As people continue to mourn the death of longtime Baltimore sports icon Brooks Robinson, a close friend and former colleague of his took the time to share some stories that encapsulated who he was as a person.
Scott Garceau, who now can be seen on MASN and heard on the Orioles Radio Network, worked with Robinson in the ’80s and ’90s on WMAR-TV. However, he knew of Robinson long before his first interaction with him.
“I had Brooks Robinson’s cards when I was a kid,” Garceau said on Glenn Clark Radio Sept. 27.
But 1981, when Garceau was in his late 20s, was the first time Robinson made an impact on Garceau personally. The two were walking through the airport after calling a series against the Texas Rangers when some fans recognized Robinson and asked for an autograph.
Robinson, of course, stopped and gave the fans what they wanted. Following the interaction, Garceau had a joke for Robinson.
“Hey Brooks, you know what a collector’s item is?” Garceau said to Brooks.
“What’s that, Scotty?” Brooks said, confused.
“A ball you haven’t signed,” Garceau replied.
That was the kind of person Robinson was, according to Garceau. Everyone he talked to or interacted with was touched by his generosity, and he likely signed a baseball for them.
“I never saw him have a bad day,” Garceau said. “At the ballpark, in the team hotel, transportation — fans always saw him [and] came up to him.”
However, it wasn’t only baseball fans and Baltimoreans who would approach Robinson.
“Usually players would try to be cool [and say], ‘Hey Brooksie, how are you?'” Garceau said. “George Brett would come running to him like a 10-year-old kid. He just loved Brooks Robinson. George Brett wore No. 5 because Brooks wore No. 5.”
Even outside of the game of baseball, the impact Robinson made was obvious. Baltimore native Sean Landeta, who punted for 22 seasons in the NFL, wore No. 5 for most of his career because Robinson was his hometown hero, according to Garceau.
Garceau also shared a special anecdote involving an interaction between former President Bill Clinton and Robinson during a game in the early years of Camden Yards. Both Clinton and Robinson were born and raised in Arkansas.
“We were told that he would be with us for a half inning in the second or third inning. He was on a real tight schedule,” Garceau said, referring to Clinton. “… I’m sitting next to him looking at him, and he is like a 12-year-old kid that’s seeing his first major league baseball game. Camden Yards, the game and the sunshine — all that was good — but he was sitting next to Brooks Robinson. And remember, President Clinton was from Arkansas, and Brooksie, the Little Rock guy, and he was in love.”
But Garceau knew it didn’t matter who you were — Robinson would show you the same attention as he gave Clinton.
“It was the common guy who loved Brooks, and Brooks loved the common guy as much as he loved the president,” Garceau said. “Whether it was on a golf course or in a grocery store, wherever it was, Brooks always made everybody feel special, and that’s what it was like being around him. He made you feel special, but you just saw what he did to everybody else around him.”
Garceau also vividly recalled a story in which he was working a baseball game with Robinson and former NFL linebacker and football coach John Bunting wanted to pay the two a visit.
As Garceau remembers it, Bunting came up to see the two, but he really wanted to see Robinson. The brief conversation between Bunting and Robinson is a testament to the true impact Robinson had on people.
“Brooks, I’d like to introduce you to my son,” Garceau recalled Bunting saying. “His name is Brooks.”
Though Robinson will not be visiting Camden Yards in person anymore, his presence will be felt at every game, and his legacy will live on in the city and for everyone who came in contact with him.
Robinson’s death was especially tough on Garceau, a close friend of Robinson’s for decades. He was tasked with hosting the public memorial for his friend at Camden Yards on Oct. 2.
However, he sees Robinson’s passing in a different light, giving hope to those who remember him.
“My God, how lucky are we that he passed our way, that we were able to see Brooks and experience him in our community, and he touched so many of us,” Garceau said. “… Everywhere we went, everybody loved Brooks.”
For more from Garceau, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles