Ever wonder why some folks get hung up on baseball players from way back? Like, really dig into them? That was me recently with Don Clendenin. Not exactly a household name for the TikTok generation, you know? But I got this itch, this idea to do a bit of a deep dive, my own little “practice” you could say, into something specific about him.
The Mission: Uncovering Clendenin’s “Secret Sauce”
My whole thing was trying to figure out his deal before big moments. Everyone talks about the ’69 World Series, him being MVP. Awesome, right? But what was going on before he stepped up to the plate? What was his routine, his mindset, especially during that championship run? That’s the stuff you don’t just find on a Wikipedia page. That was my target, my little project.
Down the Rabbit Hole I Went
And let me tell you, it wasn’t a walk in the park. I thought, “Okay, old newspapers, maybe some obscure interviews, biographies, piece of cake.” Wrong. It’s like panning for gold, but mostly you just get mud and sore eyes. I spent hours, man, staring at grainy scans of old sports pages from libraries and online archives. You’d find game reports, sure. “Clendenin got a hit.” “Clendenin drove in a run.” Big whoop. I needed the flavor, the behind-the-scenes stuff, the human element of his preparation.
I hunted for anecdotes, quotes that weren’t just the standard “we played hard” stuff. It got pretty frustrating at times. Felt like I was trying to piece together a puzzle with half the pieces missing, or maybe they were never even made. You read about his impact, how he came to the Mets and suddenly they’re world beaters, but the how of his personal prep for those clutch moments? Still fuzzy. Most of what I found was about his performance during the games, not the detailed lead-up.
What I Actually Figured Out (Sort Of)
So, did I find some long-lost diary entry detailing his pre-game meditation techniques? Nope. Not a chance. What I did start to realize, though, was that maybe I was looking for the wrong thing, or looking for it in a modern way for an old-school guy. The “secret sauce” wasn’t some complicated formula.
Here’s what I kinda pieced together from the vibe of the era and the little snippets I could find:
- Experience was his teacher: This guy had been around. He wasn’t a wide-eyed rookie. He’d seen slumps, he’d seen hot streaks. That kind of experience builds a certain kind of toughness, a way of handling pressure that isn’t taught in a manual.
- It was about the team, man: The ’69 Mets were a special bunch. The energy of that team, the “Miracle” aspect, probably played a huge role. He fit into that. Maybe his “preparation” was just feeding off that collective belief and momentum.
- Keep it simple, stupid: Back then, sports psychology wasn’t what it is today. From what I could gather, a lot of guys just… played. They focused on the fundamentals, relied on their talent, and didn’t overthink it. Clendenin seemed like a smart guy, articulate, but maybe his on-field approach was more straightforward than I imagined.
My “practice” of digging into Don Clendenin’s prep didn’t give me a step-by-step guide. But it gave me a different kind of appreciation. It made me think that sometimes, greatness isn’t about complex rituals. Sometimes it’s about seasoned instinct, being in the right place with the right people, and just having the guts to perform when the lights are brightest. He was known for being clutch, and maybe that clutch factor was just him, his character, forged over years. Not something you could easily write down or replicate. It was a good reminder that not everything has a complicated explanation, and sometimes the story is just in the doing. Made me respect those old-timers even more. They just got the job done.