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• Gregga April 4, 2011 at 5:11 pm

  I remember the day he died, it was very sad indeed. You can tell how admired and respected he was when you hear Tom Seaver talk about him, all these years later. The respect, love and admiration can be heard in Seaver’s voice.
• Metstheory22 April 4, 2011 at 5:13 pm

  I always wear #14 in his honor. Happy Birthday Mr. Hodges
• Mr North Jersey April 4, 2011 at 5:19 pm

  Hodges is one of those people that you can tell by how well people that got to see him speak of him that you know you missed out on watching a great man.
• Metsie April 4, 2011 at 5:51 pm

  I can’t truly say that ANY MET manager has had or commanded the respect he did.
  Not even Johnson who many fans hated despite 86!
• t agee April 4, 2011 at 6:09 pm

  When I was 8 I caught him coming out of Shea, quickly got his baseball card and asked for his autograph. He stopped, asked me how I liked the game. I told him I thought we were gonna lose. (we didn’t 8th inning Cleon Jones triple w/the basses loaded against Houston) He told me “Son, don’t ever count us out.”

  That card acquired a frame as soon as I had the cash and has been in my living room ever since.

  Ever since that day I never have.
  • Kay April 4, 2011 at 6:37 pm

    I love this thread and that is awesome t agee!!! Gil Hodges was my Dad’s favorite player and every time we talk of him, it reminds me of my dad and how much I miss him.

    What a great man!
• t agee April 4, 2011 at 6:55 pm

  I hear you Kay. You more than most I’m sure, but Gil does seem to remind everyone a bit of their Dad. In a way he’s like the father of the franchise, the guy who harnessed the extrodinary amount of young talent and somehow got everyone to believe in themselves and each other and put everything else aside for the good of the team.

  I remember how shocked I was the first time I heard that Gil had been a player. That’s when I started hearing about the Dodgers, Ebbets and the boys. Great times, I remember them well.

  Your father could not possibly have picked a better man as a favorite player.
  • Des April 4, 2011 at 7:07 pm

    My best remembrances of Gil are from his playing days. Humble, smart, dedicated and competitive are what he brings to my mind.
• Old Backstop April 4, 2011 at 7:10 pm

  What a nice surprise. Gil was an inspiration to me growing up. I remember how Mrs. Joan Payson absolutely adored him and would visit him after games not to criticize but to tell him how happy she was with the job he did. What a class act they both were.
• Hitman April 4, 2011 at 7:25 pm

  I saw a special on Hodges a few weeks ago on SNY and after watching it, I thought to myself, “Why is this man not in the Hall of Fame yet?”
• The Stache April 4, 2011 at 7:56 pm

  Some of Gil Hodges’ Accomplishments

  ·Hit at least 30 home runs a season for five consecutive years from 1950 to 1954

  ·Had over 100 RBIs during the 1949 to 1955 seasons

  - Won the first three Gold Glove Awards ever awarded, could have won as many as nine.

  - Led the NL in double plays 4 times and putouts & fielding percentage 3 times each.

  - Ranks second in NL history with 1,281 assists and 1,614 double plays

  ·Played in seven World Series, six with Brooklyn and one with Los Angeles

  ·Hit at least 30 home runs a season for five consecutive years from 1950 to 1954

  ·Had over 100 RBIs during the 1949 to 1955 seasons

  ·Had a home run percentage of 5.3 percent

  ·Had a career slugging average of .487

  ·Had more RBIs during the 1950s than any other player 1001 RBIs

  - Selected to start in seven consecutive All-Star teams

  - His last home run of 1951 came on October 2 against the New York Giants, as the Dodgers tied the 3-game NL playoff series at a game each with a 10-0 win; New York would take the pennant the next day on Bobby Thomson’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World”.

  - In 1960 he broke Ralph Kiner’s NL record for right-handed hitters of 351 career home runs.

  He belongs!
• TommyJ April 5, 2011 at 8:35 am

  I said it once I’ll say it again…. There should be a 14 on the floor iside the front doors of Citifield and it should be named The Gil Hodges Rotunda…. No offense to Jackie Robinson but he was not a Met.
• Matt74 April 5, 2011 at 10:33 am

  Hodges was my dad’s favorite as well. He was a die hard dodger fan until O’Malley moved them across the country. My dad quit watching baseball at that point, and did not start again until Gil became manager of the Mets.
  That being said, it is quite possible that I am a Met fan solely because Hodges came back to NY to manage.