Ok, Boomer: The David Wells Story | Baseball Dudes

TWITTER - @BaseballHSTRN
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On the morning of May 17, 1998, David Wells woke up the same way thousands of Americans did: hungover. As he took the mound later that day as part of the rubber match against the Minnesota Twins, he didn't know if he would be able to see straight, much less pitch an entire Major League baseball game. Little did he know that, only three hours later, he would be immortalized in baseball history, having led the Yankees to a win in one of the greatest pitching performances of all-time.
How did this unlikeliest of heroes reach this point? Let's rewind.
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SOURCES
Wikipedia
Society for American Baseball Research (SABR)
Sports Illustrated
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TIMESTAMPS
0:00​ - 0:40​ Under Pressure
0:41​ - 1:55 Born to Run
1:56​ - 4:27 Ramblin' Man
4:28 - 8:09 Life in the Fast Lane
8:10 - 8:49 Renegade
_____________________________
MUSIC
"Good for Nothing Safety" - Twin Musicom
"That One Bar Scene" - RKVC
"Motorbike" - TrackTribe
"Nomads" - The Mini Vandals
"The Hunter" - Audionautix
"To Pass Time" - Godmode
Good for Nothing Safety by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Artist: www.twinmusicom.org/

[@BaseballHistorian]

Follow me on Twitter @BaseballHSTRN or David Wells will find you

[@RetroBaseball]

You better follow Mr. historian… you wouldn’t want to risk it…

[@im_waffles2920]

That’s a scarier threat than it should be

[@BaseballQuotes1]

David Wells is the textbook definition of a dude. Such a wildcard but someone you could always count on to give you his all every fifth day

[@stuartmcdonald5172]

Hardly. Getting very drunk and pitching hungover is hardly giving it your all and that`s why changed teams 12 times in his career.

[@jefffinkbonner9551]

@@stuartmcdonald5172 Yes, he did get very drunk and pitched hungover. If you had paid attention to the video you'd have known that was when he pitched a perfect game.

[@DJPez913]

I did not know about the game worn Babe Ruth hat. That is so cool that a 1934 hat was worn in game so much later. As someone who collects hats of what the home team is wearing that I go to, that would one hell of a hat to try to track down lol

[@BaseballHistorian]

I wish they had let him keep wearing it! I feel like if you go through the trouble to obtain a game-worn Babe Ruth hat, you've earned the right to wear it during a game.

[@DJPez913]

@@BaseballHistorian Yeah it is lame that they made him take it off. If only he was wearing the game worn jersey to match lol

[@sum-tim-Wong]

Considering they chop up game used bats and jerseys for relic cards these days I don’t understand the problem?

[@NYYRecaps]

David Wells was just unflappable in the postseason. He was never nibbling or afraid to get hit. He would just go right after people.

[@brianbelden2449]

Honestly I do believe that the biggest problem with baseball right now, besides advanced stats and woke bullshit, is the way over deliberate pace of the games. Mostly because of pitchers that are way too deliberate with too many pitching changes and hitter time outs. The games have gone from being wrapped up within 3 hours to taking anywhere from 3.5 to 4.5 hours per game. Its unwatchable. Wells is what every pitcher should be. Here it is, now hit it. None of this finess crap with 2 minute windup rituals in between pitches.

[@dzanier]

That’s so correct. I remember every game he pitched.

[@richardmaska1818]

I loved him with the Red Sox.. gave up the eventual game winning home run to my White Sox in 2005 XD

[@dzanier]

That’s true. He had one clunker as a Yankee, Game 4 of the 2002 Alds versus Anaheim. Otherwise he ranged from good to great.

[@LudaChez]

Well he definitely handed the world series to Miami in 03. His game he came out, they were up 2-1 games (honestly if healthy I still think we beat him) but that was Penny's second win. Sudden after Pavano out dueled Rocket and Penny's win Beckett went to NY up 3-2. I was at Key West Fantasy fest. It was amazing. So many Yankees fans that didn't know it was over. I won hundreds of dollars and beers that the series was over. Over confident fans who know nothing about baseball. Typical Yankees fans huh?

[@JackNelson]

That strike-out call at 3:35 is legendary.

[@BaseballHistorian]

Hitting 'em with the old neck chop

[@jefffinkbonner9551]

Umps get a lot of hate, but that man is a savant! Perfect reaction to such a wicked curveball too

[@hjr228]

Straight up! 😄

[@jimdraven2432]

I never understood why he had such a weird reputation. He treated us fans here in Toronto like gold & even posed for a picture in the hospital with my cousin Amber when she had surgery to remove a tumor. Too bad our idiot management at the time took forever to appreciate him. Go Boomer!!

[@nomorefielders]

David Wells is one of those names I always heard about but never knew the extent to how crazy he was. That was awesome.

[@ivansanchez1548]

This channel is a hidden gem

[@jupiteral8217]

My cousin is a long time bartender in Key West. He smoked a joint with David Wells in the walk-in cooler at the bar. Wells is a good sport

[@iamhungey12345]

When you look up on an old baseball card of him as a rookie, it's kind of weird seeing Boomer looking somewhat fit.

[@williamfryman4360]

Love Boomer. Fan of both the Tigers and Reds. Was one of my favs on both teams. He wasn’t always the best pitcher, but he had a great personality and always wanted to win the games he started.

[@DracoVP]

true, the game of baseball HISTORICALLY has no shortage of big personalities, but the lack of them currently is a big reason why the league isn’t bigger today, along with the league not letting them express themselves. the league needs more trevor bauers but attempts to suppress them instead.

[@SteeleZack]

Sports leagues in general don't want "characters" nowadays do in part to market towards families and to gain interest of youth to take up the sport and to not piss off the parents of said youth. These characters can be are viewed as "bad influencers" who can be prone to scumbag and sometimes even criminal behavior. While this has resulted in boring sometimes even "robotic" individuals with no personality being marketed as "the face" of their sport. Sports leagues feel more comfortable with that then if their "face" of the sport is arrested and or being under investigation for a serious crime resulting in media backlash and sponsorships (what they really care about) being dropped.

[@ssojyeti2]

This comment didn't age well

[@jefffinkbonner9551]

If sports leagues really cared about that, the NBA and NFL wouldn't employ half the guys they do. MLB might be a little different, but while I certainly think the league likes to have less free radicals whose bad press they can't account for running around, I think the lack of more interesting personalities in baseball today just reflects how utterly lame people typically are these days.

[@jamessutter6700]

More like Zach Grienke too!

[@KratostheThird]

@@SteeleZack There isn't a single player in MLB today who has a personality like Ken Griffey Jr did. Even Barry Bonds, as big of ego and as arrogant as he was (and still is), had a personality, even if he rubbed people the wrong way. Jose Altuve comes off as a bit of a robot. Joey Gallo is a complete buffoon, strikes out 200 times, and doesn't have near the likeness Mark McGwire did (prior to his steroid abuse becoming well known). I like Mike Trout, but outside of his exceptional fielding and still being able to run bases, he just feels boring to watch. I can personally name a whole bunch of players in the 1990s and early - mid 2000s who were far more dynamic and had a more likable personality. Kirby Puckett for instance, good role model and was a stand out for the Minnesota Twins. Ken Griffey Jr, 10 Rawling Gold Glove Awards, was fun to watch both at the plate and out on the field. David Wells had personality, and that's one major difference between the game of the past and the game of today.

[@drewbravo5042]

My brother & me sat front row, center seats of the top left deck at old Yankee Stadium when Boone hit that 10th inning blast of Wakefield. It sent N.Y. to the World Series. Starting pitchers were Clemens vs Pedro. Wells & Mussina both pitched in relief. Boone's moonshot was coming directly at my face, then at the last second it dipped down in the 2nd deck. The 🏟 was rocking & shaking so much that I was honestly fearful our deck was gonna collapse into the lower one. Magical playoff games with Torre as manager was almost expected in the late 90's-2000's. 😄 1996 Charlie Hayes dribbler down the 3rd base line vs Atlanta was 1 example out of about 100.

[@drewbravo5042]

Davd Wells qualifies for having the best weekend by a human being.

[@RFP15]

The opening line of this video is now my favorite opening line of any KZbin video.

[@RetroBaseball]

I thought the videos couldn’t get better… they just did!

[@joelegue182]

I was exposed to Wells when he played for the Jays since I live a few hours from Toronto. When he signed with Detroit, I knew they had a good one. Unfortunately, this was was when my Tigers were just awful. I remember seeing him pitch in Detroit at Tiger Stadium and thought it was a good fit as he seemed like a throwback to a bygone era. If he had 300 wins, he would be a shoe in for the HOF. Hopefully the veteran committee takes a look at him because he was a great player.

[@25pinstripes]

What was unmentioned that he might have driven Yankee management nuts but Yankee fans loved him. It was a crushing day when he was traded for Clemens.

[@Karmy.]

Wtf I'm a Tigers fan and I had no idea we almost had Mariano Rivera Guess it's good that we didn't trade for him since that legendary duel with Miggy would've never happened

[@BaseballHistorian]

What might have been...

[@ryanclark3935]

Gord Ash was the AGM, Pat Gillick was the GM in '93. Small quibble, good vid.

[@fredstein5429]

To a Jays fan, Wells is up there with Steib, Haliday, Carter and Alamar... and my personal favourite, the great Tony Fernandez, (who left us much too soon ).. a video about him would be awesome, btw..

[@unkledoda420]

You spelled a few of the player's names wrong

[@MrSpeed-lt8gr]

That intro is friggin gold 🤣😂. David did enjoy his adult beverages.

[@KJF-ny]

I wish Boomer would do color on YES. Imagine the stories he'd go into in the 6th inning of a blowout?

[@ktat01]

His book is amazing. I highly suggest giving it a read. You will not be disappointed.

[@ExploreWyoming]

I used to play ball with his Son, and David was a super great guy to talk to

[@XxXFlyingArmBarXxX]

I love Boomer!!! His energy was so damn important to that team

[@Nyg5618]

I remember for a brief time around his perfecto, Wells was considered one of the best in the game. Hell, he later got traded to the Jays for Roger Clemens and, if I remember correctly, the trade was straight up. Edit: Great video. Your content is excellent. It didn’t, however, clear up whether the Well/Clemens trade was straight up or if the Yanks had to throw on some other perks to get this deal done.

[@izzyk15]

Awesome video! Thanks for introducing me to Wells, he's quite the character 😂

[@coachwaams8212]

Super! I knew a lot, but didn’t know about the possible trade for Rivera, wow! 👏🏼

[@jonalonzo7615]

I was at Dave Well's Perfect game. Sat in the bleachers closer to LF with my lil brother for a whopping $7 per ticket. Best game we ever went to. Stayed to watch all of it. What an era

[@danplewnarz]

There is some really impressive photoshop in this video, showing him playing for different teams. We all know he was born one day and came out dealing for the Yankees the next.

[@jonathanzuckerberg8850]

I was actually at that perfect game in 1998 although I was too young to remember. I think that giveaway beanie baby might be worth something these days although it's long gone by this point

[@scattau41]

I always tried to draft him in dynasty mode on MVP Baseball 2005 for the GameCube. He had a beautiful pitching motion, and those career statistics are truly impressive. Nice video.

[@jerseyforhawks]

As Mets fan, I loved Yankee David Wells.

[@bramabull111]

Man, as a jays fan I remember him being an Incredible ace for us....I had no idea we did him so dirty in his early years!!! I'm surprised he ever came back to us!

[@marcmarc4776]

Reminds me when I snuck off post one time during lockdown and drank all night (me and Sgt lemmons). That next morning our commander found out and gave the entire company a PT test. Expecting us to fail, we scored the highest in the company...even better than the captain. I maxed out and scored a 382 on the extended scale. Not a word was said to me about my wild night

[@Klanchey]

I watched this video and was shocked this account isn’t over 1 million subs. What a job man!

[@Klanchey]

Follow me on Instagram or Twitter, just look up my name and I’ll show up! Seems like you’d be cool to talk sports with

[@donsemo4804]

Wells went to the same High school as I did, Point Loma High in San Diego. The same high school that produce another major league pitcher...Don Larsen. Both Wells and Larsen both pitched a perfect game for the same team, New York Yankees, and of course came out of the same high school. BTW the same high school that produced a Boston Bruin hockey great Peter McNabb.

[@Thaeffintruth]

Man, as a young Yankees fan in the 90s, David Wells will always get my respect

[@LaMostraVia]

Of all the games I’ve played hungover, baseball,basketball, soccer I’ve only played really good 1 time Also to note, I was ejected or shown a red card a few times all for arguing with the umpires or refs because I felt so horrible I needed an excuse to get out of the game. Always loved this story thanks for the upload champ! 🏆

[@waltberger7885]

I loved watching him pitch never knew what you were gonna get lol

[@alexremoll2771]

Boomer is one of my favorite Yankees ever. 33 is a sneaky great Yankee number, too, with Wells, Swisher, and Bill Dickey (as a coach). Plus Yankee legends Greg Bird and Jose Canseco

[@CoolSteve77]

Loved Boomer! Great video.

[@vjbk1587]

He threw a perfect game and is a multiple world series champion. What else can we say?

[@SeamusCalder]

Loving the series! You gotta do one one on The Bird, Mark Friedrich

[@thorinhanson1181]

Another very well made video. I didnt used to pay Wells mich mind but this was eye opening

[@robm3599]

Paul o Neal was my fav. Love the videos.

[@toptenguy1]

David Wells and John McLane in Die Hard 3. THEY DO THEIR BEST WORK WHILE HUNGOVER. :)

[@UriahCreep]

Terrific storytelling! Wells seems like a very interesting dude.

[@Keith-ym3lm]

Amazing video as always. Keep up the great work.

[@booradley6832]

Yeah, Orioles fan here and I remember 1996 well. We were so disappointed in Wells and thought he was terrible. Given I was 8 at the time so I had no recollection of any player's history at all.

[@cardboardempire]

I'm a Jays fan. It was a little disheartening when Wells, in a post game interview, said that he hated Toronto, he didn't want to be back there and that the Jays should trade him back to New York. Yup. But the Sports Illustrated Cover was a hatchet job.

[@stupidyutube9]

Beanie Baby Day in the 90s. That sums it up

[@EEZYEEEE]

I sent this video to my bro David Wells and he said “never saw it (before). It’s almost all true, lol.”

[@joshuapatrick682]

Wells is an enigma, not S tier but definitely not B tier either. Then again not what your mind thinks of with an A tier pitcher looks like but man that dude had a wicked looping curve ball.

[@JuanMartinez-xf3uz]

Hated Boomer when he was on the Yankees, kind of felt bad for him when he got booed there as a member of the Red Sox. You could tell he really took it to heart.

[@dumbbuff]

Excellent video dude!

[@Ghoststrikes]

Dude, great video man

[@mr.fancypants1524]

I felt bad when the White Sox got such a lousy version of David Wells. He comes into camp with a big beard, way overweight, and had a trash season plagued by fat-guy injuries. He got in shape for the Yankees though, which was nice of him.

[@Taydutt13]

I like your stuff I wish you would post more often

[@jamessutter6700]

Buying the babes cap for 34000 to wear it in a game you pitch....savage priceless...

[@CalebsCards]

Awesome video again!

[@ommy7672]

Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn is a dude. It would be cool to see him

[@BaseballHistorian]

Maybe a whole video about that underdog '89 Cleveland squad?

[@matrix3509]

"anger management guru" LMAO

[@Gdub33]

I played my best baseball games hung over lol. At a certain point you just feel sick and don't care and just want the game to end so there's like none of that pressure feeling. No over thinking anything. Just trying to get to the end of the game without puking lol.

[@RedSoxBowHunter]

Great pitcher!

[@danielcohen9637]

David wells was the best pitcher i saw for his body shape.

[@AdamPaul2222]

His early baseball teams looked straight of the “Bad News Bears” 🤣

[@elmascavidal1797]

Boomer got that janitor body flow

[@FruityGangster]

I’d take a drunk Boomer in a big playoff game any day.

[@brix1094fuckhandles]

when ppl think of san diego, they think of the nice, and sunny tourist shit. but David wells is 90% of us, not that rich nice shit, but David wells

[@phillyspecs]

I was at the Wells perfect game. I still have the beanie babie giveaway, it's named Valentino.

[@FullSemiAuto357]

Completely forgot he was with the Reds for a minute.

[@joegti10]

wells went out there and gave it his all every start and wore his heart on his sleeve. yankee fans love that.

[@djj250]

Great video

[@ZipSlipHollingbrook]

Torre should have let him wear the cap. He should have played up the parallels to the Bambino. Reminded him that even Ruth had to pull it together after his mid career slump and tone down the night life. Clearly being a Yankee was a big deal to him.

[@davidporter671]

Boy I bet Wells, Fallon, and Meyers wouldn’t be caught partying together nowadays.

[@andrewhunter2520]

that was my first baseball game

[@crushedscouter9522]

legend

[@conedx]

$1 a strike out. $5 a win. $100 a game? i'm not quite sure that math works out. i guess this is why he plays baseball and not math.

[@danielcohen9637]

Was a fun pitcher to watch

[@bobbymichalowski1081]

Is Eric Brynes on the list of baseball dudes? He had his own TV show while playing in AZ

[@cammriggs]

Listen I know his stats aren’t Hall Of Fame worthy but I feel his story is.

[@jonathancote9372]

my father give him the nickname "baril de bière" (Beer barrel)

[@floppaturnt]

this title is GOATed lol

[@matsalvatore9074]

As a Yankees fan i felt betrayed n frustrated by his inconsistencies n never shoeing us loyalty despite how much we loved him.

[@physicalgrafiti12345]

Shocking to hear how Wells was only the third pitcher ever to have Tommy John surgery. And now it happens to many pitchers every year.

[@chrisfabian-maceda8754]

I really thought he was going to say he woke up stiff😂

[@Phyerbyrd13AZ]

as I scroll through the comments I found what I was looking for- A FAN THAT HAS MET HIM. I met this mountain of a man at a Suns game he attended with Mark Grace while the Dbacks were trying to court him to play with the team (same year he posted 20 wins) he was obviously FADED. no1 but myself noticed who the pair actually were and I came up hoping for an autograph and member being pushed aside, not literally, but just a naw no continue walk back to his seat beer in hand. HATED HIM FROM THAT DAY . Many years later I posted on an IG acct that acknowledged the day/anniversary of his NO Hitter/Perfect game and commenting that he was a prick and such. I get reply back in a smart ass way and ended up being his son 😅 of course defending his father. after I told em what happened he kinda toned down his shit talking and said why it may have happened n apologized. I tried to STILL get an autograph lol but with no success. seeing this makes me want his AUTOGRAPH more so - on both his WS team caps. great channel BTW

[@CongaLineMonkey]

So Jimmy Fallon was good for something!

[@josephtemple1667]

Living in Toronto during the golden years of the Blue Jays, Wells just never fit in with the culture there. I remember one ugly incident when manager Cito Gaston went up to the mound and asked him for the ball. Wells got into a shouting match with him and stormed off in disgust. I also remember reading that GM Pat Gillick had him weighed on a regular basis, which Wells resented. A much better fit with the Yankees and Tigers.

[@LeGrandJohnson]

David Wells is Kenny Powers

[@erickennedy5993]

Yankees were good when they had old man . I David Wells should be in the hall

[@xavierid]

fucking legend!

[@DjDobleU809]

The Guerrero's have always been big and heavy. But don't make assumptions. They can play ball!

[@christianrojas9903]

Wells would’ve thrived if he was marketed today

[@guillermosuarez6535]

His curveball was NASTY!!!

[@user-tt8zp5fx8q]

Here cuz watching kikuchi throw that curve ball where he wants it reminded me of the big boomers curve ball. just nasty

[@codfishbricker]

B o o m

[@slaymyface1357]

Andy hawkins threw a no hitter and lost