Fidrych was one of the first true characters of the game that I remember. He burst into national prominence in his rookie year in '76. In addition to high-fiving teammates in the middle of innings , talking to the baseball and getting on his knees to hand groom the mound, I remember he had a fear of bees and gnats and would run from the mound if they hovered around him.
The Tigers of '76 were a bad baseball team, but when he pitched, there would be sell outs. Keep in mind that this was before ESPN and we'd only get to see a quick shot of him on the local sports report at 11pm. When he was pitching on the NBC Game of the Week, ratings hit the roof.
As the article states, after his rookie year, he never came close to a full season again in his career due to injuries. Those injuries cost baseball fans a lot. As far as his personality and showmanship go, he is without equal, and would probably be the biggest media sensation in baseball if he played today.
