"Pull up a chair," Vin Scully would say. Rich Lederer of Rich's Weekend Baseball BEAT, the son of a Long Beach Press-Telegram (among other places) sportswriter, tells some great stories this rainy-day morning about his contemporary, star pitcher Bert Blyleven.

Just for starters, we learn that the Holland-born but Garden Grove-raised Blyleven delivered the newspapers Lederer's father, George, was writing for. Soon after, Lederer tells the story of the time, fresh out of high school, he umpired a scout league game Blyleven pitched.

Dressed in my umpire’s attire (including an old-style balloon chest protector just like the A.L. umps of that day), I watched Blyleven toss his seven or so warm-up pitches before taking my position behind the catcher, gently bending my knees as the lead-off batter stepped into the batter’s box. The tall right-hander took his sign, went into his windup, and threw the most hellacious curve I had ever seen. The ball started chin high, and it broke sharply downward, crossing the plate just above the batter’s knees.

A home plate umpire has a split-second to call a pitch a strike or a ball. In the vernacular of baseball, a pitch is a ball unless called a strike. As such, my no call meant the pitch was a ball. I looked out to the mound, and I see Bert standing there with his hands on his hips, wondering if I was ever going to pull the trigger. After a few seconds, his astonishment turned into a head shake and a chuckle.

Lederer then takes us through the highlights of Blyleven's entire career. Get to know this should-be-Hall of Famer in a way you haven't before.