Remembering Bill Robinson, Baseball Great

In Praise of the "Low Two"

I read in today's paper about the death of former baseball player Bill Robinson. I was shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of this 64 year old man. I remember watching him as part of the awesome and dangerous Pirates lineup. Watching guys like Willie Stargel and Bill Robinson come to the plate was a thrill (as long as they were not playing against the New York Mets). I always thought they were fun hitters to watch, yet they were very different. Stargel would windmill the bat around and was constant motion, very much a noticeable force on the baseball diamond. Robinson came across as very unassuming, very low key, someone who just went about doing his job and did it well. This actually made me like him even more.

When the Mets picked him up as a first base coach and hitting coach I was thrilled. Here was someone I had admired who was going to help my team. In fact, as the hitting coach for the 1986 World Champion New York Mets, he certainly did help them. He had the right players, but he certainly helped them excel.

What I remember about Bill Robinson, however, was the "Low Two". It is very common when a baseball hitter smacks a homerun, as he rounds third base, he gives the third base coach a high five, usually the first one to get the high five and then after touching home plate, high fives are exchanged with just about everyone else in the dugout. Bill Robinson, however, initiated something else. When a player made it to first base, assuming he was stopping at that base, Robinson and the player would take their forefinger and middle finger and lightly tap each other. This became known as the "Low Two," and was done fairly quietly. Unless you knew this was their custom, most fans would totally miss it.

This was perfect for Bill Robinson. He was a team player. As a player he did his job and helped his team win, but did so in an unassuming manner. As a coach, he instituted and initiated many things and he helped the Mets become a successful ball club, but just like his low two, he did it in a very low key fashion, not looking to grab the spotlight. Bill Robinson will be missed for his place in baseball.