News Sentinel
Phil Garner, right, celebrates with Tennessee teammates at home plate after hitting a home run during his career at Tennessee.
Phil Garner will be the first person to tell you he doesn’t stroll down memory lane very often.
He was a baseball player and manager who lived for the moment — not recalling glory days.
That’s why Garner was slightly taken aback when University of Tennessee officials said they wanted to retire his number.
First came Todd Helton’s No. 3 a year ago.
Tonight at the Knoxville Convention Center, it’s Garner’s No. 18 to be retired at UT’s annual Baseball Leadoff Banquet.
“It’s really flattering, but the first thing I thought was there were a whole lot of players better than me who played at Tennessee,” Garner said Monday from his home outside of Houston. “I thought they were probably more deserving.”
Tennessee coach Todd Raleigh and UT athletic director Mike Hamilton disagreed.
“When you’re talking about two guys like Todd Helton and Phil Garner, I don’t think you could come up with two better guys to have your players emulate,” Raleigh said. “Those are two of the tougher guys to ever play baseball in the last 30 years.
“For Tennessee to have two of those guys … yeah, I want our players to be like that.”
Raleigh likes tough guys and Garner didn’t get the nickname “Scrap Iron” by loafing during his 16-year major league career.
After growing up in Rutledge and graduating from Bearden High School, Garner played for the Vols from 1968-70.
Ask him about his favorite memories from that time of his life and he doesn’t talk about the 12 homers he hit in 1969 or twice leading the team in RBIs.
He talks about the comedic genius of two former UT students — Roger Behr and Roger Peltz — who kept the team loose with their non-stop heckling of visiting teams.
He talks about the pride and “maturation process” it took to come back to UT in the offseason and earn his degree despite being a first-round draft pick of the Oakland Athletics in 1971.
Basically, Garner talks about everything but playing baseball.
He even had to admit to Hamilton and Raleigh he couldn’t remember what number he wore at UT, so it might be tough retiring it.
“I’m just not one who talks much about the past,” Garner said. “I don’t live in it and I’m not around a lot of the ballplayers often so we can rehash the past.
“The thrill for me in life is what we’re going to do today or tomorrow. I love all those things I’ve been able to experience, but I get more joy out of what I’m getting ready to do.”
He doesn’t even like to watch old film of his playing days. That includes the 1979 World Series when he hit .500 (12-for-24) and helped lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a title.
“He’s just a really humble man,” Raleigh said. “He tries to play down everything.”
Garner went on to manage Milwaukee (1992-99), Detroit (2000-02) and Houston (2004-07), but the itch to get back in the game isn’t there.
“Heck no,” Garner said. “I’ve had so much fun in the game of baseball, but I guess I don’t miss it when I’m out of it.
“I have four grandkids, I like golf and I enjoy what I’m doing in the gas and oil business right now.”
Besides the retirement ceremony of Garner’s jersey, the Vols also will announce their All-Century Team at tonight’s banquet.
On Friday, Garner will throw at the ceremonial first pitch of UT’s season opener against Oregon State at 4 p.m. at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
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Comments » 11
TommyJack writes:
The man played hardball the way it was intended.
eduardo writes:
Ole Scrap Iron! I couldnt stand the Pirates, but I was for them in '79 World Series. I think it was because of Ole Scrap Iron. We are family baby!!!
OldSmokey writes:
Cant say I remember the man, but sounds well deserved!
FWBVol writes:
As a player and then as a manager, Phil Garner was a baseball man's baseball man. As TommyJack said, he played the game way it was intended.
A great honor for a great Vol. I think it is fitting that the first two baseball Vols to have their numbers retired both were Knoxville products. That only strengthens Mike Hamilton's recent statements that there is enough baseball talent in Tennessee for the Vols to have a program that consistently competes for SEC and national honors.
Will Rick Honeycutt be the next Vol to have his number retired?
BillVol writes:
A nice life lesson from our own Phil Garner. Thanks.
richvol writes:
I remember those guys heckling the other teams relentlessly. They really were funny. Through the years groups of students would station themselves over the opposing teams dugout and just ride them to death. I remember one guy played "Taps",on a trumpet,as the opposing pitcher walked off the mound after being pulled by his coach. One year Auburn had a catcher named Hamburger...they had this guy in tears by the time the game was over.
Oh yeah...Garner was a great player.
pms151 writes:
He is quality. After being railroaded out of Houston on the coat tails of an inept GM who didn't resign Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte or Jeff Kent from Houston's first World Series team he never said a bad word in public about the Stros organization. He left that to the fans and they were loud.
NO_DIGGITY writes:
Ole Scrappy had a couple of good team mates at UT (Sam Ewing and Bobby Tucker) that had a cup of coffee in the Majors. Garner almost got another ring with the 1974 A's, but was left off the playoff roster. The Roger Peltz he is talking about is the same dude that played basketball for UT. He would ride a Unicycle in Pre-Games juggling 3 basketballs. Roger and Roger are still performing comedians.
http://thecomedyfactory.com/comics2/
MaxPower writes:
Rick Honeycutt is likely next because it appears the biggest requirement is major league baseball success.
Hopefully, the administration will also consider those players like Sam Ewing and Bobby Tucker who were great while at Tennessee, but less successful in the pros.
I think there is a place to retire jerseys of guys who are good in college and better in the pros as well as those who are great in college, but less successful after college.
Garner was never an All-American and twice named All-SEC.
Tucker and Ewing were both All-Americans. Ewing was named All-SEC twice and Tucker an impressive four times.
Honeycutt was an All-American in college and a great MLB player, so he's definitely a good choice for the next guy.
I certainly like Hamilton's retiring of jerseys in a departure from the policy of the previous administration.
volfan#207874 writes:
I remember Phil as a toddler in San Antonio Texas deliberately falling into the swimming pool repeatedly while
unable to swim a lick. His mother, father, aunt, and I stationed ourselves around the pool to drag him out, and he would laugh and start running and fall into the pool again. So, I say this to inform you that he came by the sobriquet "Scrapiron" early and honestly. By the way, he also had another nickname, if I am not mistaken, and that was when he first grew that handlebar mustache. Someone hung the moniker "Yosemite Sam" on him. By the way, I grew up in Sevier County with both his mother and father.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
I want Phil to go help Bobby Cox with the Braves. They need his mentality.
I have been a fan of Phil's since his playing days. He always seemed like a great guy, the kind of Tennesseean that gives us a GOOD name.
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