http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/02/sports/letters-to-the-editor.html 2016-10-01 22:11:08 Letters to the Editor Readers responded to the deaths of the Miami Marlins pitcher and the golf champion Arnold Palmer. === To the Sports Editor: Re “ Nobody made baseball more fun than Jose. We’d always sit behind the plate or the I’ve sat right next to his mom and his grandmother — one No. 16 jersey with “Mama” on the back, and one that said, “Abuela.” I never met him. We did make eye contact plenty of times as he headed from the mound to the dugout. He’d give me a little nod to something encouraging I’d said. I was numb the day he died, and shedding tears the next. Jose loved Miami and Miami loved Jose. Jeff Grosser, Miami To the Sports Editor: The current unfortunate climate in our country is one in which the welcome mat is shrinking for immigrants, including those who come here legally. It is my hope that the heartbreaking death of Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez, and the inspiring story of the dangers he faced to come to the United States, will cause us to re-evaluate where our country is heading. Jose Fernandez and his family are prime examples of what, to its credit, our nation has traditionally represented and what is printed on the His tragic passing has brought together fans of all baseball teams and people of good will everywhere. His death will not be in vain if it helps us to recognize that we must remain a melting pot, the free country that extends a helping hand and opportunity to those who wish to seize it. Oren M. Spiegler, Upper St. Clair, Pa. To the Sports Editor: Re “ Sallie Pisani, Lauderdale Lakes, Fla. To the Sports Editor: Re “ Arnie never really faded from view, his magnetism still present to the last. And we, the members of his Army, never left his side. We will forever recall his love of the competition and that strange swing that didn’t so much strike the ball as attack it. There are few athletes in any sport who change the complexion of their game. From a sport of kings, Palmer made golf a sport of the people, as we were inexorably drawn in by the sheer force of Palmer’s skills and personality. Before there was “I wanna be like Mike,” there was Arnie, and we all wanted to be just like him. Robert S. Nussbaum, Fort Lee, N.J. To the Sports Editor: Not only did Arnold Palmer golf his way into millions of homes before the omnipresence of color TV, but his entrepreneurial skills paved the way for professional golfers to have successful businesses as well. This legend in his own time will indeed be sorely missed. JoAnn Lee Frank, Clearwater, Fla. To the Sports Editor: In high school I worked as a caddie at a golf course in central Massachusetts that held several PGA tournaments. The pros did not yet have their own caddies, as hard as that is to believe now. Before those tournaments, the local club caddies would draw names from a barrel for their assigned golfer. I can clearly remember my friend going up to the barrel, pulling out his small folded piece of paper, and the caddie master reading, “Arnold Palmer.” The air went out of the room. That was over 50 years ago, and it’s as vivid as if it were yesterday. Mark Brady, Dix Hills, N.Y.