Baseball can at times be a slow, plodding pastime because there is so much inactivity between the actual action. That means broadcasters have to fill in that stagnation with analysis and stories. Usually, these anecdotes are baseball related, but Dennis Eckersley divulged about the time his best friend and teammate stole his wife.
And boy was it one hell of a story!
During Friday night’s game between the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, the NESN broadcast team were discussing rivalries. The discussion in the second inning revolved around Red Sox pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez and his close relationship with his rival Luis Severino. Eckersley brought up the rivalry with Rick Manning, his former BFF and Cleveland Indians teammate back in 1978. “I don’t know about a rivalry,” Eckersley said. “I had a real close friend who stole my wife. How about that?”
Dennis Eckersley tells all the children of New England about how his friend stole his wife. #ClassicEck #LoveIt pic.twitter.com/CndHOVJbjl
— J80 aka JPS aka the anti-“let’s go!” guy (@rsfpt) August 3, 2018
Peter Gammons sheds some light on Eckersley tumultuous 1988 feature for Sports Illustrated: “Despite his flamboyance, Eckersley was going through a searing experience in his personal life. On March 30, 1978, Eck found out that he had been traded to Boston. The same day his first wife, Denise, told him that she didn’t love him anymore. In June, he learned that she and his best friend. Rick Manning, a Cleveland outfielder, were having an affair (they would eventually be married).”
“I was hurt at first, but Denise and I were kids when we got married. We were 18 and didn’t know anything. What hurt was being separated from Mandee [his daughter],” Eckersley said.
Wait.
Dennis Eckersley’s wife’s name was Denise? Denise Eckersley?
Manning and Eckersley’s wife Denise would have an affair and she divorced the legendary closer. Eventually, Denise and Manning would also get a divorce and Eckersley is on his third wife.
Manning is currently a broadcaster for the Cleveland Indians. Eck is as fearless in the booth as he was on the mound.