Last Preseason Post

I wanted to share some final preseason thoughts before the season gets underway tomorrow. First I wanted to give credit where credit is due. Retrosheet.org is a fantastic website and most of my research from the last article came from there. They have box scores of every game from 1919 on as well as play by play from 1950 on.

I should have pointed out in my last post that Mark Reynolds (200 Ks the last 3 years) is with the Orioles now. As a Red Sox fan it will be fun facing him 18 times this year. I would however like to see the Orioles contend this year. I think it’s a shame what’s happened there. Pittsburgh on the other hand is a disaster.

I won’t dwell on this but I don’t think teams should have to compete economically with each other. The revenue should all go under one umbrella.

Ah but this is The Lighter Side of Baseball so in the words of an old Boston tavern owner “Nuff said”

As I said in my first posting I am looking to create a fresh viewpoint as this season gets underway. Comments are welcome. Let’s see how this all turns out.

Pitching matchup of the day tomorow: Sabathia Vs Verlander

A Very Dubious Milestone

 Originally from 2011 

It was May 13th 1983, Anaheim Stadium. The ballpark the late great Ned Martin once referred to as

 “The House That Remy Built”. The California Angels were in an extra inning battle with the

 Minnesota Twins. The Twins had taken the lead in the top of the 11th inning. With one out and 

Minnesota hurler Len Whitehouse on the mound, Angels DH Reggie Jackson came to the plate.

It was then that history was made. With almost certainly a fraction of the 29,469 of the

 paid attendance still at hand Reggie accomplished what no other player had done in the

 history of the game. It was at this moment that Jackson had struck out for the 2,000th time

 in his career.

Jackson had already accomplished the all-time record for career strikeouts the previous year, passing 

Pittsburgh’s Willie Stargell while Willie was still active no less.1982 was Stargell’s last year and was

 nothing more than a gate attraction while Jackson was whiffing sometimes 2 and 3 times a night. By

 the time Jackson called it a career he had struck out 2,597 times and was still the sole member of what

 I would like to refer to as the 2KK club.

Andres Galarraga reached the dubious plateau in 2003 followed by Sammy Sosa in 2004.In 2007 Jim Thome

became the 4th member of this growing club and if he plays through 2012 he will most certainly relieve

 Jackson as club president. I thought it might be interesting to look further into this renaissance of strikeouts. 

Aside from Thome there are 3 players who although won’t make it to 2,000 this year, will be in the top 10 at years end. 

Mike Cameron (BOS) #10 1,842

Alex Rodriguez (NYY) #11 1,836

Manny Ramirez (TB) #13 1,809

Single Season records have been set as well with Adam Dunn of Cincinnati setting it in 2004 with 195. Ryan Howard

 of Philadelphia surpassed that in 2007 with 199. In 2008 Mark Reynolds of Arizona became the first player to strike out 

more than 200 times in a season. He’s done it 3 times (223 in ’09 and 211 in ’10)

Any feedback as to why so many are whiffing at a record pace would be welcome but it will be interesting to see if this trend continues

Milestones vs Moments

Records and milestones have been a big part of baseball over the years, whether it’s a pitcher winning his 300^th game or a hitter collecting his 3000^th hit it’s always fun to watch your favorite stars as they get closer to their goal. My only problem is that people confuse milestones with great moments. A no hitter is a great moment, an unassisted triple play, a walk off home run, something that exists only in that time frame. A milestone or a record breaking achievement is based on the entire career of the player. Does anyone even know if the Braves won the game that Hank Aaron broke Babe Ruth’s record or if the Orioles won when Cal Ripken surpassed Gehrig?

Don’t get me wrong, I like following players as they reach career or single season milestones. Derek Jeter for example will get his 3000^th hit this year. It will be fun to watch him achieve it, but isn’t it a lot more exciting when a pitcher takes a no hitter into the 9^th, knowing that one little dribbler can end it in an instant?

In my next posting I will be examining one of the more dubious records out there. Strikeouts, Striking out that is. My aim is not to mock but just to have a little fun. I’m sure you will enjoy it.

The Unbalanced Schedule, the DH and Interleague Play

There have been a lot of arguments in support of the DH over the years. The one I hear the most is the analogy that you don’t have your starting quarterback play defense. Personally I hate the DH rule, as far as I’m concerned it violates the general principle of the game. You have 9 in the field and when it’s your team’s turn to bat; those same 9 have to take their turn. With every asset there is liability so that in itself negates the quarterback comparison. I have always thought it unfair to compare baseball to other sports anyway.

The designated hitter was introduced in 1973 as a method to add more offense to the game and to let aging stars stay in the game longer but now every level of the minor leagues uses the DH. As far as I’m concerned it takes away a lot of strategy. I applaud the National League for sticking to their guns and not give in to people like Hank Steinbrenner who say that the National League needs to get out of the 19^th century.

This brings me to interleague play which is the very thing that has heated up the DH debate. Everyone seems to love it the way it is or they want to eliminate it altogether. For those who did not follow the game before 1997, The American and National leagues coexisted separately only to see each other for spring training, the All Star game and the World Series. Personally I don’t mind interleague play but there shouldn’t be so many games.

The added factor of the unbalanced schedule means you don’t see enough of the other divisions in your league. My suggestion is that maybe you play only a few more games within the division (sorry Red Sox nation but I don’t think we need to see the Yankees as much as we do). One year the Red Sox faced the Braves in as many games as they did the Twins. That is just wrong. My other suggestion is that interleague play consists of one home series and one away series each year. This would put the mystique back as you would only see each NL team once every 16 years. Personally I miss seeing the Royals, Twins and White Sox coming through twice a year.

A Game of Superstition

More than any other sport Baseball has its share of superstitions. We’ve all heard about The Curse of the Bambino and the Curse of the Billy Goat and over the years you’ve heard of countless players and their pregame rituals. There are also certain things to hold sacred as well. Being in the Hall of Fame is the greatest honor you can receive in the game. Having your number retired by your team is sacred too.

From 1969-2004 the city of Montreal had major league baseball. They enjoyed a legion of fans through the 70s and the 80s and even the early 90s and finally in 1994 they were in first place and had the best team they ever assembled. They were destined to go to the World Series. The strike came in August and cancelled the rest of the season. The fans never forgave them.

In 2004 there was speculation that the Expos would be moving to Washington. Having never seen the ballpark in Montreal I traveled to the park to see it before it was too late. This was the Expos last home stand. Apparently 2 guys wearing Red Sox caps and telling the border patrol we were there to see an Expos game seemed suspicious. “Aren’t the Red Sox playing the Yankees this weekend?” one would say. Attendance was so bad at the stadium, they piped in crowd noise over the loudspeaker.

It was announced at seasons end that the Expos would indeed move to Washington and become the Nationals. A new beginning and major league baseball is back in the nation’s capital. There is still something sacred about the retired numbers of Gary Carter (8) Andre Dawson (10) and Tim Raines (30). The Nationals put these numbers back into circulation and that is why The Nationals have to make the gesture of re-retiring these numbers.

Don’t get me wrong they don’t have to display them they should just have never put them back into circulation. It’s fantastic to start new with a new identity but the Montreal Expos are still part of the teams past and in Baseball more than any other sport you respect the past. Until this is done, the Nationals will never contend. Is it a coincidence Strasburg got hurt around the same time as Andre Dawson’s Hall of Fame induction?

Welcome

With the 2011 season upon us I thought I would do something a little different. I wanted to share my take on america's favorite pastime with whoever is clever enough to find this blog in the first place. My first disclaimer is that I don't claim to know everything.

Some of you may find a bit of absurdity in some of my postings. A close watch will be on Ivan Rodriguez this year as he sets out to break the all time Grounding into Double Plays record. I am open for suggestions as well. If you feel some story isn't getting enough coverage here, let me know.

OK, about me. I am from the New England area so my first allegiance is to the Red Sox but I am also a fan of the game. In the years the Red Sox do not make it to the post season, I don't turn to the Patriots, I will follow the post season with not near the same enthusiasm but it's still the best teams fighting it out.I think it's a shame that most Red Sox fans don't even know who won the World Series. (It was the Giants)

This Blog will be about the game overall. I am looking to create something unique so it should be fun. My first real post will appear this week