Some of you who are not Cardinal fans may be sitting there wondering who in the world is Stubby Clapp and what kind of name is that? Well first off, Stubby is not his real name. It is Richard Keith. He developed that nickname as it was passed down from his grandfather, his father, and then to him because they are all short. Being short did not stop Stubby from meeting his dreams. He came up from the minors last year to fill the place of the injured J.D. Drew. He only got to pinch hit a couple of times and play 2nd base once or twice as he wore #29. If he struck out, he got a standing ovation while the fans of St. Louis chanted "Stu-bby! Stu-bby!" That may sound weird, why would you give a standing ovation so someone who strikes out? That brings me to my next point. Stubby Clapp has a great personality. He always has a big smile on his face and seems to be a down-to-earth guy. I have never met Stubby, but the first time I saw him play, I knew this is the guy who has lots of heart for the game. The first time I saw him play was during spring training in 2001. My family went to Clearwater for vaction on our spring break. My Dad and I wanted to see what spring training was like so we drove 4 hours to Jupiter to see 1 game. I got lots of autographs and it was awesome. Stubby was the hero of the game! Everyone wanted his autograph. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to stay to get his. But he took the time to sign for each and everyone there who wanted his autograph. The next season I went to at least 17 games at Busch Stadium. Out of those 17, I had not seen Stubby play once. But on the last home game of the season, I was standing about 4 rows from the Cardinals dugout with my Dad as I watched batting practice. Before we went into the stadium, I debated whether I should bring my Stubby sign or Drew sign. I chose to bring the one I had made for Stubby that morning. The next thing I knew, Stubby walked out of the dugout and he took a couple of swings in the batting cage. My eyes were glued on him because this was the last chance of the 2001 season to get his attention. After he was done batting, him and a bat boy, who was holding a camera, walked over to the section where I was standing. They wanted to get a picture of all the fans going crazy. As they were trying to get us pumped up, I whipped out my sign that said "Go Stubby!" At first he didn't see it. But I held it up higher, and he waved to me and had the bat boy take a picture of it for him. He didn't play that day but having him take a picture of my sign was good enough. Seeing Stubby smile and have fun on the field or in the dugout, makes my day. During an interview, he once said "I'd rather pinch hit in the majors than play every game in the minors. My teammates and fans are fun to be around." If that's not a good enough explanation why to have a site for Stubby, I don't know what is, because he deserves it! Plus, who else goes by the name Stubby Clapp? It's one of the best names in baseball!
If you have any questions, comments, or ideas, please e-mail me.
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