Edited From Wikipedia
Tony Conigliaro: Red Sox Number 25
Tony? Yes, I liked him! Before a game that I went to with a group, some of the players were walking around the field. I saw a player with a number 25, and I knew it was him!
It is crucial for children to wear a protective helmet, when playing contact sports!
It is essential for Children and Adults to wear "Protective Helmets":
*Bike Riding:
Always supervise your children. Tell your young children never go outdoors without you. Tell your older children to tell you where they are always going. Suggest to them when they get to their destination to call you. Older children, like their privacy. Their safety is more important than their privacy, so do tell them to call by cell phone every fifteen to twenty minutes.
*Roller Blading
*Skate Boarding
*Dirt Bikes
*Motorcycles
*Equestrian Riding
*etc...etc...
| Tony Conigliaro | |
|---|---|
| Right fielder | |
| Born: January 7, 1945 Revere, Massachusetts | |
| Died: February 24, 1990 (aged 45) Salem, Massachusetts | |
| Batted: Right | Threw: Right |
| MLB debut | |
| April 16, 1964 for the Boston Red Sox | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 12, 1975 for the Boston Red Sox | |
| Career statistics | |
| Batting average | .264 |
| Home runs | 166 |
| Runs batted in | 516 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Anthony Richard Conigliaro (January 7, 1945 - February 24, 1990), nicknamed "Tony C" and "Conig",[1][2] was a Major League Baseball outfielder and right-handed batter who played for the Boston Red Sox (1964-67, 1969-1970, 1975) and California Angels (1971). He was born in Revere, Massachusetts, and was a 1962 graduate of St. Mary's High School (Lynn, Massachusetts).
Baseball Career
In his 1964 rookie season, Conigliaro batted .290 with 24 home runs and 52 RBI in 111 games, but broke his arm and his toes in August. Tony Oliva won American League Rookie of the Year honors.
In his sophomore season in 1965, Conigliaro led the league in home runs (32). He was selected for the All-Star Game in 1967. In that season, at age 22, he became the youngest player to reach a career total of 100 home runs.[3]
On August 18, 1967, the Red Sox were playing the California Angels at Fenway Park. Conigliaro, batting against Jack Hamilton, was hit by a pitch on his left cheekbone, and was carried off the field on a stretcher. He sustained a broken cheekbone and severe damage to his left retina. The batting helmet he was wearing did not have the protective ear-flap that has since become standard.
A year and a half later, Conigliaro made a remarkable return, hitting 20 homers with 82 RBI in 141 games, earning Comeback Player of the Year honors. In 1970, he reached career-high numbers in HRs (36) and RBI (116). That season he and his brother Billy formed two-thirds of the Red Sox outfield. After a stint with the Angels in 1971, he returned to the Red Sox briefly in 1975, but was forced to retire because his eyesight had been permanently damaged.
Conigliaro batted .267, with 162 home runs and 501 RBI during his 802-game Red Sox career. With the Angels, he hit .222, 4, 15, in 74 games. He holds the MLB record for most home runs (25) hit by a teenaged player. He is the 2nd youngest player to hit his 100h homer (after Mel Ott in 1931).
 | Back in uniform after his injury, Tony Conigliaro leads the cheers from the dugout. (FRANK O'BRIEN/GLOBE STAFF/file 1967) |
Mike Andrews, former teammate:
"He was destined for the Hall of Fame. There was no question in my mind. He just had everything going for him. He was as good a clutch hitter as I've ever seen."
Dick Williams, manager of 1967 Red Sox, on whether Boston could have won the World Series that year with a healthy Conigliaro:
"Oh, yes. We could have won more than '67."
Carl Yastrzemski, former teammate:
"He was just starting to come into his own as a big-league ballplayer all around."
Johnny Pesky, former Sox shortstop and longtime coach:
"He was a great player. The best 19-year-old I ever saw. That's one of the tragedies of baseball. When he got hurt, he was the best-looking young player I ever saw. I've said that many times. There's a lot of coulda, shoulda. We'll never know."
Mike Lowell, who wears Tony C's number 25 for the Red Sox and received the 1999 Tony Conigliaro Award for overcoming adversity after beating testicular cancer:
"It's a good name to be intertwined with, as opposed to something that might be negative. . . . I got some fan mail from people who say that they're proud that I'm wearing 25 because they're big Conigliaro fans. So that's got to be a pretty substantial compliment. I take it as good. . . . But I think it's just a shame that someone who was so highly touted like that. . . . It's sad to think that one moment really can change that so much."
Dick Bresciani, Red Sox historian, on Conigliaro's abbreviated 1975 comeback attempt:
"It was sad to see a guy who probably should have been still in his prime and all of a sudden he just couldn't perform well anymore."
Dick Johnson, curator of New England Sports Museum:
"I saw him when he'd been retired for about two years. He was a broadcaster out in the [San Francisco] area. They had a home-run-hitting contest and Tony C took part in it in street clothes, white shoes, checked polyester sport coat, a pair of bell-bottoms. And he gets in the batter's box, and my recollection is that he hit six of 10 pitches out of the park. It was remarkable. My brother and I were going crazy."
Jim Lonborg, former teammate:
"We were in spring training. We had a series with the Yankees down in St. Thomas and St. Croix. There were day games at very funky fields, pretty rough shape. I can remember being out at a wonderful restaurant up on top of a hill, Mike Ryan, and Rico [Petrocelli], Tony, and myself. Having dinner and then cocktails and then singing all kinds of great doo-wop songs. It was a wonderful night."
Rico Petrocelli, former teammate, on Conigliaro's comeback:
"Absolutely [amazing]. I thought he'd never come back. The hole in his eye. Geez, the damage. How can you hit if you can't see well? I thought it was one of the greatest comebacks of all time. I think we all did."
Billy Conigliaro, younger brother, on his memory of Aug. 18, 1967:
"The sound of the ball hitting him. It was just a big whack, a thud. The ball just went straight down. It didn't glance off. It didn't skip to the backstop. It just kind of fell right there."
Compiled by Maureen Mullen
Continued Edited From Wikipedia
Final years
On January 3, 1982 Conigliaro, in Boston to interview for a broadcasting position, suffered a heart attack while being driven to the airport by his brother Billy. Shortly thereafter, he suffered a stroke and lapsed into a coma. Conigliaro remained in basically a vegetative state until his death more than 8 years later. He lived these final years at his parents' home in Nahant, Massachusetts. In February, 1990 he died in Salem, Massachusetts at the age of 45. In commemoration, the Red Sox wore black armbands that season.
Currently, the Tony Conigliaro Award is given annually to the player who best overcomes an obstacle and continues to thrive through
Conigliaro's Corner
For the start of the 2007 season, Red Sox ownership added a new 200-seat bleacher section on the right field roof, providing an additional 16,000 available tickets for the season.[4] It was named "Conigliaro's Corner" in honor of Tony Conigliaro. The seats are being marketed specifically towards families.[4] As of May 2007, the section is reserved for Red Sox Nation members on Saturdays and Red Sox Kid Nation members on Sundays.[4]
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