Vol. IV, Issue #2 - February 2016

** 2nd Interview with Willie Mays Aikens **

(Mr. Aikens, when he played in the Major Leagues was considered to be one of the best sluggers
of his time. In this second interview with Mr. Aikens we catch up with him to ask some new
questions and get his feelings about the World Champion Kansas City Royals that he works for.)

(Notes from the Wolfman:  I initially found Mr. Aikens on linkedin back in 2014.  At this time he was letting people know about his book called "Safe at Home", which we have listed on our book resource page.  We were able to interview Mr. Aikens in the December issue of 2014 plus we did a review of his book.  The book shared his experiences as a Major League Baseball Player, his joys and highs he reached in his career and his challenges. Last month, I recontacted Mr. Aikens via email, to see if he might consent to do a second interview which he agreed.  I reviewed his first interview and tried to ask some new questions to expand on the earlier information he shared. Plus, he is a hitter coach for the Royals, who are now the MLB world champions and thought we would get his feedback on this great victory. To review the earlier interview find the link below:   

http://www.ultimatestratbaseball.com/USBN-12-2014/WillieMaysAikens-December2014.htm

I once again publicly thank Mr. Aikens for sharing his perspective on Major League Baseball with our members. Finding ex-Major Leaguers, willing to talk with us is no easy task.  But Mr. Aikens has been very friendly and very cordial in all our communications.  Plus I admire his courage to discuss publicly and in his book, one of the greatest challenge to the game of professional baseball.  Enjoy Mr. Aikens new comments and insights ...)
 

---

 

Wolfman:  Dear readers, this month it is a great honor to once again have a chance to visit with Willie Mays Aikens, who was a hitting star mostly known for the time he spent with the KC Royals when they were in the World Series back in the 1980's as they are becoming the team of this decade once again. I would like the Royals are most likely to be the favorites to win the World Series in 2016. Mr. Aikens, welcome back to the Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter. Now Willie, may I call you Willie? Since we last spoke over a year ago, has there been any new developments in your life linked to Baseball? Willie Mays Aikens:  Yes, you may call me Willie. The newest development is, the KC Royals won the World Series, so we are now World Champions. That means I will get another ring. (An Image of a Topps Baseball Card when Mr. Aikens was playing for the Royals with his signature on it ...)

Wolfman:  As I recall Willie, you mentioned in our last interview you were hired as a hitting coach for the players in the Royals teams in the minor leagues. I am curious if any of the current young players who are stars with the now World Champion Royals - did you help them with their hitting in the minor leagues?

Willie Mays Aikens:  I did coach Terrance Gore and Christian Colon before they got to the Big Leagues. Five years ago when Ventura was a skinny minor leaguer, I was part of helping him come along as well.

Wolfman:  Were you at any of the Royals Games during the World Series in October? Do you know their manager, Ned Yost - he seems to be able to motivate the players and knows how to utilize them to see the success the team has?

Willie Mays Aikens:  I went to all of the WS games played in KC. I don't know much about Ned Yost on a personal level, but I did play against him in the early 80's. We chatted during spring training or whenever we would run into each other. Ned is a motivator, so the players follow his lead as a manager. That group of players are like a real family and the manager and coaches are a big part of that.

Wolfman:  Did you speak to George Brett recently about the Royals and their World Championship - what did he have to say?

Willie Mays Aikens:  George was really excited about the championship.

Wolfman:  Now Mr. Aikens, I would like to return to your playing days, if I may in the Major Leagues. They say a key to winning in baseball is to play the game as a team and not as many talented individuals who are only concerned about their own level of play?  How true is this philosophy based on your experiences in the game? How important is it to focus what is best to help the team win and not worry about ones statistics that we give such a great attention to?

Willie Mays Aikens:  No team will win with a lot of selfish players who only think about themselves. The teams I played on had some selfish players, but we competed against each other in individual stats. I never wanted to leave any RBIs out there for (Hal) McRae or (Amos) Otis and those guys felt the same way against me. McRae would go outside of the strike zone to try to get an RBI. By having an attitude like this, we helped the team out tremendously.

The 2015 Royals were the same way. They played as a team. That is the reason why they were able to win so many games by coming from behind.

Wolfman:  So when you were with the Royals were you close personal friends with some of the other players? In your off time, did these players become like part of your extended family that
you would do things together with?

Willie Mays Aikens:  Unfortunately a big part of my time with the other players was spent drinking and using cocaine. You know about the drug scandal that myself and three other players got caught up in. We partied a lot and did things together we probably should not have done. We also played cards and went out to eat a lot to. We were like an extended family off the baseball field.

Wolfman:  During the season, was it possible to really enjoy playing the game and to have a fun in a relaxed manner with your teammates like telling jokes and funny personal stories? Or, due to the pressure to win was there a very serious mood with your teammates when you were actually playing the games?

Willie Mays Aikens:  The mood was serious on the baseball field. We had a great time on the field and off the field. Great teams have fun because they win a lot. Winning creates a great environment inside the clubhouse. It all begin in the clubhouse.

Wolfman:  Now Baseball has to be a very intense job during the season.  By this I mean, today a season is 162 games, which goes on for basically six months of the year, plus another month and
a half for exhibition games (would could be another 20-30 games). Then, if a team makes the playoffs they have the potential now to play another 20 games. So would you recommend this job for others?  Is the intensity for such a job that lasts about 7-8 months a year worth it along with
the pay the players receive? Do you have time in such an intense schedule to relax at all or spend a quality time with your family?

Willie Mays Aikens:  Of course I would recommend this job for others, but unfortunately only the ones with special talents can play this game. So we have to pick and choose who can play this game of baseball. It is a tremendous blessing for anyone to play this game and with the way salaries are today, you can play three or four years in the big leagues and then be set for life. It is tough on families, but families adjust to our lifestyle. It is totally worth it.

Wolfman:  We have interviewed one of your contemporaries, Billy Sample. Did you know him as he played in the American League mostly with Texas? He said that back in 1980's, playing baseball was totally different then than it is now as the players didn't receive such high salaries. That in the beginning of his career just because he was a ball player didn't mean the standard of life was so high. So was this also your experience and what do you feel about the huge sum of money that some of players are being paid today?

Willie Mays Aikens:  Billy totally hit it on the head of the nails. The salaries are outrageous and back in the day we played, the game was played with more enthusiasm. I played against Billy and he played the game hard. The game is more analytical now with all the technology. You still have to play the game though.

Wolfman:  Now as we discussed in your last interview, related to your book, "Safe at Home",
we talked about your experiences with cocaine and drugs and how it greatly affected your career. Right now, there is still a big issue about Players using Enhancing Drugs (Editors Note - Meija for the New York Mets failed his 3rd drug test and is now banned from the game). For example, several players who had exceptional careers after their careers ended have been accused of using such drugs (like Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, etc ..) to produce these amazing results in their careers. Do you think such players should not be voted into the Hall of Fame - what are your thoughts about this issue?

Willie Mays Aikens:  This is really a hard question for me to answer. The all time hit leader, Pete Rose is banned from baseball because he gambled on baseball. A lot of pitchers who cheated are in the Hall of Fame, so why not the position players? Either way, my opinion doesn't have any effect on those guys getting into the Hall, so I will leave it at that.

Wolfman:  You also mentioned in your previous interview that to hit a baseball is one of the most difficult things to do. Especially, again as Billy Sample told us, some of the pitchers of today either have a fastball that are almost physical impossible to hit due to their speed or they have a special
type of pitch they throw which is virtually unhittable. So if one is able to hit a baseball, is this purely skill? Does intuition come into play at all? Do you need to visualize in your mind that you will be hitting the baseball. What else can you share with our members about this subject from your perspective of a player who was a successful hitter?

Willie Mays Aikens:  Hitting a baseball is the toughest thing to do in any sport. I believe more pitchers today are throwing harder and the change ups are better. I believe the scouting reports are better also. Hitting a baseball is a God given skill (ability) that not many people can do. Improving that skill is difficult, but it can be done.

Wolfman:  Thank you Mr. Aikens for spending so time with us again.  We also appreciate the special dedication you made for our members in the review copy of your book - we wish you all
the best and thank you for being an inspiration to the young players who have a dream to enter the game of baseball and be a professional player.

Finally, if a person wishes to contact you to ask you some questions would this be possible and if so how could they do it?  What is your website that our members can visit to read more about your career and yourself or where can our members obtain a copy of your book?

Willie Mays Aikens:  My website is: www.willieaikens24.com. You can also contact me by email at: aikenswillie24@yahoo.com , I am on facebook and twitter as well. You can purchase a copy of my book through all of these ways.


 

---

 

Support the Cause If you are enjoying the content and information our newsletter shares with you, why not support us with your helpful donation for our minor expenses and time?

Contained inside this exciting issue of Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter:
(to view the various interviews, articles, columns and special sections click on the links {underlined}
and this will take you to the appropriate webpage)
 

♦  RETURN TO NEWSLETTER MAIN PAGE

♦  INTERVIEW with MARC PELLETIER, we hear again from Marc about his special system for building winning teams in Baseball 365 for leagues based on the 20XX seasons. In this article he discusses how to pick the right pitchers for your team.  Next month in March, our editor Wolfman Shapiro, will enter a 2015 based league using Marc's system.

♦  STRAT WISE with MARC WASSERMAN -- commissioner of the Cyber Baseball Association (CBA) continues his new column sharing various perspectives on SOM Baseball. In this issue he discusses about his visit on "Opening Day", the top 20 cards in the 2015 MLB set and some special new videos on our Video Channel on Youtube.

♦  ARTICLE with CHUCK TINKLER (Part III), a continuation of the article by Chuck, one of our members sharing about a real Strat Master that he met in his early days of playing Strat-o-matic

♦  SOM BASEBALL LEAGUE REPORT with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO -- the editor of "The Ultimate Strat Newsletter" and 2012 CBA Champion, the "Wolfman" puts out a call to the members of various Strat-o-matic Baseball Leagues that he has discovered on the internet to talk about their experiences with their league. This is the first time we get to speak to a League Champion, from NASOMA, who we spoke to their commissioner in our December 2015 issue.  To read his interview, click on the link below:

INTERVIEW with Rick Lackey, NASOMA 2015 Champ, P-I (F2F/Netplay/Computer)
 

♦  SOM/MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL WORLD NEWS with WOLFMAN SHAPIRO , editor of "The Ultimate Strat Newsletter" shares two live reports from Strat-o-matic's Opening Day on February 12th, and introduces you to the Strat Tournament Players Club (STPC) Reporters who starting in March will be sharing with us the latest news and insights from this year's series of grueling and testing tournaments this year.  Also STPC and this newsletter are announcing a test tournament you can join us - we are seeking members to help us.  To read more, visit this latest version of our newsy page.

♦  INTERVIEW with Jim Gary, he is the head of the West Region of the Strat Tournament Player's Club (STPC) and is on their council. This is our second time to speak to Jim. For 2015 he was the points champion of the club so we inquiry to the keys to his success. It is our goal in this year to interview all the STPC council members as well as begin to share reports of what is happening in their world.

♦  RECOMMEND ON-LINE SOM RESOURCES -- On-line Strat-o-matic and Baseball related websites
that offer amazing information, special tools and products to improve your game play that we strongly recommend. In most cases, we have had personal contact with these sources who agree with the principle to work together and help promote each other.

♦  BOOKS TO DIE FOR and Become a BASEBALL GURU -- This page is specifically about special books we are finding that either will expand your insights about the game of Baseball, help you in the creation of your current league teams or with your replays and learn more about the Strat-o-matic Baseball Game and Game Company's history.  We have a special arrangement with Acta Sports, who is a publisher of a number of great baseball books (including Bill James Handbooks) to offer for our members a 10% discount. We will continue to add more books to this page in the future as we uncover other gems our members should know about.

 

---

Contact Us for Questions or Submissions:

Wolfman Shapiro
Founder/Editor, the Ultimate Strat Baseball Newsletter

email: wolfman@ultimatestratbaseball.com
facebook: www.facebook.com/wolfman.shapiro
twitter: @StratBaseball4U