came up to bat in the next half-inning, he got a standing ovation from the crowd and the big message board behind the left-field bleachers in the stadium flashed the message, "RICK MONDAY... YOU MADE A GREAT PLAY..."
Posted by:Mike

#8  Takes me back - saw the event on TV. My group was mostly expecting somebody in disco clothes to sneak in and quickly take 'em off ala STREAKING, since the latter was the fad in mainland USA at the time.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2008-04-25 20:16  

#7  "This wouldn't have happened if Judge Landis were alive. Or Bowie Kuhn." Originally said about the 1972 strike, but it fits.
Posted by: Eric Jablow   2008-04-25 19:13  

#6  disappeared, did they? The mighty reach of Bowie Kuhn was indeed powerful
Posted by: Frank G   2008-04-25 18:23  

#5  too bad they didn't have an accident while trying too light it, like son accidentally sprayed lighter fluid all over dad
Posted by: sinse   2008-04-25 16:35  

#4  Glad they faded into the oblivion they deserve, tu.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut   2008-04-25 16:12  

#3  I tried to find that out last week when this was here. About all I found was that they were father and son from Missouri who's wife/mother was supposedly in a mental institution there and wasn't being released. Pops pulled a sixty dollar fine for trespassing and him and sonny disappeared into oblivion.
Posted by: tu3031   2008-04-25 14:12  

#2  What were they protesting? They look kinda swarthy, but the vid isn't clear.
Posted by: Marilyn Omerese3326   2008-04-25 13:58  

#1  If you watch the video closely, you can see the protesters hurling the fluid can at Monday. They missed.

In a less formal interview on the subject, Monday said that "I went to a good university; I knew what they were pouring on the flag wasn't holy water...If I could just get the flag away from them, they couldn't burn it." (source: Ron Luciano, "The Fall of the Roman Umpire, I think).
Posted by: mom   2008-04-25 10:12  

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