A clandestine undertaking on behalf of Israel, the Jets and the Jews.

 
Thurman Munson

My family spent the summer of 1979 in Israel. At six years old, I already didn't like the Yankees. In addition to the Mets, I also liked the Cubs, because they were the Mets' main competition for last place and because I liked Wrigley Field. Bill Buckner was my favorite player.

Perhaps because it was my first understanding of death, I vividly remember - or at least think I do - the death of Thurman Munson from a plane crash on August 2, 2004, 25 years old today. It is possible that I'm wrong about all of this, but I am pretty sure it was on Tisha B'av, that it was a Thursday, and that my father was hospitalized that day with a kidney stone. I remember reading extensive reports about Munson in The Jerusalem Post the next morning, and listening to the Yankees game and an emotional pre-game memorial the next day, presumably on a Voice of America station. My recollection is that the Yankees played the Orioles and lost, and that the game was on a Friday night.
posted on 8/02/2004