The Baseball Enthusiast

10/19/91 Atlanta Braves 2, MInnesota Twins 5

2012-02-09T19:12:00.005-05:00

Hubert H Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, MN
World Series Game 1

Any baseball fan should be able to close their eyes for a moment and think about the 1991 World Series; when they do it’s almost certain that an image of scary Jack Morris hurling something decidedly nasty in your direction at a high rate of speed should appear prominently. Jack Morris was a pretty damn good pitcher, and in Game 1 of the 1991 World Series, he was super damn good.
So was Chuck Knoblauch.

I’ve always had a “thing” for the 91 Series, for two significant reasons: The 91 Atlanta Braves and the 91 Minnesota Twins. Ha! Analyze that!!

I’m not kidding. 1991 was a special year; the Twins and Braves both went from worst to first – the first time ever that two teams that finished last in the year previous made it to the fall classic the next year. We saw several players state their case for Baseball Heroism, and we saw exciting postseason play the likes of which most of us wouldn’t see again for many, many years.

It should be no surprise that the first ‘complete set’ of Baseball Cards I ever purchased was a 1991 Upper Deck factory box for $10…I selected this box not for the price, but because it was 1991, a very amazing year in Baseball, as far as I’m concerned. If I were to ever write a book about Baseball, the 1991 season would most definitely be what I’d write about. I hadn’t ‘returned’ to Baseball yet, but during that year I followed the exploits of the Braves via Superstation TBS and paid more attention than usual to the season as a whole, up to and including this World Series.

Game 1 (as far as Game 1 goes) was literally “all that and a bag of chips.” Former Royal Charlie Leibrandt faces Jack Morris at the HHH Metrodome, the crowd over over 55,000 maniacal Twins fans is decidedly unruly and you can tell, even via the glow of cathode rays, that the Thunderdome is the center point of enough Baseball electricity to level any large U.S. city; you pick it…it’s GONE. If you were there for this game, this series, or at any time during this magical Twins era, you probably still bear the irreparable scars of total hearing loss from the audio experience that was the THUNDERDOME.

The Rally Towels are kind of crazy also.

1991 A.L. Rookie of the Year Chuck Knoblauch (seen here giving props to his alma mater during the starting lineup call on the field) would start to cap his banner season in the Majors with a historical performance on the field…If you need to know, Chuck still has these batting gloves. World Series rings are pretty darn special, but I’d wager a guess that this pair of gloves might be just as special to him as his rings…the gloves weren’t responsible for his performance during this game, but what he did wearing them warrants enough respect to enshrine them with the highest level of respect. If I were him and they were mine, they’d be with me in my casket, for sure.

Chuck was also a member of the 1990 CMC Set, more on that shortly!

Most people don’t know this, but Chuck was only the third of 3 second basemen in MLB history to have three-plus hits in their World Series debut (the other two were Phil Garner in 1979 with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Billy Gilbert in 1905 with the New York Giants).Chuck gets on base in all 4 of his plate appearances, and steals the first 2 of his eventual 4 bases total in the Series. He was just as much of a stud on the basepaths…the way he took Jeff Blauser out of a potential double-play ball hit by the legendary Kirby Puckett without actually “taking him out” is one of the most formidable baserunning acts I’ve ever seen. Game 1 was just the start of his exploits in this World Series.

For a good, quick read on Chuck, his career, and the fickleness of the World Series (as it pertains to key player performances) check out this post by The Flagrant Fan. Chuck had a fantastic career; he’s hit a few walls and rode through some valleys over the years, but he really was (and still is) a true Baseball hero, as real as they get.

His RBI single in the 3rd inning put the Twins on the board for the first run scored in the game, but it was Greg Gagne’s remarkable 3-run homer in the 5th that made the difference in scoring for the Twins. Leibrandt’s pitching was excellent, but with 2 on and nobody out, you could almost smell trouble for the lefty…and Gagne’s million dollar smile after the game certified his thrill in dealing out the damage.

It was the first postseason home run ever allowed by Leibrandt.

Nearly as remarkable was Kent Hrbek’s amazing total upper deck solo blast in the 6th off of Jim Clancy, who replaced Leibrandt after Gagne’s tater. A little more pepper, and the ball may have been put into orbit.

As for Jack Morris…well, this isn’t Game 7, so sit tight! Morris was great, pitching better than his line might suggest (7 IP, 5H, 2ER, 4BB, 3K, 29 batters faced). His run support made the difference, allowing him to work with the situation…rather than claiming he “pitched to the score,” I would be hard pressed to believe anything other than the fact that he was as effective as they come, with only one rough inning out of seven.

As for the Braves, Ron Gant carried the team offensively (3-for-4, 2RBI) but was unable to carry them to the Winner’s Circle all by himself. Jeff Treadway and David Justice were the only other Braves to squeak out base hits.

As I did in my post of this classic game, as well as this one, I want to extremely recommend the most fantastic blog The Greatest 21 Days, which focuses on the ‘members’ of the 1990 CMC baseball card set. Yet another reason why 1991 is so special to me is my year-plus admiration for Steve78’s research and for the players he’s featured from this set. 1991 was a banner year for many of them. If they have been featured on The Greatest 21 Days, you have links to those stories as well so you can read Steve78’s awesome work for yourself!

285 David Justice - ”Six Series”

295 Brian R Hunter - ”Hit It Hard”

807 Chuck Knoblauch - ”Time Thinking”Follow Chuck on Twitter: @chuckknoblauch - he does an amazing job of interacting with his fans!

568 Scott Leius – not featured yet

The game was broadcast on CBS Sports by Jack Buck and Tim McCarver, with Jim Kaat and Pat O’Brien.

Minnesota leads the Series 1-0

Box Score and Play-by-play on Retrosheet

Buy the DVD

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
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6/23/84 St Louis Cardinals 11, Chicago Cubs 12

2012-01-11T16:15:00.003-05:00

Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
Game 2 of 3

We all know this as “The Ryne Sandberg Game,” arguably one of the greatest games in baseball history.
The argument seems to make a difference if you are a Cubs fan as this wonderful baseball experience inexplicably did not make MLB Network’s 20 Greatest Games list last year. Arguments are what Baseball is all about. And Ryne Sandberg is, without blinking, a huge part of what this game is all about!

Let’s not forget, however…that if it weren’t for Sandberg (with a great deal of help from Bob Dernier), this could have been remembered as “The Willie McGee Game.”
McGee hits for the cycle, closing the deal with an RBI double in the top of the 10th inning, and runs away with the “Player of the Game” award…until it slips from his fingers on a 2 out 2-run HR by Sandberg in the bottom of the 10th (Sandberg’s second HR of the day in as many consecutive Abs), with the Cardinals one out away from an extra-innings victory.

The infamous deal that sent Sandberg, a 1978 20th round draft pick of the Philadelphia Phillies, to the Cubs in a 1982 pre-season 3-player deal for which the key elements were 12-year Phillies MLB veteran Larry Bowa and 5-year MLB Cubs shortstop Ivan deJesus has been nearly gesticulated by scores of professional and amateur baseball types for decades. Was it a runaway deal that sorta ‘made up’ for the bad Cubs karma of the Lou Brock/Ernie Broglio trade 2 decades previous? That can’t be proven, per se, in statistical terms, but in a theological sense, you could subscribe to the belief that if it didn’t clear the slate for the Cubs, it may have served as a ‘vindication’ of sorts in respect to evening the “ah ha” tables between the Cubs and the Cardinals. Subscription to this belief would certainly make itself apparent if one were to believe that this game against the Cardinals, 2-1/2 years after the deal was done, was the real Epiphany of the event.

You can also close the loop on the theological support of this belief by reminding yourself that the Cubs did not advance to the World Series; as a Cubs apologist you will almost certainly hear this more than once in your lifetime.

That point being taken from our Cardinal fan friends (I expect it in advance, hmm), we can have some solace in a couple of discrete observations: First, that the Phillies were probably the real losers in this deal; Second, that several of the players involved in these deals flourished as Cubs and Cubs alone, which is kind of an Epiphany of a different kind in its own light.

Everyone except for Larry Bowa, that is.

In his first 2 seasons with the Cubs, Sandberg’s triple slash was .266/.314/.361 with an OPS of .675; his performance in the minors was certainly promising on paper (OPS .872 in 1980 and .749 in 1981) certainly didn’t amount to him being something less than trade bait as deJesus, who by comparison, was .261/.330/.336 with a .667 OPS in Chicago from 1977-1981. Don’t forget that Sandberg was ‘thrown in’ along with Larry Bowa, seemingly the guy the Cubs really wanted. Bowa, however, had amassed a record of .264/.301/.324 with an OPS of .624 in 12 seasons with the Phillies. In terms of OBP and OPS, the darn Cubs gave deJesus away!! Ivan was an 8-year MLB veteran at the time, if you assume that league-average players hit their ceiling at age 28 (which I’m really not, I’m just making a point with this assumption) then how in the heck did they expect a better return from 35-year-old Larry Bowa? Maybe they didn’t…I’ll have to do some more research, and perhaps someone reading this knows the truth, but if I were a Phillies fan and/or a baseball industry guy at the time of this deal, I would speculate that the Cubs had something more than a “gut instinct” on Sandberg’s future and worked the deal just so they could pick him up. I just can’t believe that anyone in the Cubs organization would have expected anything more than Bowa could deliver at that age and with regression as a factor.

On the day of this game, Sandberg was 2-1/2 months into his “breakout season” with the Cubs…Since April 3rd, he was cruising along with a hefty .321/.371/.531 and was a true .902 OPS beast. Chicago’s eyes were already wide open; he finished the 1984 season with a National League MVP title, .314/.367/.520 with a .887 OPS, and never looked back to his 82 or 83 performances…he never finished a season with an OPS of .675 ever again in his career, his lowest season was .702 in 1994 and was only higher than .887 once (in 1990 = .913). His Postseason numbers are also astonishing, another important aspect of his ride to the Hall of Fame:
1984 (5 games): .368/.455/.474 OPS .928
1989 (5 games): .400/.458/.800 OPS 1.258
Albert Pujols’ career Postseason OPS is 1.046, breaking over 1.258 only three times in 7 postseason years; in the 2004 NLCS against Houston, the 2005 NLDS against San Diego, and the 2011 NLCS against Milwaukee.

Sandberg, without a question, flourished as a Cub…he spent all but 10 games of his Major League career there, so it’s easy to see that and accept it.

Ivan deJesus flourished as a Cub (in terms of OPS):
77-81 CHC: OPS .667
82-84 PHI: OPS .637
82-85 PHI and STL combined: OPS .634
Don’t even count his three partial seasons in LAD (prior to being a Cub) and his 3 scantily played seasons (no more than 9 games each year) in New York (AL), San Francisco, or Detroit.

As I mentioned earlier, Bowa was pffft as a Cub, so he is an exception.

So how about Bob Dernier, who if not for Ryne Sandberg and Willie McGee may have been remembered for this game? Dernier also came to the Cubs from the Phillies in 1982 (along with Gary Matthews) in a 5-player deal just before the start of the 1984 season.In 2 seasons with the Phils, Dernier had amassed a record of .242/.305/.308 with an OPS of .613; he was on fire with the Cubs in this game, 3-for-5 with a BB, 2 RBI, 4 runs scored, and even a successful stolen base in the first inning. He racked up an OPS of .718 in the 1984 season and a whopping .876 in the 1987 season; he was another steal for the Cubs…courtesy of the Phillies. Natrually, they took him back in 1988!

However…Bob Dernier, also, flourished as a Cub (in terms of OPS):
82-83 PHI: OPS .613
84-87 CHC: OPS .684
88-89 PHI: OPS .546

NOTE: he had played 107 games without an error before his centerfield bobble in the 5th inning that allowed David Green to reach base.

Today’s pitching matchup looked mighty tasty…Steve “Rainbow” Trout boasted a formidable sub-3 ERA and 7 wins in 13 games started…with 2 complete games…Not today! Trout leaves in the second inning with 7 earned runs and the Cubs wayyyy behind the 8-ball.

Ralph Citarella makes his first start of the season for the Cardinals; after an impressive 9-0 win-loss record and 3.30 ERA in AAA Louisville he got the call to represent STL in the bigs.He really was cruising through a near-gem of sorts until he gave up 2 runs in the 5th and got into some trouble to start the 6th. Whitey Herzog has seen enough and the “Citarella Story” is over, with 1990 CMC set member Neil Allen relieving him.

More on Allen later, and hey, don’t slam me for the lame “Citarella Story” joke, that came from one of the yokels at NBC Sports!!

For long-time Cubs fans, I felt morally obligated to include this shot of the old Torco sign, with Ron Cey monitoring 3rd base in the foreground…

Neil Allen gives up 3 ER in 1.1 innings of work, maybe Herzog was questioning his replacing Citarella 5 batters ago at the end of the 6th inning or maybe he wasn’t…that 6-run Cardinals lead was disappearing fast! Allen faces 3 batters to begin the bottom of the 7th inning; with 2 outs he walks Jody Davis and Herzog takes the ball away and gives it to the most feared relief pitcher in the National League…Bruce Sutter.

Sutter retires pinch-hitter Ron Hassey on a fielder’s choice groundout to end the inning, and swims effortlessly through the 8th, retiring the side on 3 groundouts. The score is still on the side of the Cardinals, 9-8 at the end of the 8th.

Now, here’s something that drives me nuts sometimes…I call it the “game-changing key statistic.” When you are watching a game on TV (or listening to the radio) and the game announcers flash a number that certainly attempts to relay what you can almost always count on happening and the exact opposite happens…that’s a “game-changing key statistic.” It’s like a billboard for Murphy’s Law of Baseball (or any other sport, for that matter). Here’s what I mean: During the 8th, we are told that Bruce Sutter has earned 16 Saves in his last 18 Save situations. We are also told that he’s finished 26 of the last 27 games he’s appeared in:…a few batters later, the revelation of these stats eventually result in 16 of 19 and 26 of 28, respectively. You can chalk that up to statistical inevitability (“he was due”), or you can blame the reveal of the “game-changing key statistic.” Whatever the case, Sutter gives up Sandberg’s first HR of the day to lead off the 9th to tie the game. Willie McGee hits for the cycle in the top of the 10th, driving in Ozzie Smith, and was brought in on a Steve Braun grounder to bring the Cardinals back in the lead. Sutter stays in to start the 10th and gives up 2 more runs after he walks Dernier with 2 outs and Sandberg launches his second HR of the day. Sutter has only given up 2 HR to one batter in a single game, today was the day it happened.

Sandberg cruises to the dugout with the game tied and the look of sheer joy tattooed on his face…but the game is still locked at 11 apiece as we enter the 11th.

Feared Cubs closer Lee Smith, by the way, is responsible for the 2 St Louis runs in the 10th, but stays in to retire the Cardinals scoreless in the 11th, stranding Andy Van Slyke. The Cubs get a break when Leon Durham reaches to lead off the 11th on a walk issued by Dave Rucker. Rucker is out, Jeff Lahti is in, and Durham steals 2nd on a 1-0 pitch to Keith Moreland. Durham sways over to 3rd on a throwing error by Darrell Porter on Durham’s steal attempt, and with a runner in scoring position and Moreland facing a 1-1 count, Moreland is intentionally walked. Jody Davis is intentionally walked as well, to load the bags for….aieeeeeeee!!!…Dave Owen. Owen is .309/.393/.348 with an OPS of .741 for the 1984 season so far (12 games, 28 plate appearances) but as you can see…”hitless in 5 at bats with runners in scoring position…”

Another “game-changing key statistic”? You betcha. 3 pitches to Owen and he sends a dribbler past Mike Jorgenson for the game-winning RBI.

The game was broadcast on NBC Sports to a nationwide day-time audience and was called by Bob Costas & Tony Kubek…doesn’t Bob look charming?

One of two interesting points: I’m not sure exactly when the mainstream media started embracing stats other than RBI, AVG, etc. but here you can see NBC posting Slugging Percentage numbers for Ryno (he wasn’t called “Ryno” back then, he was called “Kid Natural”…I’m glad that didn’t stick) and you can hear Costas discussing these figures lightly.The other interesting point: There’s a great exchange between Costas and Kubek on the topic of player comparisons…most of us do our best to shy away from comps, but since we try to eat our cake and have it too, we still fall into that trap. Costas tries to bring Kubek away from the “comparison trap,” but seems to be unsuccessful…David Green is in the box to lead off the 5th inning:

Tony Kubek: David green, some say (he) may have been the key man when they got him over from the Milwaukee Brewers. He doesn’t really have a home run swing, he’s very strong but he doesn’t get a lot of loft but he drives the ball well to right and left center field; outstanding running speed, Nicaraguan born…because of the time when Hall of Famer, the late Roberto Clemente, and that mercy mission when he went down in the plane with all those supplies for the hungry Nicaraguans, some have made the comparison, because of the throwing arm and the style of Green to Roberto Clemente.

BC: In baseball, I guess there’s a tendency, even for the most knowledgeable people, to make comparisons based on style and appearance, and maybe on potential…but usually it doesn’t pan out that way. They called Kirk Gibson in Detroit “the next Mickey Mantle” and while Gibson’s a good player, it looks like he’ll never quite measure up to that caliber of play…and David Green will have to go some before he deserves to fairly be compared with Roberto Clemente…

TK: But isn’t that one of the charming things, (one of the) aspects of this game, where a hitter gets up to the plate and you look at the feet, the way the bat’s cocked, the stance, the way a guy swings or throws, or fields a ground ball, and the inevitable comparisons…in so many other sports you can’t do that.

BC: Mmm Hmm

TK: The constant action of basketball, or hockey or 22 guys in a relative bunch, in football in the middle of the field…you are exposed in this game, and it’s like golf. It is a very humbling sport…

BC: Yeah, this is definitely the game that calls forth the individual. Everybody has their moment in the spotlight.

TK: (You) can’t get too high and (you) can’t get too low over 162 can you?

If your sense of humor is close to mine, you also laughed so hard beer shot through your nose at the thought of comparing David Green to Roberto Clemente, for starters, just because Green was born in Nicaragua and Clemente was on his way there when his plane crashed…

Needless to say, right after this exchange Green hits a ground ball screamer thru short and into shallow CF, Green rounds 1B so hard he forces Dernier to look in his direction, providing Dernier an opportunity to miss picking up the ball. Green gets to 2B on Dernier’s error (the first in 107 games that I mentioned earlier) and as if to make his point of comparison to Costas, Kubek cites another Clemente comp in Green’s aggressive baserunning.

As I did in my post of this classic game, I want to extremely recommend the most fantastic blog The Greatest 21 Days, which focuses on the ‘members’ of the 1990 CMC baseball card set. This game, even though taking place 5-1/2 years prior to the minting of the 1990 CMC set, still features a couple of set members! These two are, to be nice and polite about it, “sunset members,” finding both of their professional baseball careers over in 1990. If they have been featured on The Greatest 21 Days, you have links to those stories as well so you can read Steve78’s awesome work for yourself!

148 Neil Allen – not featured yet, but mentioned in this post. Neil was with the Mets from 1979 until 1983 when he was part of the Keith Hernandez trade, along with Rick Ownbey, to the Cardinals. Neil went to the AL in 1985 with the Yankees, then to the White Sox in 1986, then back to the Yankees in 1987. His last MLB season in 1989 consisted of 3 games for Cleveland; his last season in the minors consisted of 12 games for the Cincinnati affiliated Nashville Sounds in 1990.

231 Dickie Noles - not featured yet. Amazing, another trade Phillies transaction in late 1981 sent Dickie Noles, our beloved Cub Keith Moreland, and Dan Larson to the Cubs in exchange for Mike Krukow and cash. Noles was traded to the Texas Rangers a few weeks after this game for PTBNL minor leaguers Tim Henry and Jorge Gomez. His appearance in the 1990 CMC set was a function of his swan song in the majors, his last MLB season in 1990 consisted of 1 game for the Phillies in 1990. Not only did the Phils take him back, but the Cubs did too, for 41 games in 1987. 1990 was also his last season in the minors.

Box Score and Play-by-play on Retrosheet

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
(I am @yoshiki89), and also please leave a comment!

Letting Go of the Big Z

2012-01-05T11:42:00.003-05:00

As of this writing, the deal isn't 100% done but like the rest of us, I found out early this morning that the months-long "Zambrano to the Marlins?" rumor just lost its question mark and it's now certain that Zambrano is headed for the Miami Marlins in exchange for Chris Volstad.

This isn't really an analysis-based post...The Flagrant Fan has broken down this trade very efficiently in this post, which is so far the best and most humble assessment of the pending transaction, starting with Scrabble, confirming my own belief that Volstad's updside outweighs Zambrano's risk, and ending with my similar lament of the absence of Zambrano's killer bat. Pitchers who can hit are sexy; Zambrano is one of the best hitting pitchers I've ever seen.

Beyond this, I think Chris Volstad is a very good pitcher - here are 2 games I've got on record featuring his work:

7/31/2009 CHC 2, FLA 5 - I scored this game from a WGN Radio broadcast, Volstad held his own against Rich Harden (who struck out 11 and walked 3)...Harden left the game after th 5th inning and 2ER, Volstad had the Cubs handcuffed until the 7th when Jake Fox' 2-run HR tied the game at 2. It was Carlos Marmol who blew the game apart and allowed the Marlins to win.

8/27/2010 FLA 7, ATL 1 - This was the 4th game of our BIL Tour 2010 baseball trip, where Tommy Hanson gave away HR as the Turner Field gameday promotion. Volstad wasn't necessarily all that and a bag of chips (it was Hanson's game to lose, and he did) but he did last 8 innings and only gave up 1 run, which is just fine.

As for Carlos Zambrano, I'm not going to lie...I will miss him quite a bit. When he was good, he was magical... obviously, that's the Big Z I will miss the most. When he was bad, he was abysmal...and that's baseball, especially if you're a pitcher. Zambrano was consistent in his greatness and badness, this gave my enjoyment of his games a truly heightened sense of gut-wrenching drama. Carlos Marmol comes close to this, but only for one inning and at the end of a game. Zambrano delivered the drama throughout, whether it was 2 innings or 7, you never knew when he would explode...or not. I will never forget his nonchalant, cap-off-brow-wiping attitude on the mound; you could never tell how he felt about how he was doing, great or horrible. I can't tell you if he will ever be remembered as one of the most intimidating pitchers in baseball but for me, he certainly will be.

In 2009 and 2010, I watched and/or listened to Zambrano pitch in 12 games that I scored. He started 9 of them, won 4 of those games, and lost 3. It’s a small sample size, but so is Carlos Zambrano. Think what you want of him, of course, but set aside his public emotional outbursts for just a moment. He has been and will be one of my favorite pitchers, and also one of my favorite Cubs.

I also saw him start against Louisville native and ex-Cub Todd Wellemeyer and the St Louis Cardinals at Wrigley on August 9, 2008, I didn’t score this game but remember it well as it was the day that I pitched the idea of the BIL Tour to Mark and he bought in. The Cubs took the series, but Zambrano only lasted 4.1 innings, allowing 10 hits and 9 ERs, 4 of those hits were HR. Here’s a picture I took of Big Z at bat during the 3rd inning of that game (sorry about the screen), and another picture of his solo HR trot that followed that plate appearance…
Theriot congratulates Big Z with a pat on the neck…

Now that I’ve written all that, bring back into focus his public meltdown episodes…baseball drama at its finest. Or maybe weirdest. Coincidence reigns, as the day we find out the Zambrano era with the Cubs is probably over is also the same date in 2009 that Milton Bradley became a Cub. His flair for the dramatic wasn’t nearly as much fun as Zambrano’s, you can’t really compare.

I’m sure he’ll be fine with the Marlins, although I wonder what ever happened to his July 2009 sentiments that he would retire at the end of his contract; he pulled this one again after his August 2011 meltdown, but Zambrano just can’t retire. He wants to compete, and maybe he wants to work with Guillen and the Marlins to help bring him to a place that the Cubs couldn’t. You might feel the same way if you worked under guys like Dusty Baker, Lou Piniella, and Mike Quade…but maybe you wouldn’t.

At 30 years old, Zambrano is a lot more like many of us are (or were) at the same age, sans being a Venezuelan millionaire starting pitcher. I don’t believe that Zambrano’s temper or temperament was a key contributor to his struggles over the past few years, but rather they are just pieces of a psyche that belongs to a passionate individual who still doesn’t know what his destiny is, but is very much attached to the large amount of money he makes to be in this state of mind, and therefore takes it out on Gatorade machines in the dugout.

Wikipedia: Carlos Zambrano was the only NL pitcher to have won at least 13 games in each year from 2003-2008.

I’m going to miss him, yes…but I have moved on. As a Cubs fan, I’m ready for a change. Zambrano’s probably been ready for a couple of years, but pride kept him from being more proactive about this.

Butch succumbed to “pride” in Pulp Fiction and ended up a winner (any time you can leave a movie script riding on a ‘chopper,’ you are a winner). Hopefully Zambrano can do the same, now that he’s making what is probably going to be the best move in his career to date.

1986 Topps - My Want List

2012-01-01T12:43:00.000-05:00

Please help me find these cards, thanks!!

480 Oodibe McDowell

511 Ed Nunez

678 Dan Gladden

584 Brian Fisher

1990 CMC Set - My Want List

2012-01-01T11:41:00.002-05:00

Cards listed by number, from the checklist published at oldbaseball.com

Preferred cards in BOLD face. For more background and fantastic stories about the players featured in this set, check out the amazing blog The Greatest 21 Days.

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 09 11 12 13 15 16 17 19 20

22 23 24 26 27 28 29 31 32 33 34 35 36 38 39

42 43 44 45 46 48 49 50 52 53 54 55 58 59 60

61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89

92 Erik Pappas

93 94 95 96

99 Jim Essian

101 102 103 105 106 107 109 110 111 112 114 115 116 117 118 119 120

121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 136

139 Paul Noce

140 141 142 145 146 147 148 149 152 153 155 156 157 158 159

161 163 164

165 Ron Washington

166 167 168 169 170 171

175 Moe Drabowsky

176 177 178 179 181 183 185 192 193 194 195 196 197 199 200

201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214

215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 227 228

229 Jason Grimsley

230 231

232 Wally Ritchie

236 237

238 Jim Adduci

240 Mickey Morandini

241 242 244 245

247 Keith Miller

248 250

251 253 254 255 258 259 262 264 265 267 268

269 Jim Pankovits

270 Rick Lancellotti

271 272 273 274 275 276 277 280 281 282 283 284 286 287 289 290

291 292 294 295 296 297 298 300

301 303 304

306 Curt Schilling

307 311 312 313 314 315 317 318 319

321 322 326 327 328 330

331 332 334 335 336 337 340 342 344 345 346 348 349

350 Mark Whiten

351

353 Kevin Brown

354 356 357 358 359 360

362 363 364 367 369 370

371 375 376 377 378 379 381 383 384 385 386 388 389 390

391 392 393 394 395 396 398 400 401 402 404 405 406 408

410 Mike Maddux

411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425

426 427 428 429

431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440

443 444 445

446 Casey Close

447 448 449 450 451 452 454 455 456 457 458 460

461 462 464 465 466 467 468 470 471 472 473 474 476 477

483 484 485 487 488

491 495 496 497 499 501 502 503 505 506

507 509 510 511 512 513 514 515 518 519 520

521 522 523 526 527 528 529 530

531 532 533 534 536 537 538 541 543 544

545 547 549 551 552 554 555 556 557 559 560

561 562 563 564 565 566 567 568 569 570

571 572 573 574 575 576 577 578 580

581 583 585 586 587 588 590 591 592 594 595 596 597

601 602 603 604 605

606 Darryl Kile

607 608 609 610 613 614 615 619

621 622 623 624 625 627 628 629

630 631 634 635 636 637 639 640

641 642 643 646 647 648

649 Don Wakamatsu

650 651 652 653 654 655 657 658 659 660

661 662 663 664 667 669 670

671 672 673 674 678

679 Mark Riggins

680 681 683 685 687 689 691 694 695 696 700

702 706 707 708 709 710 711 713 715 716 717 720

722 724 725 727 728 729 730 731 733 734 735 737 738

739 Jeff Bagwell

740 741 742 743 744 745 746 747 748 749 750

751 752 753 754 755 756 757 758 759 760 762 763

765 766 767 768 769 771 772 773 774 775 776 777

778 781 782 783 784 785 786 787 788 789

790 Moises Alou

791 792 794 795 797 798 799 800

801 802 803 804 805 806

807 Chuck Knoblauch

808 809 810 811 812 813 815 816 817 818

821 822 823 824 825 827

828 Tab Brown

829 830 831 832 833 834 835 836 837 838 839 840

841 842 843 844 845 846 848 849 850 852 854 855 856 857

858 859 860 861 862 863 865 866 867 868 869 870

871 872 873 874 875 876 877 878 879 880

10/6/91 New York Mets 7, Philadelphia Phillies 0

2011-12-16T13:55:00.007-05:00

Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, PA
Game 3 of 3
(Final game of the 1991 Regular Season)

David Cone famously strikes out 19 in his complete game shut-out of the Phillies.

The Kansas City native went the distance and ties the NL strikeout record (previously tied by Tom Seaver, also as a Met, in 1970) with 18 swinging and 1 called K. How did he do it? For the most part, he got the Phillies by making them "climb the ladder"...seeing the guy who made this tactic famous was amazing; I don't think I've ever seen it executed so many times and quite so masterfully. This would be his last full season with the Mets before being traded in August of 1992 to the Toronto Blue Jays for Jeff Kent and a PTBNL (Ryan Thompson).

Both the Mets and the Phillies were waayyy out of contention for a postseason appearance, one would be hard pressed to believe that history would be made during this otherwise dismal, rainy day in Philadelphia. The fans made the most of it, even Phillies fans in attendance seemed to enjoy and appreciate the events as they unfolded…

Clever baseball fans in the 90s used “coneheads” to track Cone’s strikeouts during a game…as you can see in this screenshot from the game, they are really stacking up in later innings, along with a sign that reads “Let’s Go Mets, Let’s Go Phillies, Let’s Go Baseball, Let’s Play 2”…there must have been some unusual ‘we’re not going to the World Series this year’ unity in the grandstand…

Of course, the Phillies swung at a lot of great pitches…the Mets, on the other hand, took care of starting pitcher Andy Ashby and relievers Bruce Ruffin and Wally Ritchie; each pitcher allowed at least 1 run (Ashby allowed 5 in 5IP and threw 2 wild pitches; Phillies catcher Doug Lindsey was charged with a passed ball).

The Phillies get on base 4 times (Mickey Morandini on a single, Wes Chamberlain and Dave Hollins with doubles, Mickey Morandini on a 1st inning walk), all are left on base.

Mets CF Daryl Boston went 2-for-5 with a HR and a triple, LF Kevin McReynolds went 2-for-3, 3B Gregg Jeffries went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI, 1B Chris Donnels (yes, the Mitchell Report guy with the great eyebrows) went 1-for-4 with an RBI, and switch-hitting Howard Johnson went 1-for-5 with an RBI. However, aside from David Cone…this game belonged to Keith Miller.

Most of you know my abject devotion to the fantastic blog The Greatest 21 Days, which focuses on the ‘members’ of the 1990 CMC baseball card set. If this blog is not part of your daily reading, you’re missing out on some of the best baseball blogging ever!! I’m happy to report that this game features a whopping 10 CMC set members! With late-season roster call-ups a proliferation of minor league talent normally flows into the expanded rosters of teams; when the season is over before it’s over, it stands to reason that in the last game of the season, you can expect them to get some playing time. Starting with Keith Miller, let’s look at each CMC set member who played in the game; if they have been featured on The Greatest 21 Days, you have links to those stories as well so you can read Steve78’s excellent, excellent, excellent work! Yes, friends…that is triple excellent!

247 Keith Miller - (not yet featured)
Again, forget for just a moment David Cone’s accomplishment, if you can. During that moment, pencil this in as “the Keith Miller game,” Keith went 4-for-5 with a solo HR, two doubles, and 2 RBI. Keith looks like a member of DEVO with his goggles on:

He is DEVO! Mark Mothersbaugh's long lost twin brother…without the goggles and helmet, he looks just like Ryan Theriot!!Keith's career with the Mets ended right here, with this game. He was traded in a transaction I shall describe towards the end of this post...

367 Jeff Gardner - ”Every Day”
Jeff struck out twice, flew out and grounded out. Gardner was traded to the Padres a few months later for Steve Rosenberg and saw no full-time MLB play until the 1993 season.
SCOREKEEPER’S NOTE: Jeff’s groundout to Ricky Jordan in the 4th was actually a line drive that landed straight into Jordan’s glove, but popped out as Jordan attempted to squeeze it single-handedly…this happens often, and when the ball is picked up by the fielder for a putout or an assist, it’s always scored as a ground ball; even if the line drive pops out of the glove and into the bare hand of the fielder…

803 Kim Batiste - (not yet featured)
Kim earns a “Golden Sombrero” in this game, striking out 4 times against Cone (all swinging). He was called “the Phillies shortstop of the future” by Ralph Kiner during the broadcast; he did have a great year with the Phillies in 1993 (.282/.298/.436., OPS .734 in 79 games) but wasn’t quite their “shortstop of the future” and was released by the Phils in 1995.

240 Mickey Morandini - ”Reckless Abandon”
Mickey was 1-for-3 with a walk, the only Phillie to reach base twice, and stole a base in the 1st inning. Mickey (“Dandy Little Glove Man”) was with the Phils until 1997, when he became a Chicago Cub for two years on a trade with the Phillies for Doug Glanville. As a Cub, Mickey would play in yet another extremely famous mega-strikeout game, when Kerry Wood fanned 20 to break David Cone’s NL record established in this game!

23 Wes Chamberlain - (not yet featured)
Wes struck out three times and doubled in the 9th with 2 outs. He was an OPS beast for the Phillies (.747 through 1994), not so much for the Boston Red Sox (.548 in 70 games during 1994 and 1995, traded to Boston for Billy Hatcher and Paul Quantrill), the end of the MLB road for Chamberlain. In August of 1995 he was traded to the Royals for Chris James, then released…his minor league career ended in 1999 and he spent the next 5 years playing Independent League Baseball.

245 Ron Jones - ”Sense of Competitiveness”
Jones entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Ricky Jordan in the 7th inning and flew out to Howard Johnson. 1991 was Jones’ last year of MLB action, this was his final plate appearance for the Phillies.

776 Doug Lindsey - ”No Joke”
This was Doug Lindsey’s MLB debut; he struck out 3 times and was charged with a passed ball. He didn’t see any MLB action in 1992 and was the PTBNL in the Donn Pall trade with the Chicago White Sox.

392 Jim Lindeman - (not yet featured)
Jim entered the game in the 6th inning in the double switch with pitcher Bruce Ruffin, hitting in Andy Ashby’s spot and taking over at 1B for Ricky Jordan. Jim struck out and flew out. A native of Evanston, IL, Jim was selected by the St Louis Cardinals in the 1st round of the 1983 draft (24th overall) and appeared on MLB rosters with the Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers before joining the Phillies organization as a free agent in January 1991. Lindeman would sign with the Mets as a free agent in late 1993, appearing in 52 games with an OPS of .800 in 1994, his final MLB season.

784 Andy Ashby - ”Wasn’t Worried”
Andy pitched 5 innings, allowing 7 hits, 5 runs (all earned), walking one, striking out 4, allowing one HR and was charged with 2 wild pitches (Frank Cashen called one of them a “Wild Wild Pitch”). Andy was drafted by the Colorado Rockies as the 25th pick in the 1992 expansion draft, leaving the Phillies with a 6.77 ERA and a 1.566 WHIP in 18 games from 1991 and 1992, but would return to the Phillies for part of the 2000 season.

232 Wally Ritchie - ”Tough Situations” (12/1/11), ”Another Chance” (2/21/10)
Ah, yes…last but certainly not the least, Wally Ritchie! One of my favorite CMC set members, Wally pitched 2 innings to finish this game, allowing 2 hits, 1 run (Daryl Boston’s HR in the 9th), and struck out Jeff Gardner looking. Wally was a reliever for the Phillies through 1992, when he was granted free agency, and is probably best remembered for his one-game suspension as a result of the “Otis Nixon Incident,” where Nixon charged the mound after being hit by a pitch, instigating a brawl on the field. Ritchie never pitched in the majors after 1992, and in October of 2011 was announced as the new pitching coach for his alma mater, Brigham Young University.

The game was originally broadcast on WOR-TV and called by legendary Mets broadcaster Ralph Kiner; the WOR color analyst for the 1991 season was typically Tim McCarver (yes, the same stumblebum we endure on FOX today) but Tim was out, so Kiner’s “guest” was none other than Frank Cashen, the Mets GM who would ironically be Mets GM no more shortly after this game. Kiner lovingly calls Gregg Jeffries’ single in the 1st inning “an astro-turf base hit.” After about 10 minutes, it’s almost impossible to tell the voices of Kiner and Cashen apart.

Besides Cashen’s exit as GM, in December of 1991 two Mets appearing in this game (Kevin McReynolds and Gregg Jeffries) would be traded to the Royals for Bill Pecota and this guy:Keith Miller was also part of this trade; he was a Royal until 1995 (spending most of 1993-1995 in the minors), when he was released.

I scored this game on 12/7/11

Box Score and Play-by-play on Retrosheet

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
(I am @yoshiki89), and also please leave a comment!

New PROTOTYPE Scoresheet

2011-12-01T15:50:00.004-05:00

Every year I try to review my scoresheet templates and work in a few changes...a few weeks ago I posted my current 2011 templates for your perusal (and FREE download for use!)...

I decided a few months ago to begin working on revisions in December; well, I got a head start on that.

Quite some time ago, I added my "stick figure" field boundary lines to the diamond in order to more accurately record a 'visual' representation of where the batted ball went and how it got there. After searching for a clipart diamond that better suited my purpose, I found one quite by accident and added it to my current "master" template.

Not wanting to stop there, I needed to address a few other things:

As my eyes start their pre-senile decline and as my notation becomes more elaborate, I'm finding the need to make the play boxes a little bit larger. That being said, when the boxes get larger, something has to get smaller...so, the "10th inning" column has been omitted, and the "10th batter" has been truncated to a few lines for extra pinch hitters, and a more open box for pitcher change recording (which I used to do at the top).

I'm still toying around with it, but I've begun "testing" and so far, so good. I'm pretty much at as near to a "final" version as I can get to in such a short amount of time, but I have a lot of work to do so this is still a prototype for all intents and purposes...

You can download the PROTOTYPE version here, in my Google Docs repository...feel free to download and print, and hey...any feedback is welcome, even if I might not use it, I'd still like to get some reactions to this latest design.

Here's a recently scored game with the new template; I have lots of post updates in the hopper that I'll be adding soon.

11/19/11 Salt River Rafters 9, Surprise Saguaros 3

2011-11-19T23:27:00.012-05:00

Scottsdale Stadium, Scottsdale, AZ
Arizona Fall League Championship Game

It’s a great day in Arizona every day during the Arizona Fall League season, but in the championship game this year, it was all Arizona…Arizona Diamondbacks, that is… This is Diamondbacks prospect David Nick, who went 4-for-4 with a HR for the Salt River Rafters in their Military Appreciation game victory over the Mesa Solar Sox on November 11 (scoresheet coming soon!).

The Rafters featured not one, but two Diamondbacks prospects in their pitching tonight; add Nick and fellow D-back Adam Eaton to their lineup and for this game at least, you’ve got a lock.

Brewer took the mound against Marlins prospect Alex Sanabia, whose only transgression was a 2-run 2nd inning and a solo HR for Nolan Arenado in the top of the 3rd. Brewer, on the other hand, yielded a 2-run tater with nobody out to my favorite Panamaian Christian Bethancourt. After 4 innings, Sanabia was lifted for hard-throwing Adam Liberatore and Brewer was replaced by Diamondbacks prospects Adam Woodall (2IP, 0H, 0R, 1K) and Kevin Munson (02.IP, 0H, 0R, 1K).

The Rafters had a barely comfortable 1-run lead to begin the top of the 7th, when the ball went to Jeremy Jeffress. I was happy to see him in the Rising Stars Game, but after all he’s been through…this wasn’t his best outing. He face 5 batters, only recorded one out, allowed 2H, 4R, 1BB and 1 wild pitch. In doing so, the Saguaros train was derailed and the Rafters earned nothing less than a modest victory.

The surprise for me (no AFL pun intended) was David Nick. The Military Appreciation game was the first I’ve heard of him, and now I’m very intrigued. He’s not an OPS beast per se, but he’s had a great run so far in 3 seasons of Minor League ball (.751 OPS in Missoula (Pioneer League), South Bend (Midwest League), and Visalia (California League)). With Visalia in 2011, in 132 games he struck out 80 times, hit for 253 total bases, and walked 30 times. By comparison, in South Bend the previous year he struck out 97 times, hit for 181 total bases, and walked 41 times. His performance has been fairly consistent, as in 2011 AFL his OPS was .756, with a modest 34 total bases in 22 games. He’s no Bryce Harper or Wil Meyers, but these numbers are comparable to the AFL stats of high-profile prospects such as Nick Franklin and Mike Trout (ahem!). David Nick is not stud prospect material (you probably won’t see him in any top 10 lists), but at 21 years old, he seems to have some spark and potential, and hey…he’s fun to watch on the field, which is an all-around win for fans like me.

SCOREKEEPER’S NOTE: Let’s talk about Fielder’s Choice plays with NO PUT OUTS!
From the rules, 2.00 “Terms and Definitions”:

FIELDER’S CHOICE is the act of a fielder who handles a fair grounder and,instead of throwing to first base to put out the batter-runner, throws to another base in an attempt to put out a preceding runner. The term is also used by scorers (a) to account for the advance of the batter-runner who takes one or more extra bases when the fielder who handles his safe hit attempts to put out a preceding runner; (b) to account for the advance of a runner (other than by stolen base or error) while a fielder is attempting to put out another runner; and (c) to account for the advance of a runner made solely because of the defensive team’s indifference (undefended steal).

A very common scorekeeping misconception for some is that a Fielder’s Choice play typically results in a put out…while this is true most of the time it certainly isn’t a “typical” situation. For me, the key element to consider in scoring a Fielder’s Choice play of any kind is that “fielder’s choice” is shorthand for “batter-runner reaches on a fielder’s choice,” anything else that occurs during the play or as a result of the play (a run scored, a PO, an error, etc) doesn’t determine the scoring of a Fielder’s Choice…the fact that the batter-runner reached a base and/or advanced is enough. For those who are new at scorekeeping, thinking in these terms makes the determination quick and easy as long as you consider that if a fielder exercises an option to make a play other than putting out the batter-runner, it’s a Fielder’s Choice, period.

In this game, we see two examples of a Fielder’s Choice play without a put-out; one of them is strictly textbook, the other not so much.

In the top of the 7th, with Adam Eaton on first, Jake Goebbert on third, and 1 out, Tim Wheeler hits a sharp grounder to Leury Garcia. Garcia fields the ball quickly and has 3 options:
• Field the ball to 1B, put out Wheeler, then Goebbert may score
• Field the ball to 2B, put out Eaton, then Goebbert may score
• Field the ball to C, put out Goebbert if he tries to score, or keep him at 3B to load the bases
The Rafters are only up by one, there’s only one out, and Jeffress hasn’t really started the meltdown on the mound that’s yet to come for him, so any of these options are viable as long as he can make the assist, which also assumes that the receiver can make the play. Garcia decides to prevent the run from scoring and fields the ball to Bethancourt. Unfortunately, Bethancourt doesn’t make the tag; Goebbert scores and nobody is out. This is a textbook “fielder’s choice, no PO” play. If you charge a batter for a groundout on a fielder’s choice when another baserunner is PO, you wouldn’t do it here since there is no out. The batter does get an RBI, and the run is earned by the pitcher.

An earlier Fielder’s Choice play with no PO in the top of the 2nd inning isn’t really a textbook example. Ben Paulsen is on second base, David Nick is on first; with 1 out Jason Castro hits a chopper to Leury Garcia. Garcia fields the ball a few steps away from the bag at 2nd and has a real opportunity to make the play unassisted at 2nd to force out Nick. He dives toward the bag, extends his arm painfully, but Nick reaches the bag as Garcia is unable to make the tag and Castro reaches first base on the play. I emphasize this to further illustrate the scoring thought process I elaborated on in the previous example. Novice scorekeepers may observe this play as, perhaps, a hit(*) for Castro; however, the way the ball is hit and the speed of the runners gives Garcia one option for a play with two outcomes, this is the “non-textbook” aspect of this play and how it’s scored. In the previous example there were more options and even more outcomes, so the Fielder’s Choice ruling is a bit clearer. Here, the fielder made a decision and the decision allows the batter-runner to reach base regardless of the outcome, as it were, without a PO. Think about it this way: if Garcia had made the tag successfully and Nick was out, it would still be a Fielder’s Choice…if Garcia had been more than a few steps away from the bag, probably deeper in the field, and didn’t have an unassisted play option, you would probably rule that a hit. If the ball wasn’t a chopper and was, for instance, a sharp ground ball that was fielded cleanly with enough time and space for Garcia to make the play and he couldn’t do so, then the situation is more arbitrary and based upon Garcia’s effort, you could rule a hit or even an error.

(*)Of course, as I’ve said before, this is your scoresheet, you can do whatever you want –especially if you are ruling on an error- but in this case, I strongly recommend that you consider the rules as they pertain to Fielder’s Choice. Ruling this a hit probably wouldn’t result in an appeal or something of that nature, but when an error isn’t a factor you want to make your best effort to be consistent in your interpretation of the rules in your ruling.

On my scoresheet, I made notes next to each player in the lineup as to what MLB parent organization they belonged to.

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
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11/5/11 AFL East 2, AFL West 11

2011-11-05T22:57:00.013-04:00

Surprise Stadium, Surprise, AZ
Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Game

The battle of the CENTURY!! Number ONE faces Number TWO!!

The “big deal” leading up to the 2011 AFL Rising Stars game (aside from Bryce Harper scheduled to participate this year, having missed the 2010 contest due to a ‘taxi squad’ technicality) was certainly the slated SP for each team. If you are living under a rock in Guatemala, #1 pick Gerrit Cole is starting for the East Division, and #2 pick Danny Hultzen is starting for the West Division.

For most of us, this would be our very first time seeing both of these guys in action, even if only for a few innings. For a majority of baseball fans and prospect watchers, it would be our very first time seeing lots of these guys in action for the first time.

Decidedly, the hype is all about Gerrit Cole. In this game, the hype went into a heap and was jumped on by Danny Hultzen and the West Division squad. It’s only a small sample size, and to be fair, Cole looked pretty good on the mound. However, Cole got into trouble early, was touched for 2 HR in the very first inning and was unable to retire a batter in 3 PA after 3 runs scored. Cole stayed in the game after only getting 2 outs and facing 7 batters; 4H 5R (all earned), a BB and a K. I agree with the consensus that this was an ‘exhibition’ game, and that his velocity and profile was great overall, just having a bad time with location.

On the other hand, tell that to Danny Hultzen. In 2 innings, he allowed no hits, no runs, walked one batter and struck out the side in the very first inning. If Cole “didn’t do too bad, showed some promise,” well, OK…that means Hultzen was triple-fantastic, then!! Seattle Mariners fans should have no trouble loving this guy, he looks and feels as major-league ready as he can on the mound.

The stud of the game offensively was, without a question, another Mariners prospect; SS Nick Franklin. Franklin had a stellar day in the batter’s box, 4-for-5 with a HR (courtesy of Gerrit Cole), 2 doubles and a single. Defensively, Franklin was charged with a hard-luck error that allowed Robbie Grossman to reach base in the 7th inning with 2 outs.

Honorable Mention goes to Marlins hotshot Kevin Mattison, but mostly for his fantastic facial hair and refreshing plate attitude.

I’m always happy to see Royals fireballer Jeremy Jeffress in action; he had some location issues this past season but struck out the side (3 batters faced, 3 batters down, 12 pitches total, all swinging strikeouts) in his 1 inning of work.Jeffress was one of the “oldest” players in draft age, having been drafted in the first round in 2006 by the Brewers. Royals pitcher Nate Adcock was selected in the 5th round of the 2006 draft by the Mariners.

First time seeing Cleveland Indians prospect Preston Guilmet, I love his outrageous delivery…he reminded me quite a bit of Josh Collmenter, but a little less effective. You can tell a great deal about his delivery by this photo…

It was also great to see a prospect I’ve been keeping my eyes on, the Atlanta Braves’ athletic Panamanian catcher Christian Bethancourt. I’ve only been able to follow him on paper until today.
Another Braves’ prospect I need to keep an eye on was Joe Terdoslavich, who was 3-for-3 with 3 RBI. Joe’s 1st inning HR was the second offered by Gerrit Cole.

Oh yeah…and Bryce Harper played today. He was 0-for-2 in 4 plate appearances; walked by Danny Hultzen, struck out swinging twice (once by Jeffress, once by Reds prospect Brad Boxberger), and credited with an RBI on a SAC fly.

On my scoresheet, I made notes next to each player in the lineup as to what MLB parent organization they belonged to. For posterity, here is a list of players that made appearances in the game, with their organization and their current draft information. 2011 draft picks are in boldface.

There were 5 MLB parent organizations for whom players did not participate in the game; not surprisingly those organizations were the Cardinals, the Yankees, the Red Sox, the Tigers, and the Mets. All players on the East Division roster appeared in the game; there were 5 players listed on the roster that did not appear in the game at all:

Cory Burns (Cleveland Indians)
J.J. Hoover (Atlanta Braves)
Taylor Whitenton (New York Mets)
Matt Adams (St Louis Cardinals)
Mikie Mahtook (Tampa Bay Rays)

This leaves the New York Yankees, the Boston Red Sox, and the Detroit Tigers as organizations who had no talent on the 25-man roster for either team in the Rising Stars game. The Colorado Rockies led the number of talent with 5 prospects, the Kansas City Royals saw 4 prospects on the roster, and 5 teams tied with 3 prospects from each club (Cubs, Marlins, Angels, Padres, and Nationals).

The actual roster released on November 1 seems to have had a few scratches in the West Division lineup; I was unable to confirm who replaced who and why, but Kevin Mattison and Jedd Gyorko did not appear on the official roster released by AFL, yet they showed up as starters in the AFL notes released the day of the contest.

The West division used 11 pitchers total; this is the first time I’ve used all 8 slots for pitchers on my scoresheet, so you’ll note that I ran the last three directly underneath the pitchers faced section.

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
(I am @yoshiki89), and also please leave a comment!

Scoresheets for YOU!

2011-11-02T14:46:00.009-04:00

For your use and enjoyment, free of charge, here are 3 scoresheets you can print and use to score baseball games.

These are the same forms I am currently using today. There are many internet resources with scoresheets available for download that are no longer current. Some current resources want to charge money for a scoresheet template…I won’t have any of this. My mission is to share the joy of scorekeeping with everyone, sharing doesn’t mean “it’s yours at a price,” so why not distribute freely?

I designed these myself, utilizing many existing scoresheet designs and implementing some of my own criteria to build “my own” form…now, I’m sharing them with readers of this blog.

One of the reasons “why” will make itself known very soon…more on that later!

For now, feel free to download and print these templates, from my Google docs repository:

Version 1 – the MASTER
This one is my mainstay; with pitch-count boxes, outs and runs ovals, a free-floating diamond, and a supplemental ‘field boundary’ outline arc in case you want to track where balls in play land. There are enough slots for 10 batters (sure, there are only 9 in a typical baseball game, but YES you can use this for softball and also YES there are times when pinch-hitters will spill downward into this slot), and enough for 10 innings (more than 11? Use another scoresheet!). There are also columns to track pertinent in-game stats, slots for 8 pitchers, and room at the bottom to tally the game info noted, or add your own notes.

Version 2 – the MASTER LIGHT
This one is the same as the MASTER, only without pitch-count boxes and ‘field boundary’ outlines. This one is great for scoring games on the radio, as there aren't blanks for jersey numbers (lineup slots are pre-populated...they seldom call jersey numbers on the air) or any game where you don’t want to track pitches, jersey numbers, and/or don’t care where the ball lands.

Version 3 – the MASTER LIGHT PLUS
This one is the same as the MASTER LIGHT, no pitch-count boxes, lineup slots pre-populated, etc...but it does have ‘field boundary’ outlines.

So why share these now? For starters…I never really thought of it. However, there is some importance in timing. In an effort to focus more on scorekeeping as the special purpose of this blog, I’ve decided to make an offense-oriented stand in my mission to promote the Scorekeeping Revolution.

I’ve tinkered enough with deviation from my usual “game recap with scoresheet attached” (don’t worry, I’m still sticking with that) and have decided to supplement those posts with two kinds of scorekeeping education features:

A basic instructional series called “Scorekeeping 101” that will walk through the basics on scorekeeping, from how the scorecard works to how players get on base to how players make an out to how it all balances at the end of the game…and all points in between. I will present this series using my scoresheet templates and will lean more toward the way I score games…

A advanced, use-case series called ”For Those Keeping Score at Home” where on a case-by-case basis, I will present examples of actual plays, how they are scored, and why they are scored that way. Thanks to Benjamin Hill for the great title!

This way, I will be doing more in contributing to keeping the art of Scorekeeping vibrant and alive, and maybe someday be able to pass on my enthusiasm to other baseball fans worldwide. I welcome and encourage any ideas or topics you would like to see covered here, you can follow me on Twitter (I am @yoshiki89), or please leave a comment on any post!

2011 World Series - Best Pitchers*

2011-11-01T12:19:00.003-04:00

* according to Bill James' Game Score

And the WINNER is...DEREK HOLLAND!

Another entry into the DUH! Column during my Postseason Game Score review, but this quaint exercise wasn’t intended to overstate the underobvious…Holland’s performance in Game 4 was nearly “Carpenter-worthy,” by these numbers alone.

Before we start this round of jousting, let’s review Bill James' Game Score real quick.

In case you didn't know, "Game Score" is a neat and easy and FUN way to look at a starting pitcher's line in a Box Score and apply a basic formula on the stats to come up with a fundamental 'score' that "determines the strength of a pitcher in any particular baseball game.

To determine a starting pitcher's game score:

1.Start with 50 points.
2.Add 1 point for each out recorded, so 3 points for every complete inning pitched.
3.Add 2 points for each inning completed after the 4th.
4.Add 1 point for each strikeout.
5.Subtract 2 points for each hit allowed.
6.Subtract 4 points for each earned run allowed.
7.Subtract 2 points for each unearned run allowed.
8.Subtract 1 point for each walk.

The maximum possible score in a 9-inning game with no baserunners allowed is 114, but of course this is possible only if the starting pitcher goes nine innings, strikes out every single batter he faces, and faces no more than 3 batters per inning. The exception to this gets a little hairy mathematically, but is never impossible...because this is baseball.

FYI, the highest game score for a 9-inning game in the history of baseball happened on May 6, 1998, when Kerry "Kid K" Wood famously struck out 20 Astros at Wrigley Field. Yowsah, that Game Score was 105.

So I thought it would be a "hoot" to compile Game Score for all SP during the postseason; I started this at the close of the League Division Series; you can review the LDS results at this post. I then continued with the League Championship Series; you can review the LCS results at this post. The fall classic is over…now begin the DARK TIMES!! Let’s look at Game Score for the 7 games of the WORLD SERIES then…the top 5 winners:

Derek Holland (82) 10/23/11 STL @ TEX WS G4
Jaime Garcia (77) 10/20/11 TEX @ STL WS G2
Colby Lewis (64) 10/20/11 TEX @ STL WS G2
Chris Carpenter (59) 10/24/11 STL @ TEX WS G5
Chris Carpenter (57) 10/19/11 TEX @ STL WS G1

Here we see more variation among the top 5 than in the LCS. Also, observing that the median (51.5) and mean (53.1) in all WS Game Scores is similar to the same values found in the LDS (median: 50, mean: 50.6), right around the 50-53 range. In the LCS, the median (41.5) and mean (41.4) were nearly ten points below this baseline. What we know now is that the LCS really didn’t feature as much stud pitching strength as the WS and LDS did.

In the World Series, 14 starting pitchers worked an average of 5.45 innings (in baseball math, a little closer to 5.1 innings), closer to the average innings of the LDS (5.2) than the LCS (4.2). I attributed the drop in innings (and, in some statistically weighted hindsight, the overall Game Score values) during the LCS to ‘clutch pitching change’ strategy. Did we see this in the World Series? Sure thing…but with less games as a sample, I suppose the difference didn’t impact the overall score.

What’s interesting to note is that if Holland had stayed in for just one more out, he would have usurped Chris Carpenter’s LDS-topping performance according to Game Score by only one point…that’s how damn good he was!

Other interesting notes I made, regarding the top 5:
Chris Carpenter occupied 2 of the top 5 slots (3 of the top 6), for his highest score he was not awarded a decision and the Cardinals lost the game.
The 2nd highest score in the top 5 also got a “No Decision” and the Cardinals lost the game (Garcia).
The top 2 pitchers earned their scores at home (Holland, Garcia).
3 of the top 5 earned “No Decisions” as SP (Garcia, Lewis, Carpenter).
2 of the top 5 scores occurred in the same game (Garcia, Lewis; WS G2).
The NL dominated the top 7 games scored out of 14, with 4 of the 7…which also happens to be the line on the NL Cardinals’ World Series win; 4 games to 3.

Apparently, bullpen strength prevailed where Garcia and Carpenter did not in Game 2 and Game 5 (but they still were strong as SP, according to Game Score).

In general (all 14 pitchers with starts in the WS):
Lowest score – Matt Harrison (35) 10/22/11 STL @ TEX WS G3
Lowest score, 4 innings minimum – Matt Harrison (39) TEX @ STL WS G7
Lowest score by a winning pitcher – Chris Carpenter (55) 10/28/11 TEX @ STL WS G7
Average Game Score by SP in the 2011 World Series: 53.1

You can review my work on the spreadsheet on Google Docs.

This was a fun exercise from me. I’m hoping I’ve encouraged some of you to try Game Score at home or at the ballpark on your own sometime.

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10/28/11 Texas Rangers 2, St Louis Cardinals 6

2011-10-28T23:53:00.005-04:00

Busch Stadium, St Louis, MO
2011 World Series Game 7

TLR in suspended shock as David Murphy’s fly ball to Left-Center field is about to land in Allen Craig’s glove…

The Cardinals finish the series in what would have been a relatively exciting game, but in comparison to game 5 and game 6 the yawn factor was induced for some viewers…but not for me. This game had a lot of thrilling and tactically interesting moments; it was less than a “cake walk” as suggested by some, and more of an example of how a team whose chances of winning go from slim to none to all the way in just a few games.

Chris Carpenter had a fantastic start, not anything akin to his 3-hit shutout of the Phillies on October 7th in the LDS, but hey…

The critical flaw for the Rangers tonight had to be the almost predictable short start of Matt Harrison, but only marginally so…the concept of tournament baseball notwithstanding, Harrison’s 3 ER in 4IP could have been met with another reliever other than Scott Feldman, who gave up 2ER (on 2BB and a HB, more on this in a moment) in 0.2 innings. Would bringing CJ Wilson down instead of Feldman in the 5th inning have changed anything? Probably not, but after some of the relief pitching miscues from the Ranger’s stall in the 2010 World Series, you might wonder…as I do.

A lead-off hit by Ian Kinsler, given the circumstances of Game 6, lethally ignites the Rangers and simultaneously threatens to stun the home crowd at Busch Stadium. Yadier Molina’s subsequent put-out of Kinsler attempting to steal 2nd base on an 0-0 count to Elvis Andrus slammed a rally door shut, symbolically, so early in the game. The Rangers still manage to eke out 2 runs during this frame after Andrus walks and Hamilton doubles him in, followed by a textbook Michael Young RBI double scoring Hamilton, but from where I was sitting the Kinsler CS was a bold statement by the Cardinals.

In response, to further underline this, Matt Harrison walks Pujols and Berkman with 2 outs. David Freese, in his first at-bat since his historic walk-off win in Game 6, drives a deep fly ball into the gap in left-center to tie the game.

Allen Craig delivers a 1-out HR courtesy of Harrison in the 3rd, putting the Cardinals in the lead. Harrison sweats a lot in the 4th inning, allowing 2 Cardinals to reach on back-to-back singles with 1 out. He breaks 2 of Skip Schumaker’s bats in the same AB; Schumaker grounds out to 1B, Carpenter flies out to RF to end the inning, stranding both baserunners, and Harrison is done for the evening.

Scott Feldman picks up the ball in the 5th…again, why not CJ Wilson? After retiring Theriot (and breaking his bat as well) Feldman walks Allen Craig and hits Albert Pujols, who both advance on a Lance Berkman groundout… that’s 2 on, 2 outs, and David Freese is intentionally walked so that Feldman can pitch to Yadier Molina. Freese is 1-for-2 so far; I have no strength as a baseball strategist, but I am a vocal dislike of the intentional walk, even in “obvious” situations. So to me, this is less than obvious as to why Freese gets the IBB; I would give Mike Napoli a free pass way before David Freese but nonetheless, Molina is UNintentionally walked, walking in a run and giving the Cardinals a 2-run lead.

Just so you know, Matt Harrison also broke Pujols’ bat in the 3rd…so that’s a total of 4 BLS (Broken Louisville Sluggers, from my scoresheet notation) in the game, 3 of them by Harrison…

CJ Wilson’s very first pitch in relief of Feldman hits Rafael Furcal (who was shockingly 2-for-2 in this game, after being so silent offensively for so long), which allows Pujols to score. Feldman is charged with the run, Wilson shuts down Schumaker to end the inning, and is dominant until he is replaced by Mike Adams to start the 7th.

The real story from this point on is the Cardinals’ bullpen, carrying Chris Carpenter’s torch and handcuffing the Rangers for the rest of the game. Well, they had some help from Allen Craig in the 7th, who majestically robbed Nelson Cruz of a sure-fire solo HR in the 6th, but the line speaks for itself, the bullpen allowed no hits and no runs for the rest of the game, exclamation point.

And thus endeth by far, the best World Series I think I’ve seen in many, many years.

Cardinals win 4-3

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10/27/11 Texas Rangers 9, St Louis Cardinals 10

2011-10-28T01:14:00.002-04:00

Busch Stadium, St Louis, MO
World Series Game 6

I will update with a write-up soon...for now, there are no other words that could serve as a recap, other than...WE WILL SEE YOU TOMORROW NIGHT!!!

Series Tied 3-3

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McCarver the Cut-Up: Quote of the Game

2011-10-25T09:45:00.000-04:00

World Series Game 5: October 24, 2011

Not to steal Tim’s thunder, but Joe Buck actually had the worst quote of the game, when Michael Young approached the plate and Buck declared “now he has to face one of the best hitters in baseball…” I’m not even going out of my way to discredit this, if you read Joe Posnanski’s blog yesterday (”Baseball on FOX”) you would have read a proper critique of Young’s praise over others on the team and the reality of statistical evidence of his “moderate” baseball prowess. Also, there were no less than 26 hitters drafted in my fantasy league this year who were, really, much better hitters than Michael Young…Nelson Cruz, Albert Pujols, and Lance Berkman being among that group. Hey, don’t get me wrong…I like Michael Young quite a bit. One of the best hitters in baseball? No, not at all.

Tim McCarver is a well-known and globally respected resource of baseball knowledge, be sure and pick up his critically acclaimed book Tim McCarver’s Baseball for Brain Surgeons at amazon.com or pick it up at your favorite retailer.

10/24/11 St Louis Cardinals 2, Texas Rangers 4

2011-10-24T23:55:00.006-04:00

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX
2011 World Series Game 5

His name is Mike Napoli…there should be no question as to the ‘now’ value of his signing to the Rangers this year. Jeff Mathis couldn’t do any of this.

The World Series and the Texas Rangers work things up to a feverish pitch (pun completely intended) as a game that certainly seemed within the arms (pun also intended) of the Cardinals got out of hand. In true glitzy postseason fashion, the out-of-handedness turns out to be the fault of two botched calls, but not at the hands of an umpire…

The Cardinals did their thing and scored early, putting 2 on the board in the 2nd inning thanks to a Yadier Molina single-plus-David Murphy error and a Skip Schumaker groundout. The opportunity to drive a few more nails into the coffin expired when Nick Punto flew out to LF, stranding Molina. At this time, the most memorable moment had to be when Punto appeared to attempt a Bo Jackson Bat Break in frustration, only to vacate this idea without shedding a single splinter. Punto had a reason to be slightly miffed, as he was robbed by a brilliant David Murphy catch, the kind of catch that screams of redemption after his fielding error.

Mitch Moreland broke his postseason silence with this decisively clubbed solo HR response in the 3rd. After I recovered from my awe, I felt as if now that Chris Carpenter had tasted blood, he would work even better than he had up to this point, in this game. Adrian Beltre, after nearly striking out “on his knee” earlier, dismissed the taste of blood with a solo shot of his own in the 6th inning, again “on his knee,” and tying the game at 2 apiece.

Napoli seals the deal in the 8th, with a 2-RBI double off Marc Rzepczynski. Napoli is an OPS beast, and he loves pitches up in the zone. With all the strategy behind intentional walks and Pujols (who was intentionally walked 3 times during this contest), you’d think that TLR would consider offering Napoli free passes…pitching to him just isn’t working out.

Botched calls seemed to prevent the Cardinals from responding to the Rangers offense. I’m not a fan of isolating one event in a game (or even two) as a ‘turning point,’ each failed opportunity expires to present another opportunity. However, the two celebrated botched calls extended a postseason focus on communication issues that didn’t doom the Cardinals in this game, but they certainly didn’t help a bunch.

The first of these was a failed hit-and-run that was put on by Albert Pujols in the 7th, with Allen Craig caught at 2nd base on the play. Craig was caught again in Pujols’ next at-bat.

Then there was the call for Motte in the 8th…the Bullpen phone story is high baseball comedy at its finest…I must admit, I knew nothing of this until the next morning, when some of my associates thought it would be comical to outfit my cube with cans attached to strings; before I had a chance to watch the post-game press conference.

At best, this incident alone has led to a resurgence of phone humor, something I explicitly adore. I mean, I work with phones all day long…as a baseball fan on top of this, my cup definitely runneth over.

This image was originally posted by Big League Stew blogger Rob Iracane, and represents the best of the barbs out there so far…

SCOREKEEPER’S NOTE: Lance Berkman’s game-ending dribble ball was scored as a “dropped third strike” K, PO 2-3.

Rangers lead the Series 3-2

He said WHAT?!? Click on this link to see Tim McCarver’s Quote of the Game

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McCarver the Cut-Up: Quote of the Game

2011-10-24T15:14:00.002-04:00

World Series Game 4: October 23, 2011

I had a very hard time believing this, it’s a good thing Joe Posnanski called him out on this in this post today, otherwise I would still be scratching my head for years to come…

Tim McCarver is a well-known and globally respected resource of baseball knowledge, be sure and pick up his critically acclaimed book Tim McCarver’s Baseball for Brain Surgeons at amazon.com or pick it up at your favorite retailer.

10/23/11 St Louis Cardinals 0, Texas Rangers 4

2011-10-23T23:51:00.006-04:00

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX
2011 World Series Game 4

FEAR the MOUSTACHE…

One could have expected just about anything out of Derek Holland tonight, but certainly an outing like this wasn’t on the radar!!

You just can’t say he had a great outing…that’s just too friggin’ easy. He had the outing of his career, I think. Just based on the lack of expectations alone, if your head was not spinning when he walked off of the mound, you aren’t human.

Postseason is the focus here, so here’s how Holland did in his last 3 postseason starts, compared to how he did tonight:

OUCH. I heard Ron Washington had a talk with him about keeping his cool and not getting so “amped up.” Good talk, Rusty.

You can see it in his eyes…he is VERY COOL right here.

So what did the Cardinals have? Offensively, not much…they were pretty much hand-cuffed. Defensively, John Jay steals a sure-thing HR from Nelson Cruz, and Yadier Molina runs one of his “Yadier Molina” class pickoffs of Ian Kinsler on a 2-3-6 play to end the 2nd inning.

This was payback for a Molina groundout to Kinsler to end the top of the 2nd; a play that would have made Brooks Robinson blush at 3rd base…

The tension was broken in the 6th inning by another Mike Napoli bomb, a 3-run HR to deep left field. I use the term “tension” because Derek Holland was on the mound and the Rangers only had 1 run on the board. There wasn’t much tension after that.

Holland’s pleas to Washington to leave him in the game were to no avail…I still think he could have closed the game. Still. Derek Holland has been one of my favorite pitchers for a couple of years now. I’m glad he was able to add a postseason gem such as this to his resume.

Series tied 2-2

He said WHAT?!? Click on this link to see Tim McCarver’s Quote of the Game

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10/22/11 St Louis Cardinals 16, Texas Rangers 7

2011-10-22T23:52:00.004-04:00

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX
2011 World Series Game 3

Prince Albert makes his mark…

In only the 3rd game of the World Series, a World Series that is so far one of the best in recent memory, we’ve already seen 2 great games but didn’t have to wait long for a truly “historical” event to occur.

This one will certainly be remembered as ”The Pujols Game” for as long as Albert’s career will stand it…a dedicated response to his otherwise historically flat postseason performances, this year and in years past. Pujols’ first 2011 World Series hit in the 4th after a groundout to 3B in the 1st begins what would end as a 5-for-6, 6 RBI, 3HR outing; his 14 total bases establishes a new World Series record. If the line doesn’t cross your eyes, the highlights will.

But wait, it’s not just 3 homers…it’s 3 back-to-back homers, the third of which ties a World Series record for the most HR in a single WS game, a record also held by Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson.

You can bet that if I had access to Photoshop, I would have added a picture of Nyjer Morgan here, with his eyes crossed, steam rising from his ears, sitting at home watching the game with a soda straw stuck in his teeth…

In what may erupt later (depending on how the series swings) as a “botched call” similar in scope (if not in urgency) to the controversial Don Denkinger call in the 1985 World Series, 1B ump Ron Kulpa completely and absolutely fouls up the call on this play at first during the 4th inning…Holliday was certainly out, but as the play didn’t affect the tide of the game (same as the 85 WS call, where that call wasn’t missed anywhere nearly as much as this one was) there would be no point in screaming about it any more than just about everyone watching it did at the time. Assume Holliday was the 2nd out, and assume further that all 4 of those runs in the 4th never happened…the Cardinals still win. Officials can make mistakes, Kulpa was in a peculiar POV, but it’s still kind of hard to understand how this one flew so far out of hand.

In less interesting review, Matt Harrison and Kyle Lohse both had very un-interesting outings, neither pitcher able to complete more than 11 outs.

During the 7th, a fan is ejected when a corny rubber white ball is thrown into the outfield in what seems to be an attempt to confuse Matt Holliday. TLR argues “fan interference” (by the letter of the ‘law,’ no fan touched the ball in play, so no fan interference) but you can almost bet that he would, as millions of Cardinals fans know that a mere shift in the direction of the wind can result in Holliday with something bruised or strained.

Cardinals lead the Series 2-1

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McCarver the Cut-Up: Quote of the Game

2011-10-21T09:09:00.001-04:00

World Series Game 2: October 20, 2011

Tim McCarver is a well-known and globally respected resource of baseball knowledge, be sure and pick up his critically acclaimed book Tim McCarver’s Baseball for Brain Surgeons at amazon.com or pick it up at your favorite retailer.

10/20/11 Texas Rangers 2, St Louis Cardinals 1

2011-10-20T23:56:00.004-04:00

Busch Stadium, St Louis, MO
2011 World Series Game 2

It’s all about the “D”…and two great reel-worthy plays!!

Can it be true that after only 1 game my expectations of this World Series are burying the memories of last year’s Ho-hum Classic? This game makes it so.

Yet another pitchers’ duel develops as Jaime Garcia and Colby Lewis show off #1 starter stuff, neither yielding a run, only allowing 2 hits apiece for the first 6 innings. Garcia, though not awarded a decision, pulled ahead of Lewis with 7 scoreless innings, 3 hits, 1 BB and 7K…and 3 broken bats!!

I will have to dig a bit to confirm, but I think this is the most bats broken in a game by a single pitcher that I have ever scored…

Defense from both teams, along with the stellar starting pitching, was the true highlight, but the Rangers ran away with the prize. Elvis Andrus and Ian Kinsler are the double-play combo of the game, if not the Series so far. They did it not once, but twice; contributing two eye-rubbing plays to end the 4th and 5th innings.

With the game locked at a scoreless tie in the bottom of the 7th, history more or less repeats itself…funny how the events in last night’s game replayed themselves, as if there was no regard to what happened only 24 hours before. With Freese on base, thanks to a 1-out single, Yadier Molina flies out, Nick Punto reaches on a single (Freese advances to 3B), and with 2 outs and runners on the corners, Washington pulls Lewis and brings in…Alexi Ogando. LaRussa brings in who else but Allen Craig in Garcia’s spot in the order…so what do you think will happen next???

It happens…Craig does it again, with a rocket to RF, scoring Freese and Ogando shaking his head…it’s ‘de ja vu all over again’!!

The inning ends with the Cardinals up by one and a Nick Punto TOOTBLAN (or should it be ROOTBLAN?) as he is ruled out at 3B for running outside the basepaths. WAAAYYY out.

The Cardinals stay on top with that single run on the board, Nelson Cruz robs Pujols of a sure-fire HR in the 8th, and Jason Motte steps in to close things out…and the Rangers come back, again with Kinsler and Andrus leading the charge. They both get on base to lead off, two consecutive SAC flys from Josh Hamilton and Michael Young bring them both in, and the Rangers squeak out a hard-fought win with Neftali Feliz shutting the Cardinals down. And they do it without any extra base hits.

Is Ian Kinsler on a campaign to walk away with the World Series MVP trophy? It’s too early to tell, but he is the real unsung hero of this Rangers team, and also a valid source of comic relief, as demonstrated when he “brushes off” a blistering Adrian Beltre foul line drive down the 3rd base line.

Series tied 1-1

He said WHAT?!? Click on this link to see Tim McCarver’s Quote of the Game

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McCarver the Cut-Up: Quote of the Game

2011-10-20T09:50:00.006-04:00

World Series Game 1: October 19, 2011

Tim McCarver is a well-known and globally respected resource of baseball knowledge, be sure and pick up his critically acclaimed book Tim McCarver’s Baseball for Brain Surgeons at amazon.com or pick it up at your favorite retailer.

10/19/11 Texas Rangers 2, St Louis Cardinals 3

2011-10-19T23:45:00.002-04:00

Busch Stadium, St Louis, MO
2011 World Series Game 1

Chris Carpenter demonstrates PFP in full force…

The 2011 World Series begins with a raucous battle between the Cardinals and the Rangers in St Louis. After a breathtaking LCS and LDS, I’m hoping that the Fall Classic will follow suit; after this game I think I have more than a hope!

Chris Carpenter and C.J. Wilson face off; Wilson hoping to get his first 2011 postseason win, Carpenter hoping to enjoy an outing at least half as fantastic as his stunning close-out of the LDS in Game 5 against the Phillies.

The pitchers’ duel ensues quickly, with great pitching from both parties and some outstanding “riot defense” by Carpenter in this outrageous play at first, where Pujols throws wide with Carpenter diving to receive the ball and sliding aggressively across the bag and directly underneath the feet of Elvis Andrus, who is charging down the baseline like a freight train and barely misses crushing Carpenter’s exposed hands under his Texas cleats. You could feel LaRussa and Duncan wince sharply as they watched this unfold…fortunately, no harm done. If it were a pitcher with less grit, you can expect a nightmare after a jump such as this.

The game is viciously and excitingly tied at 2-2 by the bottom of the 6th, when Wilson offers David Freese a 1-out double, a wild pitch to Yadier Molina that allows Freese to advance to 3B, and a walk to Nick Punto. Washington removes Wilson in favor of Alexi Ogando, who is great but does have his moments. LaRussa brings Allen Craig in Carpenter’s slot in the batting order, and Craig has a moment of his own, a clutch go-ahead single to RF on a 1-2 pitch, scoring Freese and putting the Cardinals in charge for the remainder of the contest, finishing with a thrilling 10-pitch Save by Jason Motte.

A few days before the Series began, Fox announced it would use “heat-vision” technology currently in use for European Cricket broadcasts (I don’t know enough about Cricket to comment on this)…as if TBS’ Liberovision during the postseason wasn’t enough kool (or not), Fox Hot Spot was brought on to help us…well, we weren’t really sure what it was going to help us with!! Fortunately, Hot Spot was used right away in this first game of the Series, to show us chumps at home that Adrian Beltre’s groundout to 3B in the top of the 9th was really a “shoe polish ball” -shades of Earl Weaver- that bounced off of Beltre’s foot. The replay video looked close, Hot Spot showed that it definitely popped his foot and should have been a foul.

Cardinals lead the Series 1-0

He said WHAT?!? Click on this link to see Tim McCarver’s Quote of the Game

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2011 Baseball Prospectus NL/AL Projections – How Did They Do?

2011-10-19T14:14:00.006-04:00

Let me start this out by affirming that projections are pretty wacky, in theory and practice. Particularly in baseball, where you have 30 teams in 2 leagues and 6 divisions and 162 games of sheer madness, with trades, call-ups, DL stints, fried chicken and beer popping up over the course of 6 gruesome months. You can calculate and pythagorize all you want, stuff happens that nobody can see coming and that’s that.

For the past couple of years, I’ve always enjoyed recording season projections when they are out, so that I can drag them out at the end of the season and compare. I use these projections quite profusely as part of my Fantasy draft strategy, so they are quite important to me. They are also important to many others, for all kinds of fans. This year, I thought it would be fun to share the “before and after” results with my readers, in the event you might be sitting at a bar or at your local Laundromat and a stranger should ask “hey, how about them Cards…did anyone think they had a chance to do so well in the NL Central?” Now you can answer that question.

The folks at Baseball Prospectus are making some decent money compiling and providing statistical data and analysis for use by chumps like me as well as for very important folks in the baseball business. They certainly do know what they are doing. They have ultimato respect from everyone who reads their work, whether the information is used casually or used professionally.

I purchase their handbook on an annual basis, and enjoy their work immensely. I am not a subscriber, as this is too expensive for my budget (I’m not being paid to be a Baseball Enthusiast) but if you have the cash flow, you really should consider subscribing to their exclusive content, as well as shelling out a couple of bucks for the annual handbook.

The purpose of this is not to say “look, they were way off on this” but to compare side-by-side what the projections were, and to identify some criteria by which to analyze the comparison at a very high level, and then to draw some sort of conclusion that is less than obtuse and lightly informative. There is no “right” or “wrong” in projections (predictions are a different story…); there is only the data, the distribution, and how you analyze it and use it for whatever you need it for.

The “actual” performance data presented here was compiled from Baseball-Reference. Here are the key data points I studied and compared from both sources:
W-L
Wpct (Win percentage)
RS (Runs scored)
RA (Runs allowed)
Rdiff/G (Run differential = Runs allowed – Runs scored per Game, average over 162 games)
Teams are listed in ‘ranking’ by WPct as reported by Baseball Prospectus as well as Baseball-Reference.

Focusing on the ‘slot positions’ for each team within their division is, in my opinion, a negligible analysis point. Any stat head will probably agree with me that comparing the projected ‘rank’ of two teams in their division with their final ‘rank’ is somewhat interdependent of discrete performance statistics, such as Win-Loss percentage (or, really, Win percentage). Aside from the obvious situation of a team projected to win their division that eventually comes in last in their division (or vice versa), there’s not much to discuss in regards to comparison aside from what you can clearly see…at least not by me and not in this review. I chose instead to gauge “how did they do?” by comparing WPct by utilizing a figure that I’m sure I didn’t invent but that I will call XPctDiff, or “Expectation Percentage Differential.”

Is that sexy or what?!?

XPctDiff is found by subtracting the projected WPct of a team from the actual WPct, you will get a positive or negative number based on if they did better (positive) or worse (negative) than they were projected to. Remember, final ranking is negligible!! Then you can look at how close or how far off each team’s projection was and in what direction, if you like. The smaller delta (percentage difference) defines a projection that was more spot on, the larger delta is one that was spotty. You can click on the images to see the data better in your browser window.

I will also briefly review the Rdiff/G value, in terms of improvement (positive) and deficiency (negative) over projection, for leaders and blowers in each league.

Let’s start with the National League:One thing is obvious: Nobody really can tell how to call the NL West (remember last year’s Padres?!?). This year’s Diamondbacks seemed to be last year’s Padres, with the most noticeable difference in the ranking, and also the highest XPctDiff in the entire league.

In the NL East, the Phillies (positive) and the Marlins (negative) had the largest XPctDiff, tied at .081 each. In the case of the Phillies, the difference had no bearing on their ranking; I know I said I wasn’t going to focus on ranking comparisons, but I had to point this out in order to lend some validity as to why I say “final ranking is negligible. The closest call by BP in this division was on the Braves, with an XPctDiff of .012 positive value. Among all 30 teams, this was their second most accurate projection. In regards to Rdiff/G the Phillies ended up with an 0.6 improvement over projection, the second largest improvement over this projected figure in the National League…that’s a testament to that pitching staff of theirs, as the fewer RA made the biggest difference (they scored 30 fewer runs than projected). The Marlins, on the other hand, had an 0.7 deficiency over projection, with a shift in more RA than RS yielding that value; their Rdiff/G decline was tied with the Giants for the largest deficiency over projection in the National League, who (like the Marlins), allowed more runs than they scored against projection.

The most accurate WPct projection among all 30 teams was the Pirates in the NL Central. At an XPctDiff of a scant .006, their WPct was only one game off. The Brewers were the largest value, .068 better (positive) than projected. As we enter the World Series, I should also note that the Cardinals performed .025 better than projected, a modest value but it shows you in one respect how a good run in September can benefit a team!

The NL West shows a wild finish, 2 teams (the Diamondbacks at .111 better – but still not the largest XPctDiff among all 30 teams- and the Rockies at .074 worse (negative) than projected) had abnormally large XPctDiff in the National League. BP was most accurate with the Dodgers, who finished .022 worse than projected. The Diamondbacks finished with the largest improvement over projection in terms of Rdiff/G with an 0.7 value.

And now…the American League:Here we have a beast similar to the NL West, where the AL Central seems to be the hardest division to nail down from a projection standpoint. It sheds a different light on the current fan reaction to the so-called “Red Sox Collapse” and the opposite of this reaction by fans of the Twins in regard to their performance this season, suffering even greater than the Royals were projected to.

In the AL East, the most accurate projection was undeniably the easiest call to make…for several years, the Yankees have been the easiest team in terms of performance projection, their XPctDiff was .025 better than projected. By comparison, the Orioles, who started very strong this year, finished with a rather large .074 XPctDiff. The Orioles also had the second largest deficiency in the American League over projection for Rdiff/G with -0.9.

Who had the largest Rdiff/G deficiency in the American League? We move to the AL Central for this answer, where as previously noted, was the wildest of the 3 divisions. The Twins quietly collapsed (where the Red Sox were so damn noisy about it), falling to an MLB highest .123 XPctDiff and an MLB highest 1.0 Rdiff/G deficiency over projection. OUCH. The most accurate WPct projection was the White Sox, who posted a League-lowest .018 XPctDiff value in winning only 3 games less than projected.

A few years from now, we might see a day where the AL West is as easy a division to project as the NL Central seems to be; as long as the Rangers keep playing like the Rangers, that is. They blew off the doors this year (much to Lance Berkman’s chagrin, but he’s so classy he admits his mistake after the fact), finishing better than expected, with an XPctDiff of .068, tied with the Angels for the largest value (the Angels also finished with a positive XPctDiff value). Also of worthy note, and what Berkman needs to know, is their Rdiff/G improved 0.9 over projection; like the Phillies they allowed far fewer runs than projected. The Mariners were BP’s most accurate projection in this division, with an XPctDiff of .024, only 4 wins less than projected.

At an overall high level, in light of the results of Postseason so far, the BP projections really only ‘missed’ with the NL West and the AL Central. Those of us who reviewed their data before the season began can only say we were surprised by the rise of the Diamondbacks and the fall of the Twins.

That being said, Twins fans are great people…they aren’t complaining about this very much.

Enjoy the World Series; I’ll be back soon to review the MLB Network NL/AL Predictions! I’ve dusted off the DVDs I have of the 2 specials they aired in late March, and will review their calls and what really happened. This review will be quite different; less statistics, of course…but they made predictions, which are way different than projections.

Thanks mega thanks again, to the folks at Baseball Prospectus (as well as Baseball Reference) for everything they do to give geeks like me something to write about. It’s all good.

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
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2011 League Championship Series - Best Pitchers*

2011-10-18T15:50:00.004-04:00

* according to Bill James' Game Score

And the WINNER is...

RANDY WOLF!

SHOCKER…yes, I am quite surprised, but it’s true. By a little more than a nose, yes. I need to give him a break, I suppose…I have been heckling the Wolfman a little more than usual these days.

Before we start this round of jousting, let’s review Bill James' Game Score real quick.

In case you didn't know, "Game Score" is a neat and easy and FUN way to look at a starting pitcher's line in a Box Score and apply a basic formula on the stats to come up with a fundamental 'score' that "determines the strength of a pitcher in any particular baseball game.

To determine a starting pitcher's game score:

1.Start with 50 points.
2.Add 1 point for each out recorded, so 3 points for every complete inning pitched.
3.Add 2 points for each inning completed after the 4th.
4.Add 1 point for each strikeout.
5.Subtract 2 points for each hit allowed.
6.Subtract 4 points for each earned run allowed.
7.Subtract 2 points for each unearned run allowed.
8.Subtract 1 point for each walk.

The maximum possible score in a 9-inning game with no baserunners allowed is 114, but of course this is possible only if the starting pitcher goes nine innings, strikes out every single batter he faces, and faces no more than 3 batters per inning. The exception to this gets a little hairy mathematically, but is never impossible...because this is baseball.

FYI, the highest game score for a 9-inning game in the history of baseball happened on May 6, 1998, when Kerry "Kid K" Wood famously struck out 20 Astros at Wrigley Field. Yowsah, that Game Score was 105.

So I thought it would be a "hoot" to compile Game Score for all SP during the postseason; I started this at the close of the League Division Series; you can review the LDS results at this post. Now that the League Championship Series is over and we’re going to the WORLD SERIES...here are the LCS results, and the top 5 winners:

Randy Wolf (62) 10/13/11 MIL @ STL NLCS G4
Doug Fister (59) 10/11/11 TEX @ DET ALCS G3
Rick Porcello (54) 10/12/11 TEX @ DET ALCS G4
Max Scherzer (53) 10/10/11 DET @ TEX ALCS G2 - TIE
Matt Harrison (53) 10/12/11 TEX @ DET ALCS G4 - TIE

Quite a change, overall in the top 5 scores themselves, compared to the LDS top 5 (range was 84-72 in the LDS top 5). Right off the top of my head, I would imagine that one contributing factor in the difference in overall scores was more or less attributable to the ‘clinch pitching change’ tactic employed by each of the 4 teams playing in the series, particularly in those crucial Game 6 situations. In the LDS, 38 starting pitchers worked an average of 5.71 innings (or, more accurately in baseball math: 5.2 innings). In the LCS, 24 starting pitchers worked an average of 4.8 innings (again, 4.2 innings in baseball math). So this off-the-cuff theory could have some weight.

Another wacky reality: Randy Wolf had the lowest score among the 38 SP in the LDS. Uh-huh.

Other interesting notes I made, regarding the top 5:
Only 1 NL pitcher appeared in the top 5 (Wolf, at number 1)
The top 3 pitchers earned their scores at home (Wolf, Fister, Porcello)
3 of the top 5 (the bottom 3, in fact) earned “No Decisions” as SP
Of those 3, both teams were the Detroit Tigers and both times the Tigers lost the game
Only 1 SP in the top 5 saw his team advance to the World Series (Harrison)
No Cardinals pitchers made the top 5
Two of the top 5 scores were from SP in the same game (10/12/11 TEX @ DET ALCS G4)

In general (all 24 pitchers with starts in the LCS):
Lowest score – Max Scherzer (20) 10/15/11 DET @ TEX ALCS G6
Lowest score, 4 innings minimum – Jaime Garcia (26) 10/9/11 STL @ MIL NLCS G1
Lowest score by a winning pitcher – Zack Greinke (36) 10/9/11 STL @ MIL NLCS G1
Average Game Score by SP in the 2011 LDS: 41.41

I will now officially revoke my honorary Randy “ERA” Wolf nickname. Until next year.

For now…#HappyFlight

You can review my work on the spreadsheet on Google Docs.

I will continue to tally the Game Score for the World Series, and post the results when that FINAL phase of the postseason is over. Then we can look at a Postseason Sweepstakes review…who will win it all??

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
(I am @yoshiki89), and also please leave a comment!

The Cardinals? All the way? I called it…sort of

2011-10-17T11:52:00.004-04:00

Really, I sort of did.

I like to think I’m like most baseball fans who struggle with two sides of baseball fan psyche behavior. I have a child’s love of the game and a tunnel-vision view of how the Cubs (and the Royals) will do for any given season. On the other hand, I have an adult’s perception and respect for the numbers and strategic elements that have no respect for childish admiration of “my team”…or anyone’s team for that matter.

Obviously, the latter hat is one when you should wear when you’re a Fantasy Team owner. And the former is the one you should wear when the Cubs are down 8 runs with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th against the Pirates and you know they can pull off a 9-run rally…despite the fact that Blake DeWitt is pinch hitting and nobody is on base.

I also have this funky set of “baseball rules” I apply to myself, some which make sense only to me…one of them is that in the NL Central, I embrace competition for the division title between the Cubs and Cardinals only…so if either team is definitively out of the race (the Cubs, for example) then theologically, the only team in the division I should root for is, indeed, the Cardinals…to be fair, there are many reason for this the likes of which I don’t want to go into right now. I’d only like to highlight one: In the NL Central, next to Cubs fans of course, Cardinals fans are really, for the most part, very good to most of us Cubs fans. Case in point: The worst time I was heckled for wearing Cubs gear at another ball park was in Milwaukee by a stupid teenager who felt I had no right to be there. By comparison, at Wrigley, with the Cardinals in town, a conversation with Cardinals fans sitting in front of us lead to free club-level tickets in St Louis several months later. The Cubs/Cardinals rivalry is one of the best, most fun, and least mean-spirited rivalries in baseball. I like it that way.

At any rate, I don’t think I should brag about this, but I do need to let everyone know…I was right.

After listening to Beyond the Box Score Podcast Episode 9 “Ian Snell’s Legacy”, posted on 3/16/11, I had some questions and comments on host Dave Gershman’s preview of the NL Central with guest Mike Petriello (of Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness fame). I sent Dave an email on 3/25/11 with the hopes that my comments would be addressed on the podcast. They weren’t, but I saved the email anyway because I thought at the time “what the heck…maybe I really am right about this…”

For your edification, here’s the letter I sent:

RE: BTB Podcast Episode 9 - Dave, excellent episode…having Mike on was great, I enjoyed your review of the NL Central so much I was talking to you guys several times during it, but you couldn’t hear me while I was doing so.

As I am a Cubs fan, and loathing over this division for many years, and also ‘close’ geographical to the Reds and their AAA affiliate Louisville Bats (I am in a Season Ticket partnership there), I wanted to make a few comments/pose a few questions.

Analysis isn’t my strong suit…I merely ABSORB the work of the likes of you and save analysis for discussion with my kids, so go easy on me…

So, a few things:

1. Homer Bailey…argh…if I have to hear “this is a breakout year for him” or anything similar I’m going to be sick. When he was a poster child for the Bats, lumps of praise and projections were wasted on this guy. I’ve seen him at work, I’ve seen most of his failures, and my opinion is those failures far out shadow his potential. I understand the focus of scouting and what it involves, but let’s face it…don’t drink the kool aid! Bailey is far less than a stud pitcher; his stuff is just not that good, his work is very inconsistent, and he is more prone to injury than a front-line soldier in a holy war border skirmish. If he’s been consistent at doing one thing, it’s been at being a disappointing pitcher, period. His handful of decent performances are hampered ultimately by his string of grotesque failures. After so many years of this self-deprecating cycle of his, I am a little surprised you both still think he can do something for the Reds or for ANYONE (but I applaud your confidence in stating your position just the same).

2. Aroldis Chapman…don’t get me started on this guy. I’ve been watching him since he single-handedly LOST THE GAME between Cuba and Japan in the 2009 WBC. When I heard the Reds had signed him for so much money I fell out of my chair laughing. My laughter turned to horror when I watched him destroy several games for the Bats in his first year here as the majority of his outings resembled his epic fail in the WBC. There are many ‘uneasy’ starting pitchers in AAA ball, but none have been as unmistakably predictable in their lack of actual talent (not potential talent…ACTUAL talent). As a starting pitcher, he was the WORST I’ve ever seen in Louisville, hands down. I’m not sure what many scouts are smoking or drinking as they observe and report his “potential” but its effect has warped their minds. So he can throw 95-100 mph nearly effortlessly and in the words of Kevin Goldstein “has an 80 fast ball”…BIG DEAL. His location is abhorrent. My vote for AAA International League MVP of 2010 goes to Wilkin Castillo, this guy looks and moves like a windmill when he’s catching Aroldis. There’s your top prospect for the Reds farm system, a guy who can save 20 wild pitches per game (even per inning!)…I’ve seen Castillo leap from his crouch and snag those Kevin Goldstein 80 fastballs at 104mph from 2 feet behind a batter’s back. He can throw like the wind, but he can’t locate when he needs to. He’s also not the most athletic guy, sure his mechanics are sound but pretty soon now, his elbow is going to go and that will be it. I am more impressed with his performance as a relief pitcher, but as a closer? Take a look at this game, for instance…would you hand the ball to a closer who has the potential to annihilate a game when he does this on a regular basis? (sure, I’ve seen him do better…BUT…just look at his line…not kool! His bad games are as bad as his good games are good)

3. As for your analysis of the Reds…yes, it seems like they have all the pieces, but the Reds have a critical flaw…that flaw is Dusty Baker. As a Cubs fan, I will be happy to testify. 2010 was a good year for the Reds, but look at their track record with Dusty for the years previous…start strong, fade fast. How does 2010 wipe out their past performance under his leadership? Expectations should be high, but projections should be conservative. Should one put as much faith in Baker’s 2011 Reds as in Baker’s 2004 Cubs? His trend for the Reds is going in the reverse as the Cubs, so this year will really validate the whole picture, but for now all we know about Dusty is since he left San Francisco “one GREAT year followed by one ABYSMAL year.” Again, I’m not much of an analyst, but from where I sit all I can do is expect this from Dusty Baker after what happened in 2003 (and what didn’t in 2004).

4. As far as your analysis of the Cardinals…yes, I agree with you both and things really aren’t looking great but the Cardinals have a critical asset…that asset is Tony Larussa. I’ve always respected him as a manager, after reading George F. Will’s “Men at Work” TWICE my respect has mushroomed into my abject recognition of Larussa as the most scientific manager in professional baseball. It’s true, in STAR TREK Kirk always managed to save the day with Lou Piniella-like instincts and Mr. Spock never really got his props for building a TV set in the pre-technology ERA United States of America. If anyone can build a TV set with technology that doesn’t exist, I believe Tony Larussa can forge a winning team that really could surprise the heck out of everyone. With or without Ryan Theriot. I will never discount the Cardinals under Larussa in the same manner I will never preach the gospel of the Reds under Baker.

5. One thing is certain, the NL Central is very tight, most folks have a tight race towards the top. As a Cubs fan, I think we may surprise a lot of people. I look at the 2010 NL West projections for my inspiration…the PADRES. What the hell. Nobody saw that coming, and nobody could. Regardless of which team, I think there is a very good chance that the NL Central will have the same gap in how it ends and how it looks this year.

Dave, I am enjoying your podcast very much, keep up the good work.

Your friend,
Stevo-sama

Keep in mind, I really am a fan of the podcast…and I don’t typically email questions and/or comments to other podcasts, so this missive really was something I felt strongly about, and in the back of my mind, I just couldn’t let it go without stating my opinion.

Fast forward to a month or so ago, when I started to realize that what I had commented on in all of my points had started to become concrete over the course of the season. Upon the cusp of the close of the regular season, and onward to postseason, I began to tweet my comparison of Tony LaRussa…now changed from Kirk/Spock and STAR TREK to Commander Adama and BATTLESTAR GALACTICA…for obvious reasons. TLR really IS the Commander Adama of Baseball, and the 2011 Cardinals are his ragtag fleet. How many times have you seen a front line of Cylons as far as the eye can see wiped out by Adama’s 10-fighter squadron running on fumes? This is real, TLR is real, and just like that…the GALACTICA secured the Wild Card berth and last night…WOW, they are really headed for the WORLD SERIES.

You certainly wouldn’t dismiss Adama in any Cylon-thick situation…as a baseball fan, I wouldn’t ever dismiss TLR for the very same reasons.

Again, my message here is not to brag about my extraordinary baseball analysis skills (I really have none) but hey…don’t dismiss Tony LaRussa. Re-read what I wrote above. Embrace the truth. Now will come the onslaught of sports outlets and blogs posting “How LaRussa Did It.” I’ve known all the time, George F. Will (also a Cubs fan!) showed us all in Men At Work…if you haven’t read it yet, why not!?! Now would be a great time to do so, if you haven’t.

Cardinals fans, I can’t guarantee the same for next year (regardless of how the World Series ends this year) but I do predict victory over the Rangers and I just want to say, any time you have less faith in your team than you think you should, give me a holler. Think about how your season started: Wainright out, Franklin hosed, etc. You pwned “the greatest pitching rotation in Baseball history” to advance to the LCS, and now you’re headed for the show against a team that was favored to win last year based on their offense, and are highly touted to have an advantage this year based on their offense. Just ask a Giants fan how they felt about that. Yes, the Rangers’ bullpen is better this year but Milwaukee’s bullpen was pretty darn good as well.

So, I was right. I called it…sort of. I’m just as surprised as the rest of you are, I predicted success, sure...but WORLD SERIES? In hindsight, I really believed it would happen. Good Luck, Cardinals, and regardless of what happens in October…we’ll be seeing you for sure next year!!!

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10/16/11 St Louis Cardinals 12, Milwaukee Brewers 6

2011-10-16T23:55:00.003-04:00

Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI
NLCS Game 6
STL wins the NLCS 4-2

Welcome to the David Freese Show, starring…David Freese! If NLCS Game 2 was “The Pujols Game,” then NLCS Game 6 has to go down in history as “The Freese Game.” There can be no question that even in the 7th inning, that NLCS MVP trophy was his, hands down. He was the Sultan of Hustle today, only a triple short of the cycle.

It was no small feat to defeat the Brewers at Miller Park for most NL teams this year, but the Cardinals had a winning record there during the regular season, and extended that record during the NLCS. Freese didn’t really come out of nowhere here, he’s been playing well recently, but in Pujolsian fashion he started his rally in the first inning; the table was set with 2 on and 2 outs, 1 run already on the board and Shaun Marcum already sweating like a Derek Lowe. A first pitch 3-run HR
Over the left-center field fence was a formidable statement, to say the least.

I had a hunch this would be a close game, but my hunch was deliberately tossed by Freese, Pujols, Allen Craig, and the rest of the Angry Birds. It wasn’t a collapse by the Brewers, no matter how you look at it…they rallied as hard as the best of us could. But the crowd at Miller Park’s eerie silence just got eerier as the game went on and the crooked numbers kept getting posted.

Of course, with pitching changes galore…there were sprinklings of fantastic pitching moments, but still burned into my brain was Jason Motte’s finish and, of course…the home runs. The most HR in the first 3 innings of a postseason game (3 HR for each team).

Jerry Hairston, Jr’s 15 minutes of baseball fame peaked with this outstanding hook slide in NLCS Game 4, a slide that would have made Wally Yonanime blush. It ended completely during the Brewers’ 3-error inning; Hairston was charged with 2 of the 3 during a single play. Now that’s a little more like the JHJr I recall from recent years.

In other news, Prince Fielder grounds out to Nick Punto in his final at-bat in a Brewers’ uniform. Albert Pujols, in a classy move, calls time when Fielder approaches the box for the crowd’s standing O.

Freese got the trophy, but Nick Punto is awarded with a Golden Sombrero, striking out 4 times in 4 AB. Still a #HappyFlight for the Cardinals, and the end of a great and most admirable run by the Brewers.

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10/15/11 Detroit Tigers 5, Texas Rangers 15

2011-10-15T23:48:00.006-04:00

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX
ALCS Game 6

Nelson Cruz makes Postseason History: 6 HR, 13 RBI, an MLB single Postseason Series record!

This was a “must-win” game for the Tigers, who had battled admirably against the favored Rangers during this series…but the Tigers didn’t show up today.

You can skip ahead to my scoresheets and see that pretty much an entire pencil was used on the Rangers’ page…Detroit’s pitching was asleep at the wheel, while their offense was substantial in a vacuum, it was not significant and the Rangers literally ran away with this game to win the AL pennant for the second consecutive year.

The running away occurred in the 9 run, 6 hit 3rd inning…Leyland used 4 pitchers who faced 14 batters. Michael Young became the 1st LCS player ever with 2 XBH in the same inning.

The final score of 15-5 is shocking enough, when you consider that the Rangers left 11 on base (compared to the Tigers leaving only 3) that provides pretty much all the analysis one needs to see where things fell apart.

Nearly 3 hours into the game (2:59 to be more precise), Joe Buck proclaims “it looks like the X Factor will be on tomorrow night!”

Tom Hallion was the home plate umpire this evening…incidentally, Tom resides in Louisville and was the subject of a featured article in the Courier-Journal on the eve of the 2008 World Series, just a week or so before gaining some notoriety on a questionable call against the Phillies in game 3 (which the Phils won anyway). Hallion long ago replaced Jim Joyce as my personal favorite “called strike three,” an athletic maneuver wherein he makes a near-complete 180 with his upper body, lurches his arms (fists clenching) violently into the air and utters a shriek from down under. Always great to see him behind the plate.

Here’s a video montage tribute to "Hallionetics" from the 2009 Postseason; he’s even more impressive 2 years later!!

Rangers win series 4-2

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10/10/11 St Louis Cardinals 12, Milwaukee Brewers 3

2011-10-10T23:52:00.002-04:00

Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI
NLCS Game 2

It’s called #BabyMode.

After taking the first game of the NLCS, the Brewers get an unanticipated response from the Cardinals in this moderately lopsided display of offense…no surprise that the meat of it comes from the 2012 FA of the offseason, Mister Albert Pujols.

Don’t call him Alberta.

During the pregame show, Chris Rose, A.J. Pierzynski, and Eric “hair product” Karros discuss the need for adjustment Pujols needs to consider if he is to be a significant contributor to the Cardinals’ postseason success. I picture Albert in the batting cage all night (a la Tony Gwynn), trying to scientifically and systematically determine the source of his hitch and in the same manner of those cheezy 80s sports tearjerkers South Park spoofs on a regular basis, he finds his hitch, makes his adjustments, and after a hearty Bacon-Chocolate shake, buffers his resolve for Game 2. Because the Cardinals need to win tonight.

This sets the stage for “Whoppapalooza,” where the Cardinals rage into control of the game early on, with a table setting that is nothing less than a textbook opportunity for Pujols in the first inning; with 1 on and 1 out Pujols’ hitch vanishes and thus begins ”The Pujols Game,” where Albert plays 8 innings of 4-for-5, 5 RBI, 3 run scoring baseball…each of his 4 hits were for extra bases (10 total bases).

More Angry Bird madness ensues in the 7th inning, where the Cardinals touch RHP Kameron Loe for 6 back-to-back base hits, beginning with Pujols’ 1 out GRD and continuing with 5 consecutive singles for a 4-run inning before Loe gets the hook and is replaced by LaTroy Hawkins.

The funniest moment for me in the game actually started on September 7, when the Cardinals had begun their September run and the ever-pokeworthy Nyjer Morgan taunted the team boldy with these direct comments (spelling not corrected at the Editor’s preference):

Where still n 1st and I hope those crying birds injoy watching tha Crew in tha Playoffs!!! Aaaaahhhhh!!! ... Alberta couldn't see Plush if she had her gloves on!!! Wat was she thinking running afta Plush!!! She never been n tha ring!!! ...

Fast forward to the blastitudinous 7th inning, when Yadier Molina punched a single to right-center, scoring Matt Holliday and bring the Cards to a 9-2 lead over the Brewers with only 1 out and 0-for-3 David Freese on-deck. We see Molina on first, grinning from ear to ear, as he brings his fists up to his face and twists them into a “crybaby” demonstration…it’s called #BabyMode, a direct response to the media-adored Brewers’ #BeastMode celebrations.
I hope Morgan, the crying sud, “injoys” watching the Angry Birds in the WORLD SERIES. Just another reminder that some athletes are really better off at just shutting up and playing the game.

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2011 League Division Series - Best Pitchers*

2011-10-10T16:04:00.002-04:00

* according to Bill James' Game Score

And the WINNER is...

CHRIS CARPENTER!

Now before you say "DUH" let's review Bill James' Game Score real quick.

In case you didn't know, "Game Score" is a neat and easy and FUN way to look at a starting pitcher's line in a Box Score and apply a basic formula on the stats to come up with a fundamental 'score' that "determines the strength of a pitcher in any particular baseball game.

To determine a starting pitcher's game score:

1.Start with 50 points.
2.Add 1 point for each out recorded, so 3 points for every complete inning pitched.
3.Add 2 points for each inning completed after the 4th.
4.Add 1 point for each strikeout.
5.Subtract 2 points for each hit allowed.
6.Subtract 4 points for each earned run allowed.
7.Subtract 2 points for each unearned run allowed.
8.Subtract 1 point for each walk.

10/2/11 St Louis Cardinals 5, Philadelphia Phillies 4

2011-10-02T23:51:00.004-04:00

Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
NLDS Game 2

Allen Craig…he does it again!

Another postseason classic pitching match-up ensues; Cliff Lee versus Chris Carpenter at Citizens Bank Park: The CLASH of the TITANS!

The Phillies took game 1, and just like that the Cardinals’ win expectancy yielded a few percentage points when facing “the greatest rotation in history”…or so they say. Lee hangs in for 6 innings, fanning 9 batters, and outlasts a seemingly struggling Carpenter who leaves the game after three mushy innings (5H, 4ER, 3BB, 2K). It seems as if LaRussa is playing the tournament baseball game so soon in the NLDS; many ask “why?” but so few understand…there is no need to wait any longer, the Cardinals are still on a roll. TLR intends to keep it that way.

The majority of the Phillies’ damage to the Cardinals erupts in the very first inning, an exhaustive combination of patient plate discipline and timely hitting (in the first inning!) where 3 runs scored on 3 hits. Another run scores in the 2nd, and after 3 innings the Phils are up by four and the Cards are still scoreless.

The Cardinals find their teeth in the 4th, and do so immediately. After Lance Berkman’s full-count walk and David Freese is called out on strikes, Yadier Molina, Ryan Theriot, and John Jay open up a can of hot sauce and tag Lee for 3 runs on 4 hits, leaving 1 behind as Jay is thrown out at home on a 7-2 flyball by Rafael Furcal. We already know Carpenter is done when Nick Punto bats in his spot (and strikes out); LaRussa summons Fernando Salas to the mound and the game is on.

Salas handles the Phils with 3 groundouts, Lee returns in the 5th to strike out two and get Berkman to pop out but in the 6th, Theriot doubles and is brought home by another John Jay spray single. The inning ends with the score tied, and Lee at 101 pitches. The Cardinals take the lead in the 7th when Allen Craig belts a husky triple on a fly ball to CF and Albert Pujols’ go-ahead RBI single scores Craig easily. He does it again, Berkman reaches on a bloop single to RF, and Lee leaves the game after 110 pitches and 5 ER.

Of interesting note during this frame is Pujols’ exceptional attempt at a productive out, Freese’s dribbler bounces near the mound; with Pujols at 3rd and Placido Polanco recovering the ball, Pujols induces a 5-2 Fielder’s Choice rundown that allows sneaky Lance Berkman to advance from 1st to 3rd without a throw. Pujols claps joyously as he is tagged out by Carlos Ruiz and Berkman is standing on the bag, now in scoring position with only 1 out, and 2 men on base. This prompts an intentional walk to Molina, and the stage is perfectly set…until Theriot ends this crafty exercise by grounding into a 6-4-3 DP. You can’t knock Prince Albert for trying!

LaRussa brings on the bullpen now, as if he is negotiating a sinister chess match…well, he is. Marc Rzepczynski hits Chase Utley to start the 8th, and Hunter Pence hits a sure-fire double-play ball to Furcal. There are no easy outs; Utley masterfully breaks up the DP by uprooting Theriot at second. However, the Phillies are unable to score; TLR summons 2 more pitchers to face the next 2 batters with 1 on and 1 out and the shut down is executed.

The Phillies can’t touch Jason Motte, brought in for a 4-out Save, and the Cardinals slide their way into a win.

The attendance of 46,575 sets a Citizens Bank Park attendance record.

Series tied 1-1

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10/1/11 Tampa Bay Rays 6, Texas Rangers 8

2011-10-01T23:14:00.006-04:00

Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, TX
ALDS Game 2
Tampa Bay leads the Series (1-0)

Not much of a moustache…really…

The hashtags this baseball season have gone from the most arcane of inside humor (#countrybreakfast) to the stark raving bizarre (#want) to the predictable (#beastmode), but the raves that #staching has generated has me wondering, truly, what this season would have been without Twitter.

Not to be excluded from the throwback moustache movement, The Rangers’ Derek Holland did, indeed, attempt to sport his own. An attempt that seems to have frozen on his face in the first five minutes of his growth, but that hasn’t hindered his success since the attempt.

I’ve been a supporter of Holland, more or less, since last year. Seeing him come to the mound, with post-season ‘stache still threatening to occupy real estate on his lip someday, I wondered if the fuzz made him look a lot younger than he did without it. But I wasn’t wondering how he’d do tonight against James Shields and the Rays.

This ALDS series has me a bit confused, as far as ‘rooting’ for someone. I find it about as much more difficult to root “against” the Rays than I find it to root “for” the Rangers…and vice-versa. Both teams are excellent, and I really would like to see them both win. But only one can win, and tonight the Rangers trail the Rays after the first game and the overwhelming (and deserved) hype of Matt Moore’s start against the Rangers last night.

A rocky 1st inning and a Matt Joyce 2-out 2-run HR in the 4th found Holland standing his ground and doing well. Not as well as his line would suggest (5IP, 6H, 3R – only one earned, as Joyce’s blast brought in a runner that reached due to Holland’s error), Holland’s command was there most of the time but when it went, so did a few close situations…the Rays stranded 5 baserunners during his innings of work.

After his exit, the Rays just kept on coming back…particularly in the 7th when Koji Uehara pitched to 3 batters, all 3 scored on a Longoria HR with no outs recorded. I almost vomited when Darren Oliver was brought in to relieve Uehara, but he neatly retired the next 3 batters to end the inning.

As for the Rangers…they just did what Ron Washington likes to do the most, staying in front of the long ball Rays by moving baserunners; Mitch Moreland’s 1 out HR in the 8th was the first Rangers HR of the series.

I’m not going to subscribe to the moustache theory just yet…I’m still looking at this year’s Rangers with last year’s Rangers in the back of my mind. But Derek Holland is a pretty good pitcher. I don’t think now is the time to shave off the fuzz.

SCOREKEEPER'S NOTE: Regarding earned runs, I made a theological error on my scoresheet, where I recorded that all 3 of Holland's runs were earned. Yes, 2 of the 3 runs allowed by Holland came in due to an error by Holland. Casey Kotchman would have been the 3rd out; Holland fielded the ball poorly, allowing Kotchman to reach 1st, followed by Joyce's HR. My gut is to always chalk this up as "the pitcher was charged with the error, so he earned that/those run(s)." As much as I hate to admit it (and do so every time I make this mistake), the rules are clear:

10.16(e) "An error by a pitcher is treated exactly the same as an error by any other fielder in computing earned runs."

For this fact, from the rule book, I have no defense...regardless of my typical rule where "it's my scoresheet and I can do whatever the heck I want to."

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10/1/11 Arizona Diamondbacks 1, Milwaukee Brewers 4

2011-10-01T19:11:00.004-04:00

Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI
NLDS Game 1

You can count on it, Yovani Gallardo is pretty good at pitching.

The postseason begins as the surprising Arizona Diamondbacks take on the also surprising (but certainly less surprising) Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park, where visiting teams tend to fall. Ian Kennedy is a great pitcher, but Gallardo…whoa. Even after a shaky start to his season, he is pitching like Yovani Gallardo when it matters the most: Right here, right now.

Ryan Braun has a great game (3-for-4, 2H, 3 total bases, 2 runs scored, 1 broken bat, 1 flyout), but most fans are used to hearing this. His stunning outfield assist that caught Willie Bloomquist at home with Jonathan Lucroy waiting was very impressive, but I’m still rubbing my eyes at Jerry Hairston, Jr. I hear myself and others saying “well, looks like the real Jerry Hairston, Jr. came to play baseball” and that’s kind of an understatement. His 15 minutes of baseball fame are here, right now. He made two very distinctive defensive plays at 3B, the second of which was a ginormous charge for a 5-3 groundout by Justin Upton.

Gallardo, on the other hand, throws a tidy gem in the process, 8IP, 4H, one R (earned on an 8th inning HR by Brian Roberts), 8K and a BB. And as usual, he looks like he’s about to yawn the entire time.

John Axford earns a save on a 3-up, 3-down inning of work…he pitched for the “closer cycle” with a flyout, a groundout, and a strikeout. And the moustache is looking very outrageous and phenomenal these days.

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Terry Francona: SOMEBODY HIRE HIM

2011-09-30T10:24:00.003-04:00

WHINE BAWL CRY!!

My father said this anytime we wailed and moaned as kids and didn’t have any basis for it.

WHINE BAWL CRY!!

I do have friends who are Red Sox fans around here. They are pretty much over the “Red Sox Collapse” of 2011, but apparently Boston isn’t, and now reports of Terry Francona’s outage are rampant on the internet.

WHINE BAWL CRY!!

Good for you, Boston. Can his butt. I can think of a couple of very fine teams who would LOVE to have your record for the last 10 years (regular season as well as postseason appearances alone…not to mention the 2 rings Boston earned during that timeframe, 8 of those years under Francona’s leadership.

Here’s what the simplified big picture looks like:

So, if you really believe that Francona let your team down this year (or even in the past 10 years), then you can sit and spin on this chart.

Needless to say, millions of fans of franchises such as the Cubs and the Royals could really, really learn to love numbers even close to being this good. We would even deeply appreciate 10 years overall winning season percentage.

Don’t even bring up the Red Sox slide in September…in many ways, that looks better on paper than September being the only good month you’re having all year!

One of my biggest fears in being a diehard Cubs fan is really being justified this week…if we DID win the World Series, let’s say TWICE, and a few years later came within one game of the Wild Card and didn’t make it…would we suddenly turn into the wailing-and-gnashing-of-teeth Red Sox fans that flooded the call-in lines at WEEI yesterday??

Yesterday, I would have suggested that fans in Boston should ‘lighten up’…now I am only making one suggestion.

SOMEONE PLEASE HIRE TERRY FRANCONA, and I don’t need to even begin to write where I think he should go, but I have two ideas. You may have your own, there are several teams who could stand for even 5 years of results like this.

The (duPont Manual High School) Hall of Fame (Part 2)

2011-09-27T16:17:00.013-04:00

Be sure and read the first part of this post here before you go on…featuring brief write-ups of Pee Wee Reese, Ferdie Schupp, Irv Jeffries, and Moe Thacker…plus photos of their plaques…

Here is “the rest of the story”…8 more Manual Alumni who did, indeed, go on to become professional baseball players, and who are featured in the duPont Manual High School Hall of Fame.

There are quite a few folks on these walls that went on to brief careers in amateur baseball only, but this writing will only focus on professional types…most of this second group featured never made it out of the Minor Leagues, some did…but Minor League Baseball is professional, as true now as it was nearly a hundred years ago…

As I was unable to get photos of their plaques, the pictures featured here are from the Manual Hall of Fame online, plus additional pictures from other sources. Since most of this list never saw the Major Leagues, it was much more difficult to find additional information…one player wasn’t even listed on Baseball Reference (where I started most of my research). A few birthdates were hard to find, and just because it may seem as if the players featured may still be alive, this may not be the case.

Edward Kenneth “Kenny” Braun (also known as “Weasel”) (b. 1926) Inducted 2004
A teammate of Ray Holton’s (see below), “Weasel” was listed as one of 66 Manual players that legendary coach Ralph Kimmel moved into professional baseball…I’m not sure if Manual’s definition of professional baseball includes amateur leagues or not, but nevertheless Braun (and Holton) both reportedly signed professional contracts as juniors. Kenny was the captain of the team as a senior in 1944, upon graduation he headed straight for the Baltimore Orioles of the International League (a Cleveland AA franchise, in case you didn’t know), playing in 36 games that year and a full season in 1945, ending the year with an unspectacular .228/.321/.298 line and 10 stolen bases (caught 3 times), still a marked improvement over his 1944 short season. In 1946, Cleveland sent him to the AA Oklahoma City Indians, where his BA barely kicked up to .230, and he was demoted to the A affiliate Wilkes-Barre Barons for the 1947 season. He ended 1947 with a .272 BA, but starting 1948 regressed back down to .213…just enough to get moved back to the AAA Baltimore club once more. With his BA staying low, he was released to the Binghamton (CT) Barons, the New York Yankees Class A affiliate of the Eastern League. He spent 1949 in Binghamton, moved on to the Muskegon (MI) Clippers of the Central League for the Yankees in 1950; his career ended there with a lifetime .238/.260/.280 line in 7 seasons. He became a Firefighter upon his return to Louisville and retired as a District Chief with 30 years of distinguished service. ”Weasel” with the Muskegon Clippers at the end of his baseball daze in 1950

Earl James “Snitz” Browne (1911-1993) Inducted 2010
Earl Browne was one of only 9 Manual baseball players who made it to the Major Leagues, the origin of his nickname “Snitz” came from the fact that he hailed from the Louisville neighborhood of Schnitzelburg (famous for the “Dainty” and other peculiar business). Browne was a considered a very large fellow in the 20s (at 6 feet, 175 pounds) and domineered his peers in football and basketball as well as baseball. He was the captain of the Crimsons his senior year in 1928, and signed with the non-affiliated AA Louisville Colonels of the American Association that same year, appearing in only 3 games, that started a professional baseball career that spanned 22 seasons, 3 of those spent in the Major Leagues. The late 20s and early 30s saw Snitz on rosters for Louisville, the Dayton (OH) Aviators, the Huntington (WV) Boosters, the Mobile (AL) Marines, the Knoxville Smokies, the Asheville Tourists, and ultimately the Little Rock Travelers. The Southern Association Class A level Travelers became an affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1934, when Browne was hitting .257 with a SLG of .373. In 1935 Browne played 9 games for the Pirates at 1B and OF, spending the majority of his playing time in Little Rock. In 1936 he only played 6 games for the Pirates before he was sent to the Minneapolis Millers (AA affiliate of the Cleveland Indians) where he played 155 games and ended the season with a BA of .328 and SLG of .591. In April of 1937, Snitz was traded by the Pirates to the Phillies for Joe Bowman; he spent the entire season on the Phillies major league roster and finished the season at .257/.304/.311, hitting 6 home runs and striking out 41 times in 332 AB. After beginning 1938 as a Phillie, he was purchased by the St Louis Cardinals in May of 1938 but never appeared on the club roster, instead spending 2 seasons with the Columbus (OH) Red Birds in AA and hitting .305 (17 HR) and .268 (12 HR) respectively. This wasn’t enough for the Cardinals as Browne was moved to the Class A New Orleans Pelicans in 1940, then became a minor league Washington Senator in Chattanooga with the Class A Lookouts in 1941. Browne then moved on to the non-affiliated American Association Atlanta Crackers for the majority of the 1942 season yet ended up back at the AA Louisville Colonels (now a Boston Red Sox franchise) for 11 games. Browne remained in Louisville until 1946, spending the last few years of his professional career with the Boston Braves organization, spending 2 years with the Owensboro Oilers as a player-manager (he is a member of the Kitty League Hall of Fame for his two consecutive over-.400 seasons) and 2 years, also as a player-manager, with the Hartford Chiefs. With only 1 professional game played under his belt in 1949, Browne retired as a player (yet continued for part of the Chiefs’ season) at the age of 38 and spent the latter part of 1949 and through 1950 as the manager for the American Association Denver Bears. Browne’s major league career numbers were .286/.335/.401, he was 8th in the NL in HBP in 1937; his minor league numbers were .305/.321/.459. Snitz’s post-baseball career was that of a fire-rating inspector for Insurance Services of Arkansas and died in 1993 at the age of 81 after a long battle with cancer. ”Snitz” as a Pirate, c.1935-1936

Edgar Raymond “Ray” Holton (1925-2007) Inducted 2006
Ray Holton may be better-known in some baseball lore circles as a local boy who became a war hero. Ray earned nine letters at Manual for football, basketball, and baseball but left school at 18 prior to graduating to register for the draft and was inducted into the armed forces in August 1944. Two weeks prior to the end of the war, Holton was wounded by the German enemy while in France and received the Purple Heart. Upon his discharge in 1946, Ray returned to Manual to finish high school (scoring two touchdowns against Male in a famous 45-7 victory in that year’s celebrated Thanksgiving game) yet never completed his diploma requirements, leaving yet again after being drafted by the Cleveland Indians (not the Orioles, who weren’t yet a Major League franchise, as noted on his Manual Hall of Fame bio) and spending 3 years with that organization on the rosters at the Centreville (MD) Orioles, Meridian (MS) Peps, and Dayton (OH) Indians. Ray began 1949 as part of the Boston Braves’ Class A affiliate Hartford Chiefs (11 games), and finished the season with the Baltimore Orioles, a triple-A franchise of the St Louis Browns at that time (and probably the disconnect in his Manual HOF bio, two different “Orioles” teams in 4 years of service). Holton’s performance in 1949 was rather dismal (.195/.321/.212 in 53 games for Baltimore), leading to his release. He played 19 games with the Portsmouth Cubs of the non-affiliated Piedmont League in 1950 and returned to Parkway Field in Louisville with the Boston Red Sox organization as a Louisville Colonel in 1951 for 13 games at 3rd base, again with depressing .195/.267/.220 stats. He was demoted to the Class-A Albany Senators of the Eastern League, appearing in 82 games in 1952 as a Catcher (his longest playing record since Dayton in 1948) and improving his BA to .242, enough to find him back with the AAA Colonels for the following season. Ray experienced 3 great seasons in Louisville, still as a Catcher (albeit the backup party to Pete Daley in 1953-54, as #3 for 1955), particularly during the 1954 campaign when the Colonels finished 85-68 and Holton finished with .321/.379/.429 and a .991 Fld% in 40 games. In 1956 the Colonels became a Washington Senators affiliate, and Holton played for both Louisville (64 games) and the Miami Marlins, a Class AAA Phillies affiliate (55 games), returning there to start 1957 then moving on to the Milwaukee Braves AAA affiliate Wichita Braves for 2 games and 3 AB (apparently, as a pinch hitter only). Holton stayed in Wichita until his transfer to the Kansas City Athletics Class-AAA club Buffalo Bisons for 35 games and his best ever .373/.488/.373 in 67 PA. 1959 was Ray’s busiest year in professional baseball with a single team, the Chattanooga Lookouts (AA Southern League affiliate of the Washington Senators), as their #1 Catcher, with 321 AB in 102 games. Holton’s once-again dismal offensive stats that year (.246/.306/.293, 3 HR, 24K, 25BB) found him packing his bags after the season for two brief appearances with 2 different Milwaukee Braves clubs in 1960; 2 games with the Austin (TX) Senators and one hitless game with the new Braves affiliate Louisville Colonels, who won the Junior World Series that year. This Colonels team also featured future well-known baseball names such as Tommie Aaron and Bob Uecker (yes, that Bob Uecker!). Following the 1960 season, Ray officially retired from pro baseball after 15 less-than-glorious seasons and became a scout for the Minnesota Twins and the Atlanta Braves. Ray returned to Louisville to raise his family (his son Roxie graduated from Manual in 1968), enjoyed a round of golf now and then, and died in 2007 at the age of 81. I took this photo in 2009 of the 1954 Louisville Colonels, originally featured in this post, Ray Holton is second from right in the middle row.

Robert George “Bobby” Marr (b. 1941) Inducted 2003
Bobby’s brief professional career consisted of 4 seasons that ended abruptly due to a shoulder injury. He was at his ‘most legendary’ as a baseball player during his high school years, helping Manual achieve state championships in both 1957 and 1959 (during the years 1957-1959, the Manual Crimsons posted a whopping 88-12 record). In 1960, Marr attended Indiana University and joined the baseball team as a pitcher, with a 6-3 W-L record, 1.50 ERA and 72K in 66IP during his only year there. His performance for the Hoosiers led to a contract with the Boston Red Sox; in 1961 he posted a 9-5, 3.49 ERA record with the Olean (NY) Red Sox in the New York-Penn League and was promoted to Class B with the Winston-Salem Red Sox in the Carolina league in 1962, finishing the season with a 7-7 W-L, 3.8 ERA record with 129K (8.2 K/9), 11 complete games, 1 shut-out in 28 games (16 games started). Beginning in 1963, after being promoted to Class-A Wellsville Red Sox, his minor league decline began as his injuries kept him down to appearances in 17 games (only 1 start) and an ERA of 7/07. He only started one game for Wellsville in 1964, and had only appeared in 4 games with an ERA of 2.25 until his shoulder injury finished his career and he retired with a lifetime 17-13 W-L and 3.94 ERA. He returned to Louisville and resumed his college education at the University of Louisville, graduating in 1965, and returning to Manual for 6 years as a History teacher and cross-country coach. In the fall of 1971, Bobby moved to Winter Park, Florida, where he joined the faculty at Winter Park High School and coached 6 different sports, serving as Athletic Director for 10 years. Marr is a member of the Florida Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame and was still teaching History in Winter Park in 1997.

Leland Melear (19??- ??) Inducted 2001
Leland Melear, I’m sorry to report, is somewhat of an enigma. His Manual Hall of Fame bio speaks to his brief career with the San Francisco Giants organization after his graduation in 1963, but Baseball-Reference and other sources don’t have him listed anywhere, in any form. Perhaps he appeared in some instructional league play, did poorly, and was released quickly. He was a team-mate of Bobby Marr’s during the 1957 and 1959 Manual championship baseball teams, and was co-captain with Marr in 1959. After his brief and un-confirmed pro baseball career, he returned to Louisville and worked at Ford for two years. His bio claims he was considered the second-best basketball player in Kentucky (behind Pat Doyle) and was captain of both the basketball and baseball teams at Virginia Tech, where he was elected to the Virginia Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1989. Back in Louisville, he worked at GE for 16 years before moving to Chicago in 1985. In 1994 he became the plant manager at the Manchester, MO facility of the Dana Corporation.

Donald L. “Donnie” Noel (19??- ??) Inducted 2003
Another enigmatic player, Donnie is at Baseball-Reference, but there are lots of unknowns…for example, we know he throws right but we don’t know how he bats and we don’t know his height, weight, or age. Donnie lettered in baseball and, like Kenny Braun, was a Ralph Kimmel protégé in 1944 and 1945. His senior year he pitched the first ever perfect game for Manual, against Memorial High School of Evansville, IN, and subsequently signed a contract with the Baltimore Orioles (Cleveland Indians AA affiliate of the International League) along with Crimson teammates Jack West and twin brother Gene West…who also are unknown by Baseball-Reference. He only played with the Orioles for that lone summer in 1945, appearing in 3 games, pitching 16 innings with a 1.7K/9 and 0-1 W-L record. He returned to Louisville in the fall to graduate with “the Class of 45-1/2.” Donnie joined the Coast Guard in 1946, attended the University of Louisville in 1947-1949, where he was best known as a track star, setting a long-standing 2-mile record. He was a “star” in the LABF (Louisville Amateur Baseball Federation, an organization for which I am hereby challenged to find out more about, as the only references on the internet are found in obituaries and a few Manual Hall of Fame biographies) and went on to a 33-year career with Louisville Gas and Electric, from where he retired, and was still alive in 2003 upon his induction into the Manual Hall of Fame.

John Francis “Jack” Speier (1931-2005) Inducted 2003
Like many of his Manual Hall of Fame contemporaries, Jack lettered in 3 sports at Manual and was also the co-captain of the 1948 undefeated State Championship football team. For the Crimson baseball squad, he was a third baseman as a sophomore in 1947 when Manual won their first ever State Championship. He went to Centre College on a scholarship in 1949, playing both football and baseball, was a letterman all 4 years in both, and graduated with a degree in business. During his tenure at Centre College, Speier spent his summers with 3 different Class-C and Class-D affiliates of the Philadelphia Phillies; 87 games with the Lima (OH) Phillies of the Ohio-Indiana League in 1951, 94 games in 1952 with the Bradford (PA) Phillies of the Philadelphia-Ontario-New York League, and 46 games with the Salt Lake City Bees of the Pioneer League in 1953. Service called Jack away from pro baseball, as he enlisted in the Army in 1954, playing baseball at Fort Knox during his 2-year tour. He was employed by Owens Corning Fiberglass in Louisville in 1955, was a member of management in several of the company’s locations over the years, promoted to division manager at the home office in Toledo, and retired from Owens Corning after 31 years of service. He retired to Florida, and died in 2005 at the age of 73.

Louis William “Lou” Vassie (b. 1936) Inducted 1997
Lou appears to be one of the more successful minor leaguers amongst this group; according to his Manual HOF bio he was a 6-time MiLB All-Star, tied 3 MiLB hitting records and played 2nd base on the rosters of 3 AAA Championship teams. For the record, here’s what really happened: the 1961 Buffalo Bisons won the Junior World Series, the 1962 Indianapolis Indians finished 1st in their division but were eliminated in the 1st round of tournament play, and the 1963 Indianapolis Indians were the International League champs. Lou’s professional career began in 1955 with the Philadelphia Phillies organization as 2nd baseman for the Class-D Bradford (PA) Phillies, continued the following year with the Olean Oilers, and in 1957 with the Salt Lake City Bees. In 1958 Lou was promoted to the Class-A Williamsport (PA) Grays, where his average .254 BA found him called up to the AAA Buffalo Bisons for the 1959 season. He stayed in Buffalo for 2 seasons but saw no improvement in his numbers (I’m hard pressed to determine what hitting records he actually tied!), sinking to a .223/.333/.339 at the end of 1960. He spent 1961 with the AA Chattanooga Lookouts (111 games, .244/.354/.293) as well as back at Class-A Williamsport Grays, where his offense improved (25 games, .308/.420/.471), no surprise for someone returning to Class-A after a few seasons in AA and AAA. In 1961 he was named to the Topps National All-Star Team. He was sent to the Chicago White Sox organization in 1962, spending 2 seasons with the AAA Indianapolis Indians with moderate, but still less than extraordinary numbers and ended his career after the 1963 season with a lifetime .271/.327/.402 with 76 HR, 271 BB, and 251 strikeouts in 257 AB. Lou Vassie’s autograph is part of Hillerich & Bradsby’s Wall of Autographs at the Louisville Slugger Museum.

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9/26/11 Chicago Cubs 0, San Diego Padres 2

2011-09-26T23:56:00.009-04:00

Petco Park, San Diego, CA
Game 1 of 3

Casey Coleman is a GREAT pitcher. I believe in Casey Coleman.

The final series of the 2011 season finds the wayward Cubs in Petco Park to face the Padres, who very much like the Cubs are looking at a losing season with barely 70 wins and nearly 90 losses apiece. When I hear the baseball pundits complain about teams who “aren’t in the race” at the end of the season and how this may or may not affect their performance on the field, I think about games like this and I’m glad that I don’t subscribe to this way of thinking. The Cubs and the Padres both played as if they had a chance; especially Casey Coleman and his opponent Mat Latos.

Pretend for a moment that you are not aware that both of these teams are mathematically and metaphysically out of the running for a postseason appearance. The Cubs need Casey Coleman to continue his 2011 performance in the years to come…the same goes for Mat Latos, whose 2011 wasn’t quite as stellar as his 2010 campaign, but he (as well as Coleman) are damn good pitchers, and are both young enough to improve. Perhaps that’s what is driving them to excellence tonight, where they stare each other down for 5 straight innings of scoreless baseball; the greatest tangible advantage being the no-hitter that Latos has going on through those 5.

I fly my “Pitchers who can hit are sexy” flag fairly high and prominently, and I can’t imagine a day, time, year, or dissertation that could ever persuade me otherwise. That being said, Coleman breaks up Latos’ no-hitter with a 1-out triple in the top of the 6th. That’s just plain down and dirty awesome. As you may be able to tell from this photo, Coleman looks a bit peaked standing at 3rd after a run like that. Pitchers who hit well, I love it and I promote it. The same may not be said for pitchers who are aggressive baserunners…most Cubs fans still have a wince on their face from when Carlos Zambrano yanked a leg muscle a few years ago running to first to beat out a grounder and missed several starts. Here, the impact is more immediate; as soon as you can say “wow, did he really just do that??” Len Kasper and Bob Brenly immediately speculate on how Coleman’s hard drive to 3rd may affect his work on the mound in the bottom of the 6th. After all, they could be wrong…but there’s a point to be made there, couldn’t he have kept it to a double and be done with it?

Bottom of the 6th, Coleman yields a solo HR to Will Venable on a 0-1 pitch. Jason Bartlett grounds out to Coleman right after, but it seems as if the Padres have found his sweet spot as Jesus Guzman reaches on a ground-rule double that was nearly another HR. Nick Hundley strikes out swinging, but Cameron Maybin doesn’t, with a seeing-eye line drive down the left field line for a run-scoring double. The Padres are on the board, Coleman’s triple run seems to have revealed the truth in Kasper and Brenly’s statement, and Rafael Dolis gets the final out of the inning in his MLB debut.

Casey…please…next time, buddy, make it a DOUBLE.

Latos, in the meantime, stays in through the 7th inning and finishes with 9K and 1BB. Chad Qualls and Heath Bell administer 2 perfect innings and the Cubs are done for the evening.

Carlos Peña earns his 100th free pass of the season and is the 1st Cub since the 1900s to walk this many times in one season. Starlin Castro extends his hitting streak to 9 games and his on-base streak to 38 games. In addition to Dolis, Steve Clevenger makes his MLB debut.

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9/20/11 Omaha Storm Chasers 3, Columbus Clippers 9

2011-09-20T23:58:00.011-04:00

Isotopes Park, Albuquerque, NM
Triple-A National Championship Game

Who has the power to silence the Storm Chasers? …you’re looking at him!

One of the strongest teams in Minor League Baseball that features some of the finest prospect talent in any organization, the Omaha Storm Chasers making it to the AAA Playoffs certainly didn’t surprise me. That being said, this year’s Columbus Clippers team is a lot like last year’s team…also strong, also from a decent farm system, and last year’s returning champions.

In a one-game playoff, the principles of “Tournament Baseball” are key to success. I won’t sugar-coat my ham-handed analysis one single bit: Mike Jirschele didn’t demonstrate a respect for the Clippers’ ability to rally exponentially, and left his hand-picked SP (the well-baked Sean O’Sullivan) in for one inning too many.

The Storm Chasers got on the board in clever fashion in the first inning, fueled by a 2-RBI triple off the bat of Lorenzo Cain. They scored 3 in that frame against Martinez, but ended their pre-emptive rally right there; Martinez demonstrated an amazing command performance, handcuffing the Storm Chasers for his remaining 6 innings of work and turning Omaha’s finest into chicken feed for the formidable Clippers.

O’Sullivan’s career has been a decidedly rocky one…he hasn’t been able to perform that well in the Majors, as many Royals fans are well aware of. Is O’Sullivan nothing more than a AAAA pitcher? Let’s consult Baseball-Reference and see if there’s an answer hiding somewhere…

Here are some key pitching stats (flush the W-L and ERA down the toilet for now):

SOS Career (MLB and MiLB)
This certainly isn’t überstatistical breaking news, but yes, O’Sullivan seems to pitch better in the Minors than in the Majors. Most of us would agree that 6.6 SO/9 and 1.271 WHIP isn’t really horrible, even if it is in the Minors. In fact, these numbers are really close to Joe Martinez’ 7.4 SO/9 and 1.244 WHIP in his 7 seasons in MiLB. So, what’s happening to Sean O’Sullivan?

Let’s look at O’Sullivan’s MiLB career, year-by-year:
Here, we can see some regression in the Minors…improved WHIP and SO/BB in 2011 from 2010, but overall SO/9 is somewhat stagnant, WHIP overall is increasing. Martinez’ WHIP by comparison is holding steady overall, as is his SO/9. Comparison to Martinez is only valid in that this is who O’Sullivan is facing; the bigger question is: how can we expect O’Sullivan to be a Major League ready pitcher anytime soon? He’s choking at the MLB level and MiLB hitters are figuring him out, and it shows.

Here’s my point: Mike Jirschele is a very good manager; we’re talking about Tournament Baseball here, O’Sullivan had a great 3 groundout 1st inning…after the Clippers’ 3-run 2nd inning, he should have given O’Sullivan the hook when he had the chance and brought in some of the Storm Chasers stellar relief. The bullpen allowed 2 runs after O’Sullivan’s 3IP, 6ER exit; would the Clippers have still won? Probably, yes. Would the Storm Chasers have been working so hard to make up for a 3-run deficit to start the 4th inning? Not at all. The formula is simple: 1 game playoff = don’t let questionable pitchers stay in the game…it just isn’t necessary. Particularly with Sean O’Sullivan on the mound and failing so early.

It’s more than stingingly ironic that in this single playoff game, starting pitching helped bury the Storm Chasers…just as it did for the Royals all season long!

As for Joe Martinez…let’s hope this isn’t the game of his career (which isn’t over yet, by any means), but this certainly was a definitive highlight of his MiLB career so far. I was fortunate enough to meet Joe after a Clippers/Bats game here in Louisville this past summer, and the Storm Chasers loss aside, it was great to see him pull through in this game and not only lead the Clippers to a Triple-A Championship victory, but also end up as the recipient of the esteemed Bobby Murcer Memorial MVP Award after the game…something I’d much rather remember him for than a Mike Cameron line drive in 2009 that nearly took his head off.

I watched this game on MLB Network, courtesy of a feed from Versus (the game was called by Robert Portnoy and former Omaha Royals manager Bucky Dent, who is also known for a few other baseball moments). The folks at Versus were apparently mesmerized by Lance Zawadzki; not so much by his performance as a player, but moreso by his interesting last name.

For starters, Versus spelled his name accurately upon his appearance in the Storm Chasers’ starting lineup:

Zawadzki’s first plate appearance, in the 1st inning…his name is still spelled correctly:

5 innings later, Lance is suddenly “Zwadski” without realizing it:

Someone sends a text message to the Versus folks operating the character generator (Cheech and Chong, perhaps?) and they do their best to correct the error…but don’t quite make it right; Lance is now “Zawadski” in the 8th inning:

The Clippers win the championship; Lance Zawadzki and Kila Ka’aihue were released by the Royals soon after this game. Sean O’Sullivan remains with the Royals and as of December 2011 is still on their 40-man roster.

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9/18/11 Chicago White Sox 10, Kansas City Royals 5

2011-09-18T23:53:00.007-04:00

Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Game 4 of 4

He is: Royals Nemesis A.J.Pierzynski

A.J. wasn’t really the difference in this game, he had some excellent help from Paul Konerko…but he sure did make quite a statement against the Royals.

The White Sox enter the game with a 7-game losing streak, dropping 3 of this series so far to the Royals. The Royals enter the game with a 7-game winning streak. Hopes were high for a Royals 4-game sweep of the series, but you don’t have to roll the dice to see what the tendencies would tell you: The White Sox are not that bad of a team, and despite the talent the Royals aren’t that great of a team. Streaks tend to break, under the circumstances.

The White Sox strike first against Bruce Chen, with a Brent Morel 2-run double in the 2nd, followed by a rare Adam Dunn RBI double and a Gordon Beckham SAC Fly in the 4th. The Royals make a fighting go at it with 4 runs scored in the 5th, 6th, and 7th innings but the White Sox slam the door on their ‘go’ with back-to-back solo HRs by Konerko and Pierzynski in the 7th (courtesy of Louis Coleman).

The door is locked in the 8th when a 4-run inning ensues, highlighted by Pierzynski’s 2nd consecutive HR that brings 3 runs across the plate.

This was my first time seeing Johnny Giavotella in action with the Royals (is there a clinic for those of us who never spell his last name right on the first try?)…I am impressed. Johnny G custom 1983 Topps card courtesy of A Hair Off Square, a great blog you should definitely check out.

#CmonCHEN!!

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9/6/11 Cincinnati Reds 4, Chicago Cubs 2

2011-09-06T23:59:00.006-04:00

Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
Game 2 of 3

I will suspend the shoplifting jokes…as if I had ever participated in them in the first place…but this was Mike Leake’s gem that wasn’t a gem…

Rodrigo Lopez was pretty impressive tonight, and considering the circumstances might have been remembered for a “fairly decent outing”…however, former Reds pitching phenom Mike Leake was decidedly on his way to Reds history, pitching 8 scoreless innings of 1-hit 6K baseball (he threw only 91 pitches, 65 for strikes...that's HUGE), until a 2-out 2 RBI Homer by Bryan LaHair tied the game, forced extra innings, and shut the door on what would have been the outing of Leake’s career.

It was also Bryan LaHair’s first HR as a Cub.

Dave Sappelt and Chris Valaika make their 1st MLB starts; Sappelt goes 3-for-5 with a double and a run scored, Valaika goes 0-for-2 with a walk and leaves the game in the 9th, replaced by Paul Janish.

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The (duPont Manual High School) Hall of Fame

2011-09-06T16:05:00.010-04:00

Well…here’s a quite unusual light Baseball History post o’ the day for all my readers.

I don’t play the ‘roving reporter’ part very well, but as I attended an Open House at duPont Manual High School in Louisville the other day, I passed through the central hallway (as I often do when visiting there) to admire the “Manual Hall of Fame.” This is essentially a hallway of plaques with ‘metal etched’ portraits of many famous Manual alumnus over the years that have been inducted into the school’s alumni Hall of Fame.

Manual High School is rich in history…currently #62 in the top 100 high schools in the U.S., and their famous Football Stadium (built in 1919, renovated since then, but still standing) is a delightfully creepy, yet historic place to visit. Also unusual as the Stadium is a few miles away from the high school itself.

You can read more about Manual and the oldest rivalry in Kentucky high school history on Wikipedia…I could write more about that, but this post is about baseball…and the (Manual High School) Hall of Fame…

When I enjoy my time reading the plaques, I typically pick out the really famous people (Mitch McConnell, Nicole Scherzinger, etc.) but also typically focus on the baseball players…

This time around, I thought I’d snap some pictures of the baseball players’ plaques, and share with you their achievements and such.

Photography was, indeed, a challenge…the plaques are mounted on the wall just above eye level, and many subsequent levels higher…so I was a “Manual Dad” on his tippy-toes, snapping shots in the dark hallway with his cell-phone camera.

According to Wiki, there have been at least ten Manual players (not all technically ‘graduates’) who have played Major League Baseball, but not all of them are in the Manual Hall of Fame – I’m only focusing on the fellas with plaques.

Harold Henry “Pee Wee” Reese (1918-1999) Inducted 1994
Arguably the most famous and well-known amongst baseball players in the MHS Hall of Fame, Pee Wee was so small we wasn’t able to play for Manual until his senior year. Clocking in at just 120 pounds, Reese only played 6 games as a second baseman. Upon graduating from Manual in 1937 (according to Wiki, that is…the plaque says 1935), he went on to amateur church league baseball until his skills there helped earn him a spot on the roster of the minor league Louisville Colonels (then, a Red Sox farm system affiliate) as their regular shortstop in 1938. In 1939, the Red Sox performed a famous lopsided transaction that sent Reese to the Brooklyn Dodgers for $35K and 4 PTBNL. The rest is truly baseball history…from 1940-1943, and 1946-1958 Reese was a high-quality fixture for the Dodgers, recognized more today for his ‘open embrace’ of Jackie Robinson in the squad than for his WAR or BABIP. Reese was always a fixture in the Louisville area during and after his baseball and broadcasting career, he died here in 1999. You can find a street here named after him, and his statue in front of Louisville Slugger Field is a well known place to meet before a Louisville Bats game. It is still and has always been a superstitious practice of mine to ‘touch his cleats (on the statue)’ for good luck whenever leaving a Bats game.He was a Dodger...

Ferdinand Maurice “Ferdie” Schupp (1891-1971) Inducted 2011
Ferdie was one of Manual Baseball’s first ‘stars,’ even though he left the school two months before graduating. Schupp started his professional career pitching for the Decatur (Illinois) Commodores of the Illinois-Indiana-Iowa League in 1912. The following year, at age 22, he signed with the New York Giants (and John McGraw) and the southpaw saw regular starts in 1916, leading up to his appearances in the 1917 World Series (and posting a 21-7 W-L record with a 1.95 ERA during the 1917 season). His prime achievement during the series was his 5-0 shutout of the White Sox in Game 4. Schupp was sent to the Cardinals in 1919, then to the Brooklyn Robins in 1921 and the Chicago White Sox in 1922, ending his career in the Major Leagues with a 61-39 W-L record and 3.32 ERA. From there, he spent 1922-1930 in the Minor Leagues for the likes of the Kansas City Blues, the Seattle Indians, the Indianapolis Indians, the Fort Worth Panthers, and the Minneapolis Millers (never appearing any higher than AA). Schupp died in Los Angeles, CA at the age of 80.Ferdie with the Brooklyn Robins, c. 1921

Irvine Franklin “Irv” Jeffries (1905-1982) Inducted 1998
There have been several baseball players with the surname “Irvine,” and plenty of those named “Irvin” but Irv Jeffries is the only “Irvine” in the major or minor leagues, according to Baseball Reference. Irv Jeffries was one of the first of Manual’s athletes to earn national recognition of any sort…for the sake of this tour, yes, it was for Baseball. He was an All-State performer in all 3 ‘big sports’ during his day; football, baseball, and basketball (being the captain of Manual’s squad in 1925). Jeffries spent a couple of years on a big league roster, but spent most of his career as a minor leaguer. After high school he attended University of Kentucky for a couple of years and got his professional career started in squads for the Akron Tyrites and Dallas Steers (1928-1929) and the Toledo Mud Hens in 1930, Irv was called up to the Chicago White Sox as a 3B and SS from 1930-1931, after which he returned to minor league ball with the American Association St Paul Saints from 1932-1933. In October 1933, he was drafted by the Reds in the Rule 5 draft and was traded 2 months later to the Phillies, where he remained on the active roster until July 1934 when he was traded to the minor league Baltimore Orioles (then of the International League). Irv spent the next 3 years in Baltimore, in 1937 he went to the Montreal Royals (IL Pirates affiliate at the time) for one season only, then to the Portland Beavers in the Pacific Coast League from 1938-1939. Jeffries ended his career with the Fort Worth Cats in the Texas League in 1940, retiring with a major league triple slash of .234/.284/.321 in 544 plate appearances over 3 seasons and minor league triple slash of .302/.302/.434 in 6,124 plate appearances over 12 seasons. During the 1940s, Irv was a scout for the White Sox and managed the Kingsport Cherokees of the Appalachian League for part of 1949. Irv was born in Louisville and along the way came back here, where he died at the age of 76.The one and only Irvine, with his million dollar smile...

Morris Benton “Moe” Thacker (1934-1997) Inducted 1998
Last but not least, featured in these hallowed halls is our own beloved former Chicago Cub Moe Thacker. Moe was a beast during his school days; he lettered in football, basketball, and baseball. He was the Captain of Manual’s State Championship Baseball team in 1952 and would be the last Manual alumnus to make it to the major leagues. Thacker was best known as a catcher, avoiding college and heading to professional baseball right out of high school; signing with the New York Yankees as an amateur free agent. His career in their system began with the Fond du Lac Panthers of the Wisconsin State League in 1952, then the Joplin Miners of the Western Association in 1953 and the Norfolk Tars of the Piedmont League in 1954. 1955 saw Thacker debuting in AA ball on the roster with the Birmingham Barons of the Southern Association, then breaking out in 1956 with AAA clubs Richmond Virginians (International League) and the Denver Bears (American Association) before returning to AA in 1957 with the New Orleans Pelicans of the Southern Association. Thacker would never make the major league Yankees as an “unknown transaction” sent him to the Chicago Cubs in 1958, where he spent time in the minors with the Fort Worth Cats before playing 11 games with the Cubs. 1959 started with Moe back in Fort Worth (by this time a AAA affiliate) for the entire year. He spent 1960 in both the Houston Buffs (American Association, AAA level) and the Cubs (54 games), and again in 1961 with Houston and the Cubs (25 games). 1962 would be Moe’s only all Cubs season, playing 65 games and boasting a less-than-formidable .187/.287/.234, something much less than solid numbers. In October of 1962 Moe was traded to the St Louis Cardinals in a 6-player deal and only played 3 games with 4 plate appearances for the birds, compiling 3 strikeouts. He spent the rest of his professional career in the minors for St Louis, retiring after the 1964 season with a lifetime .177/.290/.227 in the major leagues. Moe was a successful businessman in the fast food industry and died in Louisville at the age of 63. For me, May 21st will always be “Moe Thacker Day,” a personal reminder that being a Cub just ain’t easy…for Moe it was less easy than most.My favorite picture of Moe, whatta set o' chompers...the true face of a Catcher!

I will have to keep up with future inductions, but judging from the range of talent expressed here, I’m not sure if any baseball players will ever make their debut in the Hall of Fame…at least, not until another new talent appears.

UPDATE (9/13/11) - since posting this, I've done some additional research and have identified 8 additional Manual alumni who have played professional baseball, that is to say that they, for the most part, at least spent time on minor league rosters. I will continue research soon and post a follow-up to this one, as an addendum.

UPDATE #2 (9/29/11) - the second part of this post is up NOW, please check it out! More obscure and essential Baseball mayhem!

9/5/11 Cincinnati Reds 3, Chicago Cubs 4

2011-09-05T23:46:00.005-04:00

Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL
Game 1 of 3

GARZAMAN STRIKES AGAIN!!

The overall tone and tenacity of the Cubs/Reds contests this season has changed considerably compared to last season. As most Cubs fans know, the Dusty Baker Tendency Chart has always revealed what we already know: his window for baseball success only comes once every few years or so, once it’s closed, it’s closed for quite some time. I know it’s hard to explain this to your favorite Reds fan, but all you have to do is draw a chart of Dusty’s postseason success on a napkin for each year and this will tell the story just fine. Where it seems the Reds’ roster has indeed improved a bit, leave it to the toothpick guy to make decisions at critical points that don’t add up on a regular basis…they only add up once in a while.

But, I must digress. Let’s get to the game. Hell, yes, Matt Garza. This guy on a Cubs team with more precision and fundamental offense would have been stellar by the general population’s statistical basis (can you imagine him as a member of the Cubs’ 2008 rotation? MY GOODNESS!) but he’s on this team, this year, and for every outing where his performance is de-ballooned by the offense (and even defense), he seems to pull a magical outing once in a while. Today’s game was one of those once-in-a-whiles. 7.2 IP, 6H, 3R (only one earned, the other two due to errors by Reed Johnson and Starlin Castro), 8 flaming strikeouts, 3 walks.

It was the Cubs’ 5th inning that made the difference in offensive support of Garza; with 2 outs Castro and Johnson reach safely and are driven in by a shocking opposite field Aramis Ramirez single . Jeff Baker (HEY!) responds with a double, Ramirez scores on a wild pitch. The Cubs have the lead for the rest of the game, despite the error-capitalization by the Reds in the 7th and 8th innings.

The truly unfortunate side of this story is Dontrelle Willis’ great outings for the Reds with no W recorded in a decision to date. Unlike some other players, Willis is the guy everybody loves, no matter who he’s pitching for, myself included. He was fantastic in the minors this year, but he has been unable to bring this fantastic to the Reds, and baseball fans around the world are profoundly confused by this. He began the game with a remarkable set of 1st through 3rd inning, 29 pitches worth of “3 up, 3 down” outs. When he started issuing passes in the 4th, yes, even I held my head in my hands and murmured the same thing everybody else was…”This guy just can’t get a break at the Major League level.”

But, hey…not so sad because it’s the Reds!

This was Devin Mesoraco’s first MLB start, in the 7th he gets his first MLB RBI on a groundout to short, scoring AAA teammate Yonder Alonso…whose Wrigley woes in 2011 continued as he lost a Reed Johnson ball in the ivy for a Ground Rule Double.

Joey Votto Flies into a Double Play, the second time in a week I’ve seen this happen (see this game for the other one. Earlier this season, I saw not one, but two PIDP (popped into double play) for the first time ever. This season has been a boon for oddball firsts (and in waves) for my scorebook.

9/5/11 Indianapolis Indians 2, Louisville Bats 5

2011-09-05T18:09:00.021-04:00

Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, KY
Game 2 of 2
LAST GAME OF THE SEASON

2 trades after the fact and it’s obvious from this picture on the Pepsi Vision Jumbotron that Ryan Ludwick is STILL a Cardinal!

As if I wasn’t ‘grey’ already, knowing that the MiLB season is drawing to a close today, the weather had to up and remind me that Summer is truly and nearly dead. It was bloody hot yesterday, but today it was cool, overcast, almost drizzly, and a tad windy. Football weather, yes…baseball weather? SHEESH.

The whole family joined me for today’s game, as the Bats are set to finish 16 games or so behind the league-leading Columbus Clippers and not make a trip to the IL playoffs for the first time since 3 consecutive appearances. A win to end the season would be nice, but it is September 5th…which means: September 1st expanded roster call-ups by the Reds (who must believe they still have a chance…!?!) have depleted what was left of many of the Bats’ “major league ready” players on the roster and replaced them with a group of folks who will undoubtedly return in 2012 as ‘next year’s talent’…it’s great to see so many new faces, but the Indians are still playing well (3 games ahead of the Bats) and the question is, can the new guys eke one last “BATS WIN” on a day like this?

The answer was YES. And even with Ryan Ludwick on rehab assignment from the Pirates (parent club of the Indians). I squealed with joy when I saw his name on the lineup card, since he was a Cardinal I’ve enjoyed watching him play…now I get to see him here! UNRULY!!

Jeff Locke on the bump for the Indians…yeah, you already know about my Jeff Locke mancrush if you read this post. He struck out 6 (2 of those were against Mike “hard luck strike zone” Costanzo) and allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits in 5 IP. Great stuff, mesmerizing smooth delivery. Ex-Cub Sean Gallagher (where did all that hair come from?!?) pitched 3 innings in relief for the Indians. Same ol’ Sean Gallagher, but with more hair.

The new guys (and some of the not-so-new guys) pulled it off, all Bats runs were driven in by Denis Phipps (only with the club for a month or so), Mike Costanzo (here since July), and newest call-up Neftali Soto, who nailed a shocking 2-run HR in the 1st inning…quite a statement.

I took quite a few pictures…rather than try to arrange them, since there are so many, here they are inning-by-inning.

1st inning
Indians LF Ryan Ludwick crouches on deck

Ludwick enters the batter’s box, recent Bats call-up Yasmani Grandal behind the mask

Ludwick at bat…note the newly acquired ‘open stance’

Indians LHP Jeff Locke

Bats freshman CF Quintin Berry faces Jeff Locke

RF Denis Phipps

Phipps fouls one back

Phipps facing Jeff Locke

Another recent call-up, 1B Neftali Soto at bat…one pitch later Soto crushes a HR to Right Center to drive in Phipps and put the Bats on the board first

Soto and Phipps return to the Bats dugout after crossing the plate, Danny Dorn on deck

LF Danny Dorn faces Jeff Locke

2nd Inning
Indians 1B Jeff Clement, from Marshalltown, IOWA!

Indians 3B and Major League veteran Andy Marte faces Chad Reineke

RHP Chad Reineke

Indians RF Miles Durham (great baseball name!)

Switch-hitting stud Catcher prospect Yasmani Grandal

Grandal faces Jeff Locke

Another great shot of Jeff Locke

Grandal walks

Bats 3B Mike Costanzo, seems like every game I’ve seen him in this season he’s had a “hard luck strike zone”…take from that comment whatever you like!

Costanzo vs. Locke, Grandal at 1B…Costanzo is called out on strikes

Bats 2B Michael Griffin faces Locke, Grandal still at 1B

Griffin fouls one back

Jeff Locke, Andy Marte at 3B…I tried to get a shot of Locke ‘checking the runner’ but he’s too quick for my geezer camera skills

Griffin’s AB continues, he strikes out swinging…Grandal still at 1B

Chad Reineke breaks his bat as he flies out to 1B Jeff Clement to end the inning, stranding Grandal

3rd Inning
Indians SS Brian Bocock chugs on over to 1B on a single to RCF

Ludwick looks at a strike…

Ludwick checks his swing…

Ball Four, Ludwick gets a free pass from Reineke

Ludwick at 1B, oh so lonely…

Ludwick at 1B, not being held by Griffin and Soto

Jeff Clement…meaty swing delivers a sharply hit grounder to RCF

Clement reaches 1B, Ludwick advances to 2B

Marte faces Reineke for the second time, Ludwick at 2B, Clement at 1B

Marte: G6-3 to end the inning, 2 runners stranded

Bats SS Kris Negron at 1B after an infield single, Clement holding him

Phipps faces Locke; at a full count Phipps belts a clean line drive to LF but is thrown out 7-5-4 attempting to stretch it into a double

4th Inning
Indians CF Gorkys Hernandez faces Reineke, Durham at 1B

swingandamiss!

Yasmani Grandal

Grandal walks, Griffin fouls one back

Griffin lines out to short to end the inning

6th Inning
Former Cub RHP Sean Gallagher takes the mound for the Indians

Soto versus Sean Gallagher after Phipps singles to LCF (Soto walks)

Grandal, on the other side of the plate for Gallagher (Grandal walks)

Grandal walks; now the bases are full of Bats (Phipps-Soto-Grandal) for Mike Costanzo, who is 0-2 with 2 strikeouts so far today

Costanzo hits a SAC fly to CF, Phipps tags up and scores an insurance run – Bats are up 4-2

7th Inning
Sean Gallagher enters the batter’s box

Indians 2B Brian Friday faces LHP Tom Cochran

9th Inning
Indians C Eric Fryer faces RHP Brad Boxberger

Miles Durham grounds into a Fielder’s Choice (3-6), Fryer is erased on the play

Boxberger is set for Indians PH Wyatt Toregas

Boxberger fires

After the game, my wife and Kei headed home while Chihiro and I waited outside the East entrance for baseball players. In the minor league tradition, on the last game of the season the players from both teams toss most of their non-lethal personal equipment (caps, batting gloves, etc) into the crowd. Chihiro wanted to head down to the dugout to get this, but we didn’t think it was a great idea. Lots of kids outside had some of this equipment for the players to sign. Chihiro decided to go for broke, and instead of waiting for one player to sign her baseball, she got everyone who came out from the Bats to do so, collecting about 10 signatures on her ball.

Ryan Ludwick darted out of the building, aggressively avoiding autograph seekers, and headed straight for a cab. My guess is he’s heading to the airport to return to Pittsburgh. However, the cab must not have been his cab, as he stood by the vehicle for a few minutes and did end up signing a few items for the kids.

Official Scorecard, signed by Chris Valaika, and Bat Chat

Official Program, #3 of 3 for the 2011 season, featuring CORKY MILLER on the cover!

The Pete Rose Avatar Story

2011-09-01T16:34:00.002-04:00

…and the story behind the story…

Yesterday, I changed my avatar on Twitter. Not usually a big deal, but I did so in order to promote a bizarre “inside joke” via a bizarre, obtuse baseball reference that I was sure nobody would get. That’s more because my brain works in bizarre ways, and my sense of humor is the kind that finds me sliding in hidden references to unrelated events when current events inspire me.

Going back a couple of weeks, here’s the story and how it started:

On August 20, Duane X Harris (follow him on Twitter: @duanexharris) posted, among other things, this amazing photo of Pete Rose wearing a San Diego Padres “mustard” cap (Willie in Puerto Rico. The Spaceman in Alaska. Billy Dies. Charlie Hustle in SD. PCL Stars in Boston), as well as the story about the cap, on his fantastic and must read blog ninety feet of perfection, with the photo he outlined the circumstances around the photo itself, where Rose apparently had to wear this cap as part of a sizing exercise for a portrait:

"While this is weird, Rose almost DID play for the Padres while they were still a PCL team in 1962. This is due to the fact that the Padres were an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds from 1962 to 1965. Rose was actually featured in the official program for the 1962 season while wearing a Padres cap. I assume he was expected to play for the team that year? I scanned a photo of it (HERE) from Bill Swank’s incredible book “Baseball In San Diego – From The Padres To Petco” which is the 2nd volume he wrote that chronicles the history of the game in the city of San Diego."

This photo popping up in my browser was all I needed for a great chuckle at the time, so I mercilessly saved it and bookmarked the post, not knowing if I would ever need to refer back to it for any reason.

There is a “story behind the story,” as I mentioned above, regarding Pete Rose and the Padres, this isn’t it yet…don’t worry, I’m getting there!

Fast forward to early yesterday afternoon, 8/31/11, when in the midst of my End of the Month calamities at work, I find out on my Twitter feed that Jeremy Hermida was dealt by the Reds to the Padres for cash considerations. Readers of my blog know that I’ve followed Hermida for quite some time now, during his stay in Louisville with the Bats (AAA affiliate of the Reds), and how much I like his baseball stuff.

Since I like the Padres more than the Reds (much more, they are more or less my “team #3” that I follow) and also since Hermida is pretty much ‘stuck in a rut’ with the Reds organization (he’s an outfielder, the Reds outfield is a little too deep for him right now), I consider this a great move. Hermida is an outstanding ballplayer, and I’m sure he will do great with the Padres.

I am a little shocked that many Padres fans, blogs, etc. just aren’t embracing the move at all…many feel like the Padres need a “veteran outfielder” in the lineup, in the case where “veteran outfielder” translates to “an old guy who has been on an average of 1.23 teams per season in the past 8 years of his career.” I don’t get it…this season is pretty much in the books, and a “veteran outfielder” isn’t going to get the Padres to the postseason, so why not pick up a guy who has solid skills, a bona-fide presence at the plate, a great arm, and enough drive to make his mark with a great growing organization like the Padres? I don’t want to single folks out, but a) you may think he’s just a AAAA player, but I’m sure he will prove you wrong, and b) don’t take his numbers in NL Central parks (of which he hasn’t seen much anyway, too small of a sample size) as a death-knell for clumsiness and sterility in Petco. Padres fans need to lighten up and look at the bright side of this transaction, their sense of humor (and lack thereof) smells like “fan makeup issues” to me.

So in a moment of quasi-anachronism I thought about a Red going to the Padres, thought about the Pete Rose in a Padres cap photo, and suddenly, before I realized what I was doing, I changed my avatar from beloved Moe Thacker to the Pete Rose mustard cap photo. So there is my obtuse reference: a Red and the Padres. Yup, that’s it…that’s the big inside joke.

In unrelated news, the LobShots blog posted the same picture, kindly giving Duane Harris and his blog credit, only a few moments later…so I say again, this all happens for a reason!

Reaction to the avatar has been amusing…I’ve heard a little bit of everything from gambling references to just plain shock at the grisly nature of the photo. It won’t be there forever, but for now I still get a chuckle when I open my timeline and see Mustard Cap Pete looking sheepishly back at me.

As alluded to earlier, there is a story behind the story, in two parts. Part one is all Pete Rose, part two is all Padres.

Pete Rose - so, here’s an opportunity to say whatever I want to about Charlie Hustle, yet I won’t say much or take time to editorialize. The debate is still strong; I have my very, very strong opinions about Mr. Rose but they are mine, and I don’t want to discuss them. All I feel like saying about Pete Rose is that he is one of the best baseball players of all time, that shouldn’t stir up any debate.

My Pete Rose story happened about 11 years ago, when my wife and I went to Damon’s here in Louisville as we had a coupon that could be used there. We weren’t then, and still aren’t, great fans of spending buckets of cash and eating out a lot. If a restaurant has a coupon, we’ll try to use it once every couple of months. My oldest daughter was about 3, and my youngest was just a peanut, we trotted to Damon’s on a random evening to discover a big surprise…

Paul Horning is a local hero, he’s from the area and appears in commercials now and then. There’s also a statue of him at Louisville Slugger Field. Back then, Paul had a monthly cable sports program, and it was filmed at Damon’s for some reason…when we walked into the door, I saw the blackboard message that Paul Hornung was taping tonight and I burst with excitement. As a kid, I thought Paul Hornung was some sort of Scandinavian God of Sports, I idolized him completely. Paul is here, I thought…WOW.

Then my eyes got stuck on the rest of the blackboard message: “Paul’s guest tonight: PETE ROSE.” Holy Moley. Paul Hornung and Pete Rose, in the same place at the same time. Mountains, ye MOVE at thy command!!!

We were seated quickly (showing up at restaurants way before dinner rush is a habit of ours), and that’s when my “WOW” turned to “WOWIE ZOWIE”…if you’ve ever been to a Damon’s establishment, you know that there’s a back row on a platform with booths, then a floor level with booths adjacent to the back row build-out and stationary tables in the ‘arena,’ which are situated before their famous 20-or-so giant TV screens on the opposite wall. We were seated in a booth on the back row against the wall that divided the floor level section. There, in the booth right next to ours, on the floor level, was Paul Hornung, Pete Rose, Mrs. Pete Rose, and Pete’s son eating their dinner!!

My Wife: “Who is that?”
Me: “That’s PETE ROSE, one of the greatest baseball players of all time.”
My Wife: “Should you get his autograph?”
Me: “Oh my goodness…NO.”

There were about 15-20 Reds fans already in the establishment, as Pete was going to sign autographs after he ate and before the show taped. I did think about getting Hornung and Rose to sign a napkin or something, but I was not driven to this…I just didn’t want to interfere. I sipped on my soda, watched my kids squirm around, and sat in amazement as Paul and Pete gobbled up ribs and shot the breeze nonchalantly. Yes, I did wave and say “hi.” The autograph session started, folks lined up, and I just watched them file past. Years later, I think I was just too intimidated by this gathering of greatness to even push across a handshake. We paid and left before the taping began.

The San Diego Padres - this story is a little more complicated and a little more personal. Those who know me know that my baseball journey began with the Royals in the 70s, drifted for just a year or two with the Yankees, and then I focused on things other than baseball. I was ‘away’ from baseball for many years, although I casually and fondly observed some baseball moments from a distance…the Cubs in 84, the Braves in 91, the strike, moments such as those.

My return to baseball started with my obsession with Japanese culture and my growing admiration for Japanese baseball, which snowballed into fandom again in the early part of the 2000 decade and my adoption of the Hanshin Tigers as my favorite NPB team (and they still are, to this day). I returned to gaijin baseball with a few Louisville Bats games during that period, but had not returned to a Major League ballpark until 2006, when on a business trip to San Diego my boss and I went to see the Padres take on the visiting Astros at Petco on August 1st. The Padres lost in a pitchers’ duel (Jake Peavy vs. Brad Lidge) but I remember fawning over Mike Piazza and Peavy both, and the experience was so wholesome and so powerful, I was immediately gripped and therefore, made my way back to the greatest game. That’s why the Padres and Petco park will always have a special part of my baseball consciousness.

So…congratulations to Jeremy Hermida, who seems to be headed for a better place, and if you don’t like the avatar (or Pete Rose for that matter), just hang on a bit and things will eventually change. Whether you like it or not.

And hey...John Baker (@manbearwolf) likes the avatar, too...#beastmode

8/26/11 Lehigh Valley IronPigs 4, Louisville Bats 7

2011-08-26T23:59:00.012-04:00

Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, KY
Game 3 of 4

Dear Mr. Sandberg: I’m sorry I missed my opportunity to meet you this evening, it would have been unbelievable to shake hands with a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, and better yet, one who made his mark as a Chicago Cub. My regret is merely tempered by the fact that, had I chose to wait in line with the rest of the folks like me who wanted to meet you and get you to sign something, I would have been ultimately disappointed. Just the same, it was great to see you again, regardless of what uniform you were wearing at this time. My best to you and your family, Stevo-sama.

My 12-year-old daughter Chihiro chose this game from the schedule, primarily for the post-game fireworks, I saw something entirely different on the schedule…I saw the Lehigh Valley IronPigs comin’ to town, and with them their famous manager, Mr. Ryne Sandberg. Sure she kinda knows about Ryno, but hey…without any $1 hot dog Tuesdays on my list, this was her next best option. Meanwhile, my option was simple: bring a baseball and a card for Ryno to sign. That’s it in a nutshell.

As per my own baseball game superstitious practices, we arrived at Louisville Slugger Field promptly at 6:00 for the gates to open (first pitch = 7:05pm). Anyone stalking me knows how consistent I strive to be at this, leaving the house as early as 45 minutes prior to the gates opening so that I can make it in time due to traffic concerns. When we showed up, we were shocked to see a line of Cubs fans toting baseballs, photos, and jerseys extending from the entry to the concourse all the way outside the East building entry doors.

Well, lots of folks read the schedule like I do…Ryne Sandberg is here today.

As we hit the concourse and stopped by Slugger Monkey for our mandatory “mystery baseball rookie card” purchase, we noticed the line of autograph seekers extending from the left side of the visitor’s dugout to the very top step of the concourse. We decided to step in and see if we could get to meet Ryno after all. We held our place for about 5 minutes or so, as more folks added on behind us and the line started to move around the home plate side of the concourse.

Good ol’ Chihiro was kind of excited, but also kind of hungry, and as the game clock slowly crept past 6:15pm I started to re-think this. Chihiro is a good sport, but at 12 I think she’s kind of young for the ‘wait in a long line to see somebody famous’ game. I’m really not that fickle: it was important for me (us) to take advantage of this opportunity, but the focus of this experience is really enjoying this game. If Ryno were to emerge now, it would be at least 7:00 until we had our chance, not nearly enough to get something to eat and make it up to our seats, let alone have our scoresheets and lineups ready for the first pitch.

No disrespect intended for my ‘fan boy’ conscience, I moved in the fatherly direction and asked her for advice: “Well, kiddo…do we wait here or go get something to eat and head upstairs?” “Let’s get something to eat, Dad.”

So that was strike one, swinging. We rounded up our grub and went upstairs, where at 6:35, Ryno still hadn’t emerged. The line was outrageously wrapped around the concourse by now. Then, a few bites into my Philly Nachos, Chihiro says “Dad…LOOK!”

And there was Ryno; smiling, shaking hands, signing baseballs…on the right side of the dugout. The fans on the left side were just beginning to exhibit the long look of desperation as they suddenly realized the ballpark-directed logistics had a serious flaw: Ryno popped his head out of the dugout, saw a smiling face on the dugout side opposite of the massive line that had formed.

That was strike two, looking. I couldn’t see them, but I could tell that folks at the end of the ‘staged line’ were scrambling to get down the other side aisle, and the folks at the front of the ‘staged line’ were hem-hawing in absolute frustration. Had we stayed, we would have missed out anyway.

Good call, Chihiro…time to enjoy the game!! Maybe we’ll catch Mr. Sandberg after the game…

Ryne Sandberg (#23), Rick Sweet, 3 umps & camera man exchange lineups

Ryno heads back to LHV dugout

Chad Reineke worked 6.1 inning most excellent outing…LHV pitcher Dave Bush (yes, that Dave Bush, Brewers rotation 2010…we remember him well) kept his game alive as well…the pitch selection that seemed to doom his success as a starter for the Brewers seemed more refined and well-executed against minor league batters tonight.

Former top prospect Domonic Brown continued his ‘average’ performance for the IronPigs. The Bats were a little on the “we’re on fire” side of the equation this evening, and maybe a bit too much so…we were promised post-game fireworks, and got those…plus a healthy dose of during-the-game fireworks, no punches were thrown but the benches cleared TWICE and 2 ejections followed.

It really started in the first inning…first batter for Lehigh Valley, Rich Thompson, entered the batter’s box at 7:04pm. First pitch subsequently thrown, and blasted into right center for a lead-off triple. Kevin Frandsen is next, who looks at a ball from Reineke, then a seeing-eye single right up the middle to score Thompson. Yes, at 7:05pm the IronPigs were on the board with no outs.

In response, Dave Bush gets Kris Negron to ground out on 2 pitches and Chris Valaika to line out on 2 pitches. Juan Francisco, who is doing well since returning from the DL, sees 4 pitches; one of them fouled back and one of them a called strike fastball at the numbers. Pitch #5 is the same, and this time he takes it for a tape-measure HR that lands on the roof of the Overlook Grille and then bounces down.

I was watching the 5 or 6 drunk guys at the Grille scrambling for the ball as it caromed around the concourse. As I returned my eyes to the basepaths, I see Francisco just now jogging around first base.

Uh oh…he must have admired it…

He sure did, and the ramifications would naturally make themselves quite evident later in the game…

LHV 2B Josh Barfield faces RHP Chad Reineke in the 2nd

RF Jeremy Hermida leading off the 2nd against RHP Dave Bush

Chad Reineke fires to “former top prospect” LHV LF Domonic Brown

Ryno heads out to discuss 1B ump Chris Ward’s “Chad Reineke ‘safe’ at 1B” call to lead off the 3rd

…and heads back, not sure if he’s understanding

Runners at 1st and 3rd with 2 outs for Domonic Brown vs. Reineke in the 5th

Former top prospect…Called out on strikes!

CF Denis Phipps faces LHP Juan Perez with 1 on and 2 outs in the 7th

…and nails it to left center to keep the inning alive

Domonic Brown fouls one back against LHP Jeremy Horst

Josh Barfield at bat…doesn’t his stance remind you of Todd Frazier?
This is Josh tonight:

This is Todd from 7/6/11 against the Columbus Clippers:

Josh fouls one back against RHP Jerry Gil in the 8th

LHV SS Freddy Galvis at bat, fouls to stay alive, with 2 on and 2 out

…and again

Galvis (the blur) grounds out to SS Kris Negron to end the 8th inning

So, here begins the ‘during-the-game’ fireworks. After bringing the very pear-like Drew Carpenter and the diminutive Juan Perez during the 7th, in relief of starter Dave Bush, the IronPigs gave the ball to the hard-throwing French Canadian RHP Phillipe Aumont. He retires Negron on a lineout, and allows a bloop single to Valaika. Juan Francisco enters the box, and in apparent retaliation for Francisco’s solo shot admiration in the 1st…POP!

Juan Francisco is hit on the first pitch he sees from Aumont, exchanges cross words with the LHV dugout on his way to first base, and the benches immediately clear

Warnings are issued to both teams; 2 strikeouts later in the top of the 9th, Jerry Gil hits PH Delwyn Young before I can even get a shot of him at the plate. Gil is ejected immediately, shouting profanities at the LHV dugout as he marches off the mound. The benches clear again, and Rick Sweet is also subsequently ejected

During the near-fracas, Francisco sits crouched at 3B at first, then stands erect and begins to laboriously shout more profanities at the LHV dugout, ending his mostly unintelligible diatribe with a serious round of crotch-grabbing. The guy next to me has his 7 year old daughter with him, and her eyes are as big as softballs.

Many moms and dads had the pleasure of explaining to their kids what Francisco was “saying” with this gesture; fortunately the “Ceelo song” is around to help us out with this. Juan Francisco isn’t the best player in how he treats the fans and in how he’s dealing with his lack of performance at the Major League level…he further shows us his respect by behaving like a gangsta in front of over 9,000 folks in attendance. What a guy.

…and much love to the bespectacled white-guy-who-speaks-in-Kentuckybonics Reds fan after the game, who called Francisco “his boy”…hey buddy, I’m sure hearing you call him “your boy” would make him blush with admiration for you…

As the game ended with a well-executed Bats victory (if not entirely brimming with good sportsmanship), we did enjoy the post-game fireworks…then headed to the East entrance to get some autographs. Maybe this was my chance to catch up with Mr. Sandberg!!

Chihiro got her scorecard signed by Chris Valaika, and I was fortunate enough to catch up with Scott Carroll (still one of my favorite pitchers) who signed a baseball for me. Chihiro was in awe of Denis Phipps’ performance this evening (and also admired his walk-up music) and was set on having him autograph her baseball.

This probably wasn’t the best night to get autographs, as some tension in the air over the events of the evening did seem to put a damper on the atmosphere. Several IronPigs and Bats were glad to accommodate fans’ requests, but in particular Domonic Brown was aggressive in his disdain for autograph hounds, literally brushing aside kids and adults alike as he made his way to the hotel shuttle.

Chihiro has her dad’s genes, picking the one guy on the Bats who was taking the longest to emerge. We learned later that he was whisked away in secret by the other Dominicans (Juan Francisco and Edinson Volquez) through the front door entrance. So our sights were set on Sandberg.

Nearly two hours had passed until we learned that Ryno was picked up by the hotel shuttle outside the Witherspoon Street center field exit earlier in the evening. Called strike three, with my bat on my shoulder. Better luck next time…

Official Scorecard, signed by Chris Valaika, and Bat Chat

Official Program, #3 of 3 for the 2011 season, featuring CORKY MILLER on the cover!

If you missed it, please take a moment to enjoy this fantastic article with great photos by the Cincinnati Enquirer's John Erardi on Corky and his career and unestimable worth as a staff catcher!!

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2011-08-25T15:12:00.002-04:00

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8/19/11 Cleveland Indians 1, Detroit Tigers 4

2011-08-19T23:55:00.006-04:00

Comerica Park, Detroit, MI
Game 1 of 3

The EYES have it!!

The battle for the AL Central continues as the Indians visit the Tigers and keep on scraping away at the comfort the Tigers cannot enjoy as the season draws to a close. The phenomenal Josh Tomlin, with his aggressive short-arm delivery, takes the bump against the AL’s 'next-wierdest eyes next to David Bowie kinda-freak,' Max Scherzer.

Kipnis was out of the lineup tonight; still the Indians lineup looked pretty good and oh, my…Josh Tomlin. Great stuff. Too great though…his accuracy in the early innings turned into a classic case of ‘hitters making adjustments to pitchers’ and by the 6th inning, it was a Home Run parade for the Tigers; starting out with Austin Jackson’s 2 run-1 out bomb to center field in the 5th (what a beautiful swing!!) and leading into back-to-back jackos by Alex Avila and Jhonny Peralta with 2 outs in the 6th. The second consecutive HR had Tomlin off the mound for the night.

Meanwhile, Max Scherzer uses his “EVIL EYE” to put a spell on the Indians. Before tonight, he had never thrown more than 125 pitches in his career, 120 for the season. Tonight he went 7 innings and threw 127 pitches, 80 for strikes, and only allowed 1 run (earned, on a wild pitch) on 5 hits, striking out 6. He really ‘did his thing’ tonight.

Miguel Cabrera extends his hitting streak to 16 games. I think this is the first time I’ve seen a game on FS Detroit, and I experienced a rather sickening revelation…Rod Allen is almost as BAD as Joe Morgan in the booth. With stout comments such as “he needs to pitch out to this guy right now and help his team out” (and he DIDN’T) and similar general ‘fire and miss’ baseball analyses, Rod Allen needs to go back to the bench. Tigers fans…how can you stand this pooch?!?