Yosh Kawano thrown out of Wrigley Field

[Wsmith]

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/baseball/cubs/1664320,CST-SPT-yosh14.article

 

You'd think he'd have his own key.

[Wheelimus]

Sheesh, with his creds you'd think he'd be left alone unless he started taking a dump on the field or something.

[abuck1220]

dick move, roast. dick move.

[mjohnson71]

*sigh*

 

Can the Cubs do anything right? #-o

[Cubbie Swagger]

That's horrible.

 

I was just thinking about how awesome his resume must look. Not that he's gonna be looking for a new job at his age, but if you work somewhere for 65 years, you've gotta be a pretty decent employee :-))

[kujay]

Just idiots abusing their authority. It's not the FO's fault.

[hardcorecubfan]

Yosh is the third non-cub after Harry and Jack that should have a memorial designated for him!!

[TruffleShuffle]

wow he's almost as old as fred

[BCVM22]

dick move, roast. dick move.

 

This post needs more =D>

[chuckywang]

Man, this story annoys me for so many reasons. Yes, mainly because they threw Kawano out of Wrigley. But if I'm reading it correctly, the security guards recognized who he was and still threw him out. Geez.

 

 

Oh yeah, the story also mentions Buck O'Neil, one of the great ambassadors to the game of baseball, and who was NOT voted into the HOF the first year they allowed Negro League players in. He died during that year, so his induction was posthumous. That snub still makes me seethe.

[jersey cubs fan]

Concerns about his well-being apparently prompted the security action, but it upset Kawano and friends of the 88-year-old.

 

That's a vague statement. What were the concerns? Was he standing underneath a piano? Were they doing work on the grounds that his floppy hat couldn't protect him from? Do they think he suffers from some sort of dementia and was just walking around aimlessly?

[NCCubFan]

Oh yeah, the story also mentions Buck O'Neil, one of the great ambassadors to the game of baseball, and who was NOT voted into the HOF the first year they allowed Negro League players in. He died during that year, so his induction was posthumous. That snub still makes me seethe.

Actually he STILL hasn't been elected to the Hall. And yes, that is an inexcusable snub.

[Wsmith]

Just idiots abusing their authority. It's not the FO's fault.

 

If by FO you mean Front Office, I respectfully have to disagree. Yosh Kawano was a member of the Cubs organization for 65 years before retiring last season. In the article Cubs senior vice president, Michael Lufrano is quoted as saying, “He has a standing invitation to come to any game here…” The security guards apologized to him and told him “he is not supposed to be there when the team isn’t there.” It would seem it wasn’t their decision, but that they were just following orders. Moreover, again according to the article, Kawano has visited Wrigley Field frequently since his retirement last season. If anyone in the front office actually gave a damn, this incident would have never occurred.

[jersey cubs fan]

Just idiots abusing their authority. It's not the FO's fault.

 

If by FO you mean Front Office, I respectfully have to disagree. Yosh Kawano was a member of the Cubs organization for 65 years before retiring last season. In the article Cubs senior vice president, Michael Lufrano is quoted as saying, “He has a standing invitation to come to any game here…” The security guards apologized to him and told him “he is not supposed to be there when the team isn’t there.” It would seem it wasn’t their decision, but that they were just following orders. Moreover, again according to the article, Kawano has visited Wrigley Field frequently since his retirement last season. If anyone in the front office actually gave a damn, this incident would have never occurred.

 

My guess is they aren't just being jerks, but are afraid of liability issues with a frail old man walking around Wrigley on his own. It's a very old building with lots of exposed pipes, potentially falling concrete, heavy equipment and other things. They probably feel comfortable with their insurance covering any fans that might get hurt on gamedays, but don't have coverage for non-employees getting hurt walking around during non-business hours.

[Guest]

Concerns about his well-being apparently prompted the security action, but it upset Kawano and friends of the 88-year-old.

 

That's a vague statement. What were the concerns? Was he standing underneath a piano? Were they doing work on the grounds that his floppy hat couldn't protect him from? Do they think he suffers from some sort of dementia and was just walking around aimlessly?

 

I think they caught him peeing on an electric fence.

[Fred Hornkohl]

65 years !! Somebody's head needs to roll for this !! Hell, the Wrigley family didn't own the team that long !!

[Roast]

Man, this story annoys me for so many reasons. Yes, mainly because they threw Kawano out of Wrigley. But if I'm reading it correctly, the security guards recognized who he was and still threw him out. Geez.

Hah, I just read about this now. For the record though, I don't think people realize how much goes on down those concourses when the Cubs aren't home. As Goony pointed to, the reason they asked him to leave is likely because there is actually construction - yah, construction - going on around the park right now and having a frail old man walking around in the middle of that probably isn't the best move. And even if the construction hadn't started yet when this happened (2 weeks ago?), there is still a ton of crap going on - and machinery driving down the concourses - when the Cubs aren't home.

 

Could you imagine if the headline/story was "Yosh Kawano killed by forklift while wondering around the Wrigley Concourse while the Cubs were on the road. According to sources, Wrigley security personnel saw him walking on security cameras and decided to allow him to continue roaming - despite the ongoing construction/commotion." That would have landed real well.

 

This is nothing more than the Sun Times doing what it does best - acting like a fat old hag and spreading gossip.