Rambling On About My Glory Days: From Mariano to A-Rod; World Series Thoughts</h1> <article> <h1>Rambling On About My Glory Days: From Mariano to A-Rod; World Series Thoughts</h1> <p>Jack Perconte — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:34:36 +0000</p> <p>It is always sad to see the season end. I love watching the playoffs/World Series and wish they continued all winter. I would not mind if they shortened the regular season and had an extended playoff system, either. Otherwise, here are some random thoughts about this year’s World Series.</p> <p>Major league hitters, “Pay attention.” Earlier this year I wrote an article on how to hit White Sox pitcher Mark Buehrle and it must have worked because he was not as effective post article, after his perfect game. With that in mind, I have figured out how to hit Mariano Rivera. He may be a phenomenon that we have never seen because he basically throws one pitch and everyone, including TV viewers, knows what and where he is going to throw it. Of course, hitters can keep their same approach and wait around hoping he makes a mistake. However, they have been waiting for that to happen for 15 years and it hasn’t happened yet. Because we have never seen this, it is time for hitters to hit in a way that has never been seen. He obviously only has one pitch, the cut fastball. Other pitchers throw one, but what is amazing is that he rarely leaves it in the middle of the plate. He is always on the corners with it or misses off the plate with it.</p> <p>Choking up on the bat will help because it is almost impossible to get the fat part of the bat on his constant inside pitches, especially to left handed hitters. The other solution is to “jump back” (towards the on-deck circle) four or five inches right when he is about to release the ball. This will make that inside cutter actually right down the middle where it is much more hittable. Of course, hitters can decide occasionally not to jump back so if he decides to pitch on the outside part of the plate the hitter is still in good position. Now it turns into a huge guessing game for Mariano and his catcher so the advantage swings back to hitters. Without that inside pitch boring in on the hitter’s hands, they have a much better chance. If nothing else, this method will save major league teams thousands of dollars on bats because Mariano will not be breaking them at his usual rate.</p> <p>I believe the reason Derek Jeter rises to every postseason occasion is that he becomes more aggressive at the plate in the postseason. Other players tend to retreat in their approach but Jeter appears to be more aggressive than his in-season approach and this pays off for him. Maybe he has figured out that it is not worth leaving it up to the umpires to put him in a hole.</p> <p>In defense of umpires, I believe they may be forced to call pitches two or three inches off the plate because pitchers are constantly nibbling at the corners. The games would probably still be going on if they only called strikes. Maybe it is time to go to a 19-inch plate to even out the modern day hitting advantage of small ball parks and physically stronger hitters.</p> <p>The best story may have been observing the apparent growth of A-Rod from individual to team player. Many stars are coddled form the time they are young, always told how great they are, and in a game where individual numbers are everything. So, it is not a mystery why some stars never learn the value of team. Ultimately, teams win and this maturation of a star was great to see. I hope parents of young players noticed this change and pointed it out to their kids.</p> <p>I also hope coaches of young ball players noticed how many change-ups were thrown. They seemed more prominent than the breaking ball for many playoff pitchers. That is a great lesson for young players and coaches who insist on throwing curve balls at a young age.</p> <p>I can’t wait for next season.</p> <p><em>Former major leaguer Jack Perconte is the author of </em>The Making of a Hitter <em>(<a href="http://www.themakingofahitter.com/" target="_blank">www.themakingofahitter.com</a>) and has a baseball instruction blog that can be found at <a href="http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball" target="_blank">http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball</a>. He has recently published his second book </em>Raising an Athlete - How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport<em> and has an additional blog at <a href="http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com/" target="_blank">http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com</a> </em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=kEzeobrdEUo:qy5ummiGIQQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=kEzeobrdEUo:qy5ummiGIQQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The Battle of New York</h1> <p>Brendan Macgranachan — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 04:08:33 +0000</p> <p><em>In the early-1920s, the American League’s New York Yankees and the National League’s New York Giants competed against each other in three consecutive World Series. Here is a look at the first championship battle between the two clubs that took place in 1921.<br /> </em></p> <p>New York City normally has five boroughs but in the days leading up to the 1921 World Series, there were only two; one for Giants fans and another for the Yankee supporters. For only the second time in World Series history, two teams from the same city would wage battle for baseball supremacy. Everyone across the entire state was picking sides in what was said to be the dream of every New York baseball fan since the Yankees entered the American League in 1901. Even Governor Nathan L. Miller made a prediction, selecting the Giants. Baseball commissioner Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis was not so decisive, instead confident that the series would take nine games to decide.</p> <p>Fresh off capturing their ninth National League pennant in franchise history, the Giants (94-59) looked primed to end their World Series drought, as they had not brought home the championship in four previous tries. Statistically, the team had the best run-producing offense in the National League and were led by two future Hall-of-Famers. First baseman George Kelly led the league with 23 home runs and also drove in a team-high 122 runs while third baseman Frankie Frisch led the team with a .341 average while also driving in 100 runs. Left-hander Art Nehf (20-10, 2.63) and right-hander Jesse Barnes (15-9, 3.10), both 28 years old, were the team’s workhorses on the mound.</p> <p>Meanwhile, the Yankees (98- 55) won their first ever American League pennant with the best overall record in baseball and packed even more punch on offense than the Giants, averaging an incredible 6.2 runs per game (tops in the majors). Of course, the man most responsible for the outburst on offense was Babe Ruth. For the third straight season, Ruth broke his own single-season home run mark, this time with 59. He also had a career high in RBIs with 171. Outfielder Bob Meusel (.318-24-136) had a good year behind the Bambino while pitcher Carl Mays dazzled on the mound. Mays led the league in wins (27), innings (337), and saves (7); doing his part to get the Yankees into the postseason.</p> <p>The entire best-of-nine series would be played at Polo Grounds, which was home to both the Giants and Yankees. The umpire crew would consist of Cy Rigler and Earnest Quigley of the NL and George Moriarty and Ollie Chill of the AL. A crowd of over 30,000 fans attended game one at Polo Grounds and watched as Yankees lead-off man Elmer Miller hit a single off Giants starter Phil Douglas to start the game. After Roger Peckinpaugh advanced Miller to second on a sacrifice bunt, Ruth stepped up to the plate and swatted a blazing single up the middle to score Miller for the first run of the contest.</p> <p>It turned out that was all the Yankees would need. Mike McNally added an insurance run by stealing home in the fifth, just narrowly sliding under the mitt of Giants’ catcher Frank Snyder, and Meusel drove in another run as the Yankees won the first game 3-0 behind the masterful pitching of their starter, Carl Mays. Mays went the distance, allowing only five hits and shutting down the high-powered Giants attack. Despite recording the loss, Douglas pitched good enough to keep his club in it, going eight innings allowing five hits while striking out six. Frisch was the only Giant to do anything at the plate, going 4-4.</p> <p>Another pitching duel occurred in Game 2 between the Yankees’ Waite Hoyt and the Giants’ Art Nehf. Again, the Yankees struck first blood with a run in the fourth and like the previous game, that run would be all they would need. Hoyt pitched a complete game, two-hitter and also drove in a run as the Yanks blanked the Giants 3-0 to take a commanding lead in the series. Nehf pitched good in the losing cause, pitching eight innings while surrendering only three hits but he walked seven batters.</p> <p>No one foresaw the Giants losing the first two games of the series. They had not played good at all over the first two games but perhaps the most worrisome fact for Giants fans was that it appeared the Yankees were out-thinking and playing better fundamental baseball then their ball club, two traits that had become staples for John McGraw-managed teams. However, McGraw himself was keeping cool, at least in the public eye, telling the media that the series had not yet been won.</p> <p>Yankees skipper Miller Huggins sent out pitcher Bob Shawkey to jam a dagger into the Giants while McGraw countered with 18-game winner Fred Toney but neither starter lasted very long. The Yankees again would strike first blood and this time, in a big way with a four-run third inning, highlighted by a two-run single by Ruth. Toney could not get through the inning and had to be replaced by Barnes. However, the Giants would tie the score up in their half of the inning. After loading the bases, Shawkey issued back-to-back run scoring walks before Huggins replaced him with Jack Quinn. Quinn did a good job to pitch out of the jam but the Yankee lead had disappeared and it was now a 4-4 game.</p> <p>Quinn and Barnes pitched well out of the bullpen and neither side could scratch across a run until the seventh, when the Giants exploded. Back-to-back hits by Irish Meusel and Johnny Rawlings made the score 8-4 Giants and at that time, Quinn was replaced by Rip Collins, who had to be relieved by Tom Rogers later in the inning. The Giants chalked up eight runs in the inning on route to a 13-5 victory to put themselves back in the series. Ross Youngs led the way with a four RBI day while Meusel and Rawlings drove in three apiece for a Giants offense that had 20 hits off four different Yankee hurlers.</p> <p>The news had gotten worse for Yankee fans when it was reported that Babe Ruth might be out of the lineup in Game 4 with an arm infection. While stealing third earlier in the series, Ruth bruised his arm and Huggins was forced to replace him late in Game 3 when it appeared an infection had developed on the slugger’s right arm. It was soon being reported that Ruth would miss the remainder of the series.</p> <p>Rain pushed Game 4 back a day but when it resumed, Ruth trotted out to his position in left field The Bambino also brought the crowd to its feet when he crushed a home run into the right field bleachers in the ninth inning. However, the solo homer could only cut the Giants lead to two runs and McGraw’s men were back in the series after a 4-2 victory. The Yankees took a 1-0 lead into the eighth but after the Giants tied it up, George Burns hit a two-run double off Carl Mays to put the game away for the Giants. Both Mays and Giants starter Phil Douglas threw complete games, with Douglas striking out eight Yankee batters.</p> <p>The World Series had now come down to a five game series but John McGraw’s squad had clear momentum after crushing the Yankees in Game 3 and beating their pitching ace in Game 4. The fifth game was a rematch between Nehf and Hoyt, the Game 2 starters. Ruth remained in the Yankees lineup, despite having his right arm bandaged heavily and a charleyhorse that he suffered in the previous game. With the score 1-1 in the fourth, Ruth kick started a rally with a rare bunt single. He would score the eventual game-winning run during the next at-bat, as he limped home on a double from Bob Meusel. The Yankees added one more run that inning to make the score 3-1 and that would be the final as the New York Yankees regained the series lead.</p> <p>Team doctors delivered a fatal blow to Huggins in the morning before Game 6: Ruth would be done for the series. His forearm was going to require minor surgery to heal the infection and doctors demanded he be held out of the lineup or else Ruth would run the risk of suffering permanent damage. Huggins was forced to shuffle his lineup: leadoff man Elmer Miller would slide down to Ruth’s #3 spot while Chick Fewster would take over for Ruth in left field and bat leadoff.</p> <p>Life without Ruth seemed to start well enough for the Yankees in Game 6. They chased Toney early again, this time in the first inning, and started the game off with a 3-0 lead. But then the Giants returned the favor in the second when they tied the score up on the strength of home runs by Irish Meusel and Frank Snyder. The fireworks also forced Huggins to replace Shawkey with Harry Harper. The American Leaguers retook the lead in the same inning when Fewster, Ruth’s replacement, smashed a two-run shot off of Barnes. The seesaw match continued in the fourth when the Giants capitalized on a Yankee error to post four runs on the board. The Giants added one more run later on and would end up winning the contest 8-5.</p> <p>Douglas and Mays would face each other for a third time in the series, this time in an all important Game 7. Both pitchers shut down the opposing offenses well and through six innings, the score was knotted up at ones. In the seventh however, Mays’ defense let him down and it would cost the Yankees the game. After recording two quick outs in the frame, Rawlings chopped a ball towards Yankee second baseman Aaron Ward and for the second time in the game, the usually slick-fielding Ward fumbled the grounder, allowing Rawlings to reach. The next batter, Snyder, hit the first offering he saw from Mays into deep centerfield. Rawlings would score on the double and that would be the final run of the contest and the Giants were now one game away from becoming World Champions after winning the contest, 2-1.</p> <p>The Giants got off to a quick start in Game 8, scoring a two-out run when a ground ball rolled through Roger Peckinpaugh’s legs. Then, the rest of the afternoon belonged to the brilliant pitching of Art Nehf and Waite Hoyt. The only trouble the offenses created in the first eight innings of the contest was the Yankees in the fourth, when they loaded the bases but squandered the opportunity when Schang flied out to centerfield to keep the score 1-0 Giants.</p> <p>The Yankees had one more chance in the ninth. Huggins opted to send up Babe Ruth, his injured slugger who had missed the last two contests, to bat for Wally Pipp and the Bambino got a rousing ovation from every fan in the ballpark. Ruth appeared to be in mighty pain with every swing and eventually, he grounded out to first. After Ward drew a walk to get the tying-run, Huggins put on the hit-and-run with Home Run Baker at the plate. On the third pitch of the at-bat, Ward took off and Baker rocketed a shot that was headed for right field. The second baseman Rawlings got a good jump on the ball, fully extended out for the baseball and somehow threw out Baker from his knees.</p> <p>Ward, thinking the ball got through the infield, raced around second base and headed for third. After getting Baker out, first baseman George Kelly rifled the ball across the diamond to third base. The ball pulled Frankie Frisch a few steps off the bag and when he caught the ball, both him and Ward dove headfirst; Frisch into Ward and Ward into the bag. When the dust emerged, third base umpire Earnest Quigley raised his right hand to signal the last of the Yankee chances and for the end of the series. The New York Giants captured their first World Series since 1905 by defeating the New York Yankees 5 games to 3.</p> <p>The next year, the Giants made it back-to-back championships with a 4-0 series sweep (with a tie in Game 2) over the crosstown Yankees. When the teams met for a third consecutive time in 1923, it was the Yankees who came out victorious, a 4-2 series victory in the club’s first year at Yankee Stadium.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=SCBmMTO35KI:Y2quQKtLK6o:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=SCBmMTO35KI:Y2quQKtLK6o:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Influx of Indy Hurlers in Arizona Fall League Will Keep Baseball Fans Happy After World Series</h1> <p>Bob Wirz — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:00:30 +0000</p> <p>If anyone is thinking that with the <strong>World Series</strong> behind us and most free agency chatter not really in the news 24/7 yet there might be a break from baseball. Never fear, baseball-holics. In fact, there are a plethora of interesting developments for Independent Baseball fans emerging already in the fall and winter leagues.</p> <p>It is very impressive to see that at least five Indy pitchers, four of them with <strong>American Association</strong> roots, are in the prestigious <strong>Arizona Fall League</strong>, which only gets higher profile players since each major league organization is limited to sending six players.</p> <p>The presence of <strong>Aaron Crow</strong>, T<strong>anner Scheppers</strong> and former <strong>Northern Leaguer Travis Schlichting</strong> is not so surprising because they already carry a certain status within their organizations, but when one goes looking for the hidden nugget among players getting attention <strong>Scot Drucker</strong> and <strong>Paul Phillips</strong> show up and give the American Association more cachet.</p> <p>They are those mid-20s athletes Independent leagues are giving an opportunity to after initial stumbles early in their career in major league organizations. Drucker and Phillips both spent a good chunk of 2008 in the American Association, Drucker at <strong>Grand Prairie, TX</strong> and Phillips at <strong>Pensacola, FL</strong>, and now find themselves in a position to fight for a major league job.</p> <p>Drucker, once a decent prospect in <strong>Oakland’s</strong> farm system before injuries slowed him, turned in a commendable 8-3, 4.78 season for <strong>Detroit’s</strong> Triple-A <strong>Toledo</strong> club this summer to win the Arizona Fall League audition. “There is little doubt Drucker has the stuff to pitch at the big league level, either in the back of a rotation or out of the bullpen, it’s just a matter of timing a hot streak with an opportunity to crack the roster,” praised <strong>Mark Anderson</strong> of Scout.com. The onetime <strong>Tennessee</strong> right-hander has split two decisions and posted a 4.09 earned run average for four AFL starts, where innings are pretty regulated.</p> <p>Phillips started in the <strong>Toronto</strong> organization, but landed with <strong>Tampa Bay</strong> after signing out of Pensacola’s bullpen. Also a righty, he pitched at the Class A, AA and AAA levels in ’09, and has worked in seven AFL games in relief (0-1, 6.14) as he strives to impress Rays brass.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>Nasty McFilthy Scheppers</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Tanner Scheppers</strong>, a highly-regarded <strong>Texas</strong> prospect who prepped with <strong>St. Paul, MN</strong> in the <strong>American Association</strong> before signing, is being called Nasty McFilthy because of his 95-98-mile per hour delivery and what ESPN.com baseball analyst <strong>Keith Law</strong> described as “a vicious curveball with (a) hard, late two-plane break.” Scheppers has allowed only five hits and two walks while striking out nine in the same number of innings in the <strong>Arizona Fall League</strong>.</p> <p><strong>Aaron Cro</strong>w (0-1, 7.36 in two AFL starts) is on <strong>Kansas City’s</strong> 40-man roster only months after starting out with <strong>Fort Worth, TX</strong> prior to the draft. <strong> Travis Schlichting</strong> (1-0, 2.70 with 10 strikeouts in 10 innings in Arizona) got his pro career on track as a reliever with <strong>Kansas City, KS</strong> of the <strong>Northern League</strong> in 2007, and progressed so rapidly he made the <strong>Los Angeles Dodgers’</strong> 40-man last winter and even worked in two games for the parent club this summer before spending considerable time on the disabled list with back spasms.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong>* * * *<br /> STILL LOOKING FOR ADDITIONAL INDEPENDENT BASEBALL COVERAGE? VISIT OUR BLOG, </strong><a href="http://www.IndyBaseballChatter.com">www.IndyBaseballChatter.com</a><strong><br /> * * * *</strong> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>Teams Search Far and Wide for Key Sponsors</u></strong></p> <p>With the world of sponsorships still a big, big challenge for sports teams, those who reach out and find new support, especially in non-traditional areas, are to be applauded.</p> <p>The <strong>York (PA) Revolution</strong> of the <strong>Atlantic League</strong> seems to have had success, signing the <strong>York County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals</strong> as their season-long presenting sponsor. New logos have been created for mutual use, and the program will run two ways with the ballclub raising money and awareness for the SPCA, and the chapter bringing attention to the team. “It’s energizing to partner with an organization as passionate as they (SPCA) are,” Revolution General Manager <strong>Matt O’Brien</strong> said.</p> <p>Meanwhile, the <strong>Northern League’s</strong> new <strong>Lake County Fielders</strong> (<strong>Zion, IL</strong>) have reached agreement with three diverse companies, <strong>Lake Forest Hospital</strong>, <strong>Grand Appliance & TV</strong> and <strong>The Ray and Raymond Autogroup</strong> to be their Founding Partners at what Fielders President <strong>Rich Ehrenreich</strong> describes as an “unprecedented level”. Incidentally, groundbreaking for Lake County’s new stadium was scheduled for this very day (Thursday).</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>One Never Knows</u></strong></p> <p>How is this for an eye-opening reminder of how times change?</p> <p><strong>Alex Rodriguez’s</strong> flirtation with the all-time postseason RBI record brought this to light. While A-Rod came up one run batted in short of the record of 19 while helping the <strong>New York Yankees</strong> win the <strong>World Series</strong>, one of the three record-holders was actually trying to make a comeback in the <strong>Golden League</strong> this summer.</p> <p><strong>Sandy Alomar, Jr.</strong>, collected his 19 ribbies for <strong>Cleveland</strong> in 1997. <strong>Scott Spiezio</strong> tied the mark while playing for the <strong>Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim</strong> in 2002, and <strong>David Ortiz </strong>matched it for <strong>Boston</strong> two years later. It was Spiezio who was working on a comeback with the <strong>Orange County (CA) Flyers</strong> this season.</p> <p><em>(This is an excerpt from the column Bob Wirz writes on Independent Baseball. Fans may subscribe at <a href="http://www.WirzandAssociates.com" target="_blank">www.WirzandAssociates.com</a>, enjoy his blog, <a href="http://www.IndyBaseballChatter.com" target="_blank">www.IndyBaseballChatter.com</a>, or comment to <a href="mailto:RWirz@aol.com"><span style="color: windowtext"><font color="#b22222">RWirz@aol.com.</font></span></a> The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=kdr5Oht7BKo:3bZ7HGZxcCg:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=kdr5Oht7BKo:3bZ7HGZxcCg:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The Ultimate Seven-Game Fall Classic: Game One</h1> <p>Mike Lynch — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:30:30 +0000</p> <p>With all due respect to the Philadelphia Phillies and grudging respect to the New York Yankees, the 2009 World Series hasn’t exactly been one for the ages.</p> <p>Don’t get me wrong, I commend both teams for their efforts, but the ‘09 Fall Classic had me scouring my copy of <em>Total Baseball</em> and navigating through <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com">baseball-reference.com</a> for the most competitive, intriguing, historic games in World Series history in an effort to come up with something more intriguing or exciting than what I just watched.</p> <p>I had no predetermined criteria going into this; I simply looked at the line scores, box scores, pitching matchups, and play-by-play accounts, then read brief descriptions of each game, looking for anything of interest. This list includes late or extra-inning come-from-behind victories, pitchers’ duels, back-and-forth slugfests with multiple lead changes, and historic moments. And it’s not composed of the seven most interesting or exciting games in World Series history, it’s composed of the most interesting and exciting Game Ones, Game Twos, Game Threes, and so on and so forth. There are no right or wrong answers here, only my own personal preferences.</p> <p>Each article will focus on one game at a time, from Game 1 to Game 7, and will feature my favorite one from each, followed by honorable mentions.</p> <p>Here is my favorite Game One:</p> <p><strong>October 15, 1988—Oakland A’s at Los Angeles Dodgers</strong>: The A’s, led by Bash Brothers Jose Canseco (.307/42/124 and 40 steals) and Mark McGwire (32 HR and 99 RBIs), 21-game winner Dave Stewart, and closer Dennis Eckersley, who led the league with 45 saves, cruised to a 104-58 record and made a mockery of the A.L. West, finishing 13 games ahead of the second-place Minnesota Twins. Then they pounded the Red Sox in the ALCS to earn their first World Series berth since 1974.</p> <p>The Dodgers were a less dominating, albeit still impressive, 94-67 and they needed seven games to dispatch the heavily favored N.L. East champion New York Mets in the NLCS to earn their second World Series berth of the decade. Offensively, the Dodgers weren’t nearly the equal of the A’s, boasting no .300 hitters or 100-RBI men, and only three players with 10 or more homers—Kirk Gibson, who led the team with 25, Mike Marshall, who belted 20, and John Shelby, who smacked 10. Like the A’s, the Dodgers boasted only one 20-game winner, Orel Hershiser, who went 23-8 with a 2.26 ERA, but had two other starters, Tim Leary and Tim Belcher, who sported ERAs under 3.00, both coming in at 2.91. And the Dodgers’ bullpen featured a closing tandem of Jay Howell and Alejandro Pena, who combined for 33 saves and a 1.98 ERA in almost 160 innings.</p> <p>As a team, the Dodgers scored 628 runs and averaged 3.9 per game; the A’s scored 798 runs and averaged almost five runs a game, giving them a clear advantage on offense. The entire Dodgers team hit only 99 four-baggers; Canseco, McGwire, and center fielder Dave Henderson (24) hit 98 by themselves, and the A’s belted 156 as a team.</p> <p>The pitching seemed to favor the Dodgers, who ranked second in the N.L. in ERA at 2.96 and runs allowed per game at 3.4, while the A’s, who also finished second in ERA and runs per game, weren’t as impressive at 3.44 and 3.8, respectively. But a closer look shows the A’s had a slight advantage in pitching as well, allowing .53 runs/game less than league average vs. the Dodgers’ mark of .52, and posting an ERA that was .54 runs better than average vs. the Dodgers’ mark of .49.</p> <p>The A’s were heavy favorites going into the Series and few thought the Dodgers could win. Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog insisted the Dodgers weren’t even the best team in the National League; Twins manager Tom Kelly predicted an A’s victory; and the A’s themselves, especially Canseco, were confident that they could dispatch L.A. in five games. “We’re on a roll; we’re enthused; and we’ve got lots of confidence,” the slugger told reporter Michael Martinez. Thomas Boswell of the <em>Washington Post</em> agreed. “They’re better. They’re hotter. They’re more rested. Their aim—a world title—has always been higher than the Dodgers’, who’ve been playing for respect, more than rings, all season.” Boswell predicted the A’s would win in five.</p> <p>Writer Phil Elderkin called the matchup a battle of the “resourceful Dodgers” vs. “Oakland’s power company” and wondered if the old adage about good pitching beating good hitting would apply. “Canseco, who hit three homers in the playoffs, is so strong that often he doesn’t even have to make good contact to ride the ball out of the park. Jose’s forearms are so massive that one could probably tattoo all of the Los Angeles freeway system on them.”</p> <p>Then Elderkin wrote something that proved prescient: “Barring the unexpected, this is a series that pits Oakland’s power, pitching, and defense against the Dodgers’ pitching, timely hitting, and hard-to-explain ability to overcome seemingly impossible odds.”</p> <p>The odds became even more “seemingly impossible” when Kirk Gibson, the beat up and battered star of the Dodgers, was unable to take batting practice the day before Game 1 due to a sore left hamstring and a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee. Gibson was the statistical and spiritual leader of the club, setting the tone early in the season when he went ballistic on the first day of spring training when pitcher Jesse Orosco smeared eye black on Gibson’s cap as a practical joke. It was mostly because of his leadership that Gibson was eventually named N.L. MVP despite posting numbers that were inferior to players like Daryl Strawberry of the Mets and Will Clark of the Giants.</p> <p>Gibson and Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda insisted that if there was any way Gibson could play, he would. “If he’s breathing, I think he’ll be playing,” said Lasorda. But the day of the game, Lasorda couldn’t pencil Gibson’s name into the starting lineup, breathing or not. “He can’t do it; he just can’t do it,” Lasorda told reporters. “I was hoping in the next two hours he would get well. It’s tough to lose him right now.”</p> <p>Instead of Gibson in left field, Lasorda went with his star’s polar opposite, the affable and fun-loving Mickey Hatcher, a 10-year veteran with a .282 career batting average, but only 36 homers in more than 3,000 career at-bats. Hatcher hit .293 in 1988 with only one home run in 191 at-bats, but Lasorda penciled Hatcher into the three hole, the same spot occupied by Canseco, the first 40-40 man in baseball history and that year’s runaway winner of the A.L. MVP award.</p> <p>Lasorda was also hamstrung in the pitching department after going with Hershiser in Game 7 of the NLCS. Not wanting to run his ace out there on only two days rest, Lasorda went with rookie Tim Belcher, who went 12-6 in 27 regular season starts, then beat the Mets twice in the playoffs. A’s manager Tony LaRussa had no such problem, as his ace, Dave Stewart, last threw in Game 4 of the ALCS on October 9 and was well rested.</p> <p>Belcher struggled early, loading the bases in the top of the first when he surrendered a single to Dave Henderson, hit Canseco with a pitch, and walked McGwire, but he coaxed catcher Terry Steinbach to fly out to Shelby in center field to end the inning without allowing a run. Stewart wasn’t sharp either; he hit Steve Sax in the middle of the back with his first pitch of the game, prompting home plate umpire Doug Harvey to issue warnings to both benches, then with Hatcher at the plate and one out, he balked Sax to second.</p> <p>Hatcher made Lasorda look like a genius when he deposited a Stewart offering into the left field seats for a two-run homer and gave the home crowd a show by running around the bases like his hair was on fire. In fact, he almost caught up to Sax, who couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Hatcher cross the plate right behind him. “Talk about surprise,” Sax said after the game. “I crossed the plate, turned around and there he was. I thought, ‘Where did he come from?”"</p> <p>“It was as if he thought they would suddenly change their minds and take it back,” said Dodgers third base coach Joey Amalfitano. “I should have slowed down and enjoyed it,” Hatcher admitted later. “But I don’t have a home run trot. I don’t have any experience at it.”</p> <p>Stewart got out of the inning without further damage and looked to his powerful teammates to come to his rescue. They didn’t disappoint. Glenn Hubbard singled, Walt Weiss struck out, and Stewart and Carney Lansford walked to load the bases. It clearly wasn’t Belcher’s day; he’d faced 10 batters and six had reached base via hit, walk, or hit by pitch. Pitching coach Ron Perranoski made a trip to the mound after the free pass to Stewart, then Lasorda had Tim Leary start warming up in the bullpen when Belcher fell behind Lansford. When Belcher fell behind Dave Henderson, southpaw Ricky Horton began warming up as well.</p> <p>The rookie recovered briefly and fanned Henderson, but he still had to face Canseco with the bases juiced and two outs. Belcher fell behind again, throwing a ball to Canseco on his first pitch. Then he threw one more to Canseco’s liking and the behemoth slugger lined a 400-foot shot over the center field fence for a grand slam to give Oakland a 4-2 lead. “There was no hang time,” wrote Larry Whiteside of the <em>Boston Globe</em>. “This was a rocket that only a man of amazing strength could hit.”</p> <p>“I still can’t believe how fast the ball got out of the park,” Lasorda said after the game. “He’s got an awesome swing. He just hit a line drive, and it was gone. After seeing him tonight, I can see how he hit 40 home runs.” Awesome swing or not, the homer proved to be Canseco’s only hit of the Series in 22 plate appearances.</p> <p>Belcher walked Dave Parker, drawing the ire of the home town faithful, then retired McGwire on a fielder’s choice grounder to short to end the inning, but Lasorda had seen enough and yanked the rookie from the game, pinch hitting Danny Heep in the bottom of the second. Stewart had little trouble with the Dodgers in the last of the second, surrendering a two-out single to Alfredo Griffin, before retiring Heep on a grounder to short.</p> <p>Tim Leary entered the game for the Dodgers in the top of the third and ran into immediate trouble when Steinbach hit a smash that third baseman Jeff Hamilton knocked down but couldn’t handle, then advanced to second on a basehit to left by Glenn Hubbard. But Leary worked out of the jam by retiring Walt Weiss on a fly ball to left, striking out Stewart, and coaxing Carney Lansford to ground out to short. Except for a two-out walk to Hatcher, Stewart handled the Dodgers again in the third and led 4-2 going into the fourth.</p> <p>Dave Henderson led off the fourth with a ground rule double into the right field corner, but thwarted the rally with poor baserunning when he got caught off second base on a Canseco grounder to Griffin at short. Henderson was tagged out during a brief rundown and the A’s had a man on first with one down and Parker at the plate. Keeping with the bad baserunning theme, Parker plunked a short grounder to the right side that was fielded by Leary, who drilled Parker in the right shoulder with his throw to first. Canseco advanced all the way to third and Parker went to second on the errant throw, but Harvey called Parker out for running out of the baseline, which brought Tony LaRussa out of the dugout for a futile argument.</p> <p>Canseco was sent back to first but wasn’t there long, stealing second base with McGwire at the plate. The move backfired when Lasorda ordered an intentional walk to McGwire and Leary fanned Steinbach to end the inning. Stewart and Leary traded three-up/three-downs in the bottom of the fourth and top of the fifth, respectively, but when Griffin walked to lead off the bottom of the fifth, Lasorda yanked Leary in favor of pinch hitter Tracy Woodson. But Stewart sandwiched two groundouts and a flyout around a wild pitch and the Dodgers stranded yet another runner on base.</p> <p>Lasorda went to his pen again in the sixth and brought righty Brian Holton into the game. The 28-year-old was in his fourth season, including a cup of coffee in 1985, and enjoyed a career year, going 7-3 with a save and a microscopic 1.70 ERA in 45 appearances. Holton was murder on right-handed batters, holding them to a .204 average and surrendering only eight extra-base hits in 159 plate appearances, and only Reds closer John Franco had a lower ERA among National League relievers. Holton wasted no time neutralizing Oakland’s power, retiring Lansford, Canseco, and Henderson on a lineout to center and two groundouts to the left side.</p> <p>The Dodgers finally parlayed runners into a run in the bottom of the sixth courtesy of consecutive singles by Mike Marshall, John Shelby, and Mike Scioscia, which cut the score to 4-3 in favor of the A’s, but Stewart survived without further damage when Jeff Hamilton grounded into an inning-ending 5-3 double play. Both teams reached base again in the seventh, but both stranded runners at second and the A’s clung to their slim 4-3 lead.</p> <p>Lasorda summoned Alejandro Pena into the game to start the eighth. Pena was in his eighth year in the league, all with the Dodgers, and bounced around between the bullpen and the rotation, before enjoying two successful years as a starter in 1983, when he finished fifth in the N.L. with a 2.75 ERA, and 1984, when he led the league with a mark of 2.48. He underwent rotator cuff surgery in 1985, pitched mostly out of the bullpen in ‘86-’87, and became a full-time reliever in 1988, posting a 1.91 ERA in 60 appearances and recording a then career-high 12 saves.</p> <p>Pena had no trouble with the A’s, retiring Weiss, Stewart, and Lansford in order; Stewart returned the favor in the bottom of the frame, striking out Hatcher, popping up Marshall, and getting Shelby to fly out to Canseco in right. Pena accepted the challenge and fanned Henderson and Canseco to start off the top of the ninth, surrendered a single to Stan Javier, who had pinch run for Parker earlier in the game, then retired McGwire on a foul fly to right, setting up one of the most exciting finishes in baseball history.</p> <p>With the A’s clinging to a one-run lead, LaRussa went to his bullpen and summoned closer Dennis Eckersley into the game. Stewart was in command and had thrown only 98 pitches, but Eckersley had established himself as the best closer in the junior circuit, pacing all A.L. relievers in saves, baserunners/9 IP, hits/9 IP, and K/BB ratio, and finished among the top four in K/9 IP and ERA. He had 45 saves on the year, a 2.35 ERA, and 70 strikeouts in 72 2/3 innings, but what was most impressive is that he walked only 11 batters all year, and two of those were intentional. He was also equally effective against righties and lefties, holding the former to a .197 average and two homers in 148 plate appearances, and the latter to a .198 average and three homers in 131 plate appearances.</p> <p>“…most of the crowd had watched their beloved Dodgers looking feeble against the Athletics for eight innings,” wrote Whiteside. “Dave Stewart had scattered six hits, and with The Eck on deck, this was like money in the bank.”</p> <p>Eckersley was coming off a masterful performance, in which he saved all four A’s victories over the Red Sox in the ALCS, allowing only one hit in six innings, while fanning five, and was named MVP of the series. He showed the Dodgers how valuable he was to the A’s when he retired Scioscia and Hamilton on five pitches, popping Scioscia up to Weiss and whiffing Hamilton on three straight offerings. With Griffin due up and Los Angeles down to their last out, Lasorda called on lefty swinger Mike Davis to pinch hit.</p> <p>Davis had been drafted by the A’s out of San Diego’s Hoover High School in the third round of the 1977 amateur draft and reached the majors in 1980 at only 21 years old. He played sparingly until 1983 when he became the A’s starting right fielder and backed up Dwayne Murphy on occasion in center. He blossomed in 1985, hitting .287 with 24 home runs, 82 RBIs, and 24 steals, and averaged 22 homers, 70 RBIs, and 23 steals from ‘85-’87 before signing with the Dodgers as a free agent prior to the ‘88 season. Davis struggled mightily in his first season in L.A., batting only .196 with two homers and 17 RBIs in 108 games, and he wasn’t much better against righties, hitting only .203, although with both homers and 10 of his 17 ribbies.</p> <p>With the quick-working Eckersley on the mound, Lasorda told Davis to disrupt his timing by stepping out of the box. Then Lasorda deked the A’s by having right-handed hitting utility infielder Dave Anderson swing a bat in the on-deck circle. Anderson was a .232 career hitter with 12 home runs in almost 1,500 career at-bats, and Lasorda figured that when Eckersley saw Anderson getting ready to hit, he’d pitch around Davis to get to the light-hitting righty.</p> <p>Davis fouled off Eckersley’s first offering, then did as instructed, frequently stepping out of the box and throwing off Eckersley’s timing. “The guy’s hitting a buck ninety—what the hell’s he doing calling time?” the closer asked later. Then Eck threw four straight balls and walked him. “I wasn’t pitching around him,” Eckersley insisted. “Not at all. I was going right at him. Everything was away. It just went ball-ball-ball.”</p> <p>He had faced 302 batters in the regular season, ALCS, and World Series to that point and had walked only 11 of them. Davis was the 12th and it would come back to haunt Eckersley and the A’s. “[Davis] kept stepping out,” Eckersley said after the game. “It upset my concentration. I like to work quickly.”</p> <p>Meanwhile, unbeknown to most, Kirk Gibson had sent word to Lasorda that he wanted to play and began limbering up in the clubhouse at the start of the inning. With two strikes on Hamilton, Jack Buck announced “Gibson is in the dugout fondling a bat; we might see him before this game is over.” But when Davis came on to pinch hit for Griffin and Anderson took his spot in the on-deck circle, it looked like Gibson would remain firmly planted on the Dodgers’ bench. Once Davis reached base, though, Anderson gave way to Gibson, who received a thunderous ovation from the crowd as he limped his way to the plate.</p> <p>“It was a cheer of hope, but not one born of reality,” wrote the <em>Houston Chronicle’s</em> Fran Blinebury. “Not if you looked at the cold hard facts and didn’t believe in Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy.”</p> <p>No one in the stadium was more shocked than Buck, who insisted it would be impossible for Gibson to hit. But the slugger had been pacing back and forth between the clubhouse and the trainer’s room, icing his knee, which had already been injected with cortisone, and taking swings in the batting cage, and he was ready.</p> <p>Eckersley came right after Gibson with a fastball, which the slugger fouled off, then hobbled out of the box. The closer would later explain that due to Gibson’s condition, he wanted to go with nothing but fastballs away to try to coax him to hit a weak fly ball to left. With the crowd on its feet imploring their hero to perform a miracle, Gibson stepped back into the box and awaited Eck’s next offering. The pitcher alternated between throwing to first to keep Davis close and throwing to the plate, and when he came home, Gibson fouled that off too and the count went to 0-2. “When I got two strikes against me, I tried to buckle down, even though my knee was hurting,” Gibson would later explain. “I just wanted to make contact.”</p> <p>A couple more tosses to first preceded Eckersley’s next pitch, which Gibson hit weakly down the first base line, then feebly limped towards first before the ball rolled foul. “Gibson can hardly run at all,” Buck announced. “They were such bad swings, you could feel Gibson’s pain from the upper deck,” wrote Jayson Stark of the <em>Philadelphia Inquirer</em>. “You watched him limp around between pitches, flexing his sore knee. You wondered what he was even doing out there.”</p> <p>Eckersley’s next pitch was a ball, but the game almost ended when catcher Ron Hassey, who’d entered the game in the bottom of the ninth for defensive purposes, threw a bullet to first that almost caught Davis before he scrambled back safely to the bag.</p> <p>On Eckersley’s next pitch, Davis took off for second, but Gibson fouled it away. Then Eck came back with a high fastball that Gibson took for ball two. Eckersley threw over to first one more time, then came to the plate. Gibson took the pitch for ball three and Davis took second base without a throw. Now, with a runner in scoring position, Gibson slightly adjusted his approach. “Mike’s stolen base was huge because all I had to think about was shortening my swing and trying to get a hit to score him,” Gibson explained.</p> <p>With first base open, LaRussa chose to pitch to Gibson rather than have Eckersley walk him and face the on-deck batter, Steve Sax. “I knew they had a tough hitter in the on-deck circle,” LaRussa said. “And I figured the best thing to do was have Dennis go right at [Gibson].” Whether LaRussa knew it or not, Sax had been money with runners in scoring position that year, batting .350, and was especially dangerous with two outs, batting .419 with a .520 on-base percentage. Besides, the A’s skipper wasn’t about to put the winning run on base.</p> <p>After feeding Gibson a steady diet of fastballs, Hassey called for a slider. “We had been throwing him all those fastballs, and I felt like we could freeze him with the breaking ball,” the catcher later explained. Eckersley wanted to keep throwing smoke, but didn’t shake off his catcher and decided to throw the nastiest slider he could. But it got too much of the plate.</p> <p>Here’s Jack Buck’s call:</p> <p style="margin: 10px auto; display: block; text-align: center"></p> <p id="1_3efa1bc0_c9c3_11de_bba7_0015c5f4d4ea_anchor" style="font-size: 8px; color: black; text-decoration: none; display: block; text-align: center"><a href="http://www.entertonement.com/clips/kysprpbklw--Jack-Buck-calls-Kirk-Gibson's-Home-RunBaseball-Los-Angeles-Dodgers-World-Series-Kirk-Gibson-" style="font-size: 8px; color: black" target="_blank">Jack Buck calls Kirk Gibson’s Home Run sound bite</a> <a href="http://www.entertonement.com/collections/539/Baseball?ht_link=1_3efa1bc0_c9c3_11de_bba7_0015c5f4d4ea" style="font-size: 8px; color: black" target="_blank">Baseball sound bites</a></p> <p></p> <p>“But, we have a big 3-2 pitch coming here from Eckersley. Gibson swings, and a fly ball to deep right field! This is gonna be a home run! Unbelievable! A home run for Gibson! And the Dodgers have won the game, 5 to 4; I don’t believe what I just saw! I don’t believe what I just saw! Is this really happening, Bill? One of the most remarkable finishes to any World Series Game…a one-handed home run by Kirk Gibson! And the Dodgers have won it…five to four; and I’m stunned, Bill. I have seen a lot of dramatic finishes in a lot of sports, but this one might top almost every other one.”</p> <p>“Gibson, with one blow, restored the magic usually reserved for such things as Disneyland and Alice in Wonderland,” wrote Whiteside. “Who would have thought that a man, hobbled by injuries and unable to run, would be able to come through in the clutch against Oakland’s Dennis Eckersley.”</p> <p>“It was a great moment,” Gibson said after the game. “And I felt fortunate to be there and be a part of it. This was a classic.”</p> <p>Indeed it was.</p> <p><strong>Honorable Mentions</strong>:</p> <p><strong>October 4, 1924—New York Giants at Washington Senators</strong>: Washington hurler Walter Johnson, arguably the greatest pitcher of all time, leads his upstart Senators to their first World Series in franchise history to face the powerful John McGraw-led Giants, who have won 10 N.L. pennants and three World Series titles since 1904, and four pennants and two championships in the previous five years.</p> <p>The 36-year-old Johnson, at that time an 18-year veteran, goes 23-7 with a 2.72 ERA during the regular season, and wins the pitching equivalent of the triple crown, leading the junior circuit in wins, Era, and strikeouts, as well as winning percentage, starts, and shutouts. The Giants counter with 31-year-old southpaw Art Nehf, who goes 14-4 with a 3.62 ERA and leads the National League in nothing, although he finishes third in winning percentage and K/9 IP.</p> <p>Johnson fans six Giants through four innings and allows only four hits, but two of them are homers, a solo shot by George “Highpockets” Kelly in the second, and a solo blast by Bill Terry in the fourth, both of which land in temporary seats built in front of the left field bleachers to accomodate the overflow crowd. Nehf allows only one hit and walks three through five, but keeps the Senators off the board. Washington finally scores in the sixth on a double and two groundouts to pull to within 2-1, then both pitchers buckle down. Johnson surrenders six more hits and three walks and fans three from the fifth to the ninth, but keeps the Giants scoreless, thanks in part to a perfect throw from right fielder Sam Rice to catcher Muddy Ruel to cut down Hack Wilson at the plate to end the top of the ninth.</p> <p>Nehf also goes unscathed until the bottom of the ninth, when the Senators tie the score at 2-2 on a one-out single by Ossie Bluege and an RBI double to left by Roger Peckinpaugh. Both teams put runners on base in the 10th, but fail to score, and neither gets a man on in the 11th. The Giants take control in the top of the 12th when two walks and a single load the bases with no outs. Frankie Frisch grounds out to Bucky Harris at second, who fires a strike to Ruel to cut down the go-ahead run, but Ross Youngs follows with a run-scoring single, and Kelly belts a sac fly to left to give the Giants a 4-2 lead.</p> <p>The Senators score an unearned run in the bottom of the 12th to cut the score to 4-3 and it looks like they’re going to tie or win the game when Rice slaps a hit to center field to put runners at first and third with only one out and cleanup hitter Goose Goslin coming to the plate. But Rice sees center fielder Billy Southworth bobble the ball and decides to try for second, where he’s gunned down for the second out of the inning. Goslin grounds out to second to end the game.</p> <p>Both pitchers go the distance and Johnson ties Ed Walsh’s record for strikeouts in a World Series game by fanning 12 (Walsh accomplished his feat in only nine innings, however).</p> <p><strong>October 21, 2000—New York Mets at New York Yankees</strong>: In a battle of southpaws, 16-game winner Al Leiter of the Mets goes up against 19-game winner Andy Pettitte of the Yankees for Big Apple bragging rights. Both hurlers are up to the task; Pettitte throws six scoreless innings, allowing five hits, hitting a batter, and striking out four, and breaths a sigh of relief when Mets runner Timo Perez fails to hustle on a Todd Zeile double to left and is thrown out at the plate by a relay throw from Derek Jeter to Jorge Posada.</p> <p>Perez, thinking Zeile’s hit is going out of the park, jogs towards second base and loses valuable time and distance before turning on the speed and trying to score, but the damage is already done and he’s nailed for the final out of the inning. It’s one of many baserunning gaffes the Mets make in this game. Meanwhile Leiter is virtually unhittable through five, allowing only two safeties and a walk, while striking out five, but the Yankees finally reach him for a two spot in the bottom of the sixth, courtesy of a single, a walk, and a two-run double off the bat of David Justice.</p> <p>The Mets take the lead in the top of the seventh, though, on a bases loaded single by Bubba Trammell that knocks in two runs, and an RBI single by Edgardo Alfonzo off relief pitcher Jeff Nelson to make the score 3-2. Neither team scores again until the bottom of the ninth when Mets closer Armando Benitez loads the bases with one out, then surrenders a sacrifice fly to Chuck Knoblauch to tie the game at 3-3. Benitez fans Jeter to end the threat and the game goes into extra innings.</p> <p>Yankees closer Mariano Rivera tames the Mets in the top of the 10th, then Dennis Cook and Glendon Rusch walk a tight rope in the bottom of the inning, loading the bases again, but a shallow fly to left and a double play grounder get the Mets out of the inning. Mike Stanton shuts the Mets down in the top of the 11th, then Rusch gets into trouble again, surrendering a one-out single and walk, then throws a wild pitch that puts Yankees on second and third before Turk Wendell comes to the rescue and gets Glenallen Hill to fly out to right.</p> <p>Stanton handles the Mets again in the top of the 12th, fanning Perez and Alfonzo to end the inning, but Wendell can’t do the same in the bottom of the 12th. Tino Martinez singles with one out, and Posada doubles to put runners at second and third. Paul O’Neill is intentionally walked to load the bases, and Wendell coaxes Luis Sojo into a popup that catcher Todd Pratt corrals for the second out. But Jose Vizcaino wins the game for the Yanks with a liner to left that plates Martinez for a 4-3 victory.</p> <p>The game takes 4 hours and 51 minutes to play, making it the longest game (by time) in World Series history until it’s supplanted by Game 3 of the 2005 World Series, which takes 5 hours and 41 minutes to play.</p> <p><strong>Other Notables</strong>:</p> <p><strong>October 8, 1912—Boston Red Sox at New York Giants</strong>: Red Sox fireballer Joe Wood fans 11 Giants and Boston scores three runs in the top of the seventh to overcome a 3-1 deficit and win 4-3.</p> <p><strong>October 10, 1923—New York Giants at New York Yankees</strong>: Giants outfielder Casey Stengel hits an inside the park home run in the top of the ninth, breaking a 4-4 tie and leading the Giants to a 5-4 win. Neither starter throws more than 2 1/3 innings, but relievers Rosy Ryan of the Giants and Joe Bush of the Yankees combine for 13 2/3 innings of two-run ball, both allowing one run apiece.</p> <p><strong>October 8, 1929—Philadelphia Athletics at Chicago Cubs</strong>: Athletics manager Connie Mack shocks the baseball world when he tabs 35-year-old nearly washed up Howard Ehmke as his Game 1 starter over his aces Lefty Grove and George Earnshaw. Ehmke, a former 20-game winner with a career record of 166-165 going into the game, has made only eight starts and three relief appearances all year, but is 7-2 with a 3.29 ERA. Still, he faces a powerful Cubs team that batted .303 as a team and scored just shy of 1,000 runs.</p> <p>But his unorthodox delivery and lack of a decent fastball throws the Cubs hitters off and he keeps them scoreless until the bottom of the ninth, when they finally tally a run. He caps off his brilliant performance by striking out Chick Tolson to finish with a then-record 13 whiffs in the 3-1 victory, his last win in a major league uniform.</p> <p><strong>October 5, 1949—Brooklyn Dodgers at New York Yankees</strong>: 17-game winners Allie Reynolds and Don Newcombe lock horns for eight-and-a-half scoreless innings before Tommy Henrich leads off the bottom of the ninth with a solo homer to right for a thrilling 1-0 victory for the Yankees. Reynolds allows only two hits and strikes out nine for the complete game victory; Newcombe surrenders five hits, walks none, and fans 11 in the loss.</p> <p><strong>September 29, 1954—Cleveland Indians at New York Giants</strong>: Indians slugger Vic Wertz goes 4-for-5 with a double, a triple, and two RBIs, but is robbed of a hit in the top of the eighth when Giants center fielder Willie Mays races back on a deep drive and makes a spectacular over-the-shoulder catch about 420 feet from home plate. The catch and subsequent pitching by Marv Grissom keeps Cleveland from breaking open a 2-2 game and the contest ends up going extra innings. In the bottom of the 10th, Bob Lemon walks Mays and Hank Thompson, then surrenders a game-winning three-run homer to pinch hitter Dusty Rhodes.</p> <p><strong>October 2, 1968—Detroit Tigers at St. Louis Cardinals</strong>: Cardinals ace Bob Gibson continues his magical season by striking out a World Series record 17 Tigers en route to a complete-game, five-hit shutout, which the Cards win 4-0.</p> <p><strong>October 11, 1977—Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Yankees</strong>: The Yankees cling to a 3-2 lead going into the top of the ninth, but closer Sparky Lyle surrenders a game-tying single to Lee Lacy in relief of Don Gullett, and the game goes into extra innings. Lyle atones for his blown save by shutting down the Dodgers for the next three innings, allowing no hits or walks and striking out two. Rick Rhoden, a starter and 16-game winner during the regular season, enters the game in the bottom of the 12th and promptly loses it, giving up a double to Willie Randolph, a walk to Thurman Munson, and a game-winning single to Paul Blair in the Yankees’ 4-3 win.</p> <p><em>On Deck—The Ultimate Seven-Game Fall Classic: Game Two</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=8CneoaswO5E:UgEhdjZ3jiQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=8CneoaswO5E:UgEhdjZ3jiQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Twigs For the Stove</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 19:33:22 +0000</p> <p>First off, congratulations to the Yankees. I’m not a Yankee hater, due to their tradition mainly. I’m not big on the fact that they spent so much and won, but when you look at how often they spent a ton and lost, you can see that’s not completely the reasoning. Besides, it’s been nine years. While that’s not that long for a lot of teams, it does mean that there’s been plenty of other winners this decade. Interesting that both old Yankee Stadium and the new place were christened with championships. Of course, only one other team has done that, and we remember it well.</p> <p>There have been just a few small items that were Cardinal related in the news lately. First, the Blue Jays <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/11/blue-jays-claim-hoffpauir-from-cardinals.html">claimed Jarrett Hoffpauir</a> off waivers. Hoffpauir continues the interesting “former Cardinal” theme the Jays have had recently. (After they got Scott Rolen and David Eckstein, a friend of mine who has family there stated there were shirts proclaiming the “St. Toronto Blue Cardinals.”) Hoffpauir’s window effectively closed when Skip Schumaker made an effective transition to second. Factor in Julio Lugo being around all year and Hoffpauir wasn’t going to sniff playing time. He’d slipped in the prospect rankings anyway, but if he gets a chance in Toronto he might be a servicable backup.</p> <p>The Pirates are interested in <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/11/pirates-talk-iwamura-ankiel-wilson.html">talking to Rick Ankiel</a>. We all know that Rick is going to go somewhere else after this season; it’s almost guaranteed. A situation like Pittsburgh would actually be a good place for him. He could work on being a hitter, probably put up some solid numbers in that park, and not have to worry about carrying a team or being a piece toward a post-season puzzle. With him, Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones in the outfield, Pittsburgh would have a pretty interesting offense.</p> <p>Not unexpectedly, the Cardinals <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/11/cardinals-release-brad-thompson.html">released Brad Thompson yesterday</a>. I’ve noted many times how Thompson’s effectiveness had declined pretty much every year. If he can’t get the sinker over and get the ground balls, he gets lit up. With the bullpen being pretty defined already, there wasn’t much of a spot for him anyway, and since he was going to be eligible for arbitration, it’s best to get it out of the way now. Thompson did have highlights as a Cardinal and he’ll always be remembered, but it was time to part ways.</p> <p>Finally, Joe Strauss indicated that there have been <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/11/cardinals-boras-discuss-holliday-deal.html">discussions between the Cardinals and Scott Boras</a>. It sounds like it was more of a presentation of an initial offer rather than real in-depth negotiations for the rights to Matt Holliday, but it’s a start.</p> <p>With the World Series over, things should start heating up soon. Mark McGwire will probably talk next week, if I was to guess. I know that they’d held off making him available to the press until the Series was done. Probably early next week, maybe the week after. (The cynical would guess the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to minimize some of the talk, but I doubt that’ll happen–or it’d work.)</p> <p>15 days from now, the free agents have to file. I think we’d all be shocked if the Cards were able to keep Holliday before that time, but it’s something to keep an eye on. I know they want to use this exclusive window as much as they possibly can. The winter meetings will be held Dec. 7-10 in Indianapolis, so there will probably be a lot of talk leading up to that.</p> <p>The offseason is here! Let’s see what the Cardinals do with it!</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a></em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=t3iGpU0JgKs:48jJZ5csx5o:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=t3iGpU0JgKs:48jJZ5csx5o:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Baseball Steeped in Autumn in the Bronx</h1> <p>Alfonso L. Tusa C. — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:04:25 +0000</p> <p>Las finales de los torneos deportivos, guardan grandes alforjas de tensión y emociones ante la inminencia de título campeonil. La Serie Mundial de las Grandes Ligas, casi siempre está revestida de esas escenas de suspenso como la atrapada de Willie Mays en el primer juegoi de la serie de 1954, la atrapada de Sandy Amorós en el séptimo partido del Clásico de 1955, el jonrón de Billy Mazeroski en el séptimo juego de la serie de 1960, la línea de Willie McCovey que se incrustó en el guante de Bobby Richardson para terminar la serie de 1962, las dos atrapadas del centerfielder Tommie Agee en el tercer juego del Clásico de 1969, la cátedra de fildeo de Brooks Robinson en la antesala de los Orioles en 1970, el coraje de Roberto Clemente en 1971, el jonrón infartante de Carlton Fisk en el sexto juego de la serie de 1975, el duelo de pitcheo entre John Smoltz y Jack Morris para decidir la serie de 1991 a favor de los Mellizos ante los Bravos, el hit de bate quebrado con que Luis González derrotó a Mariano Rivera y los Yanquis en el séptimo juego del clásico de 2001. Son momentos que paralizan el tiempo por segundos y todo lo que se respira es césped, resina de pino, guantes, pelotas raspadas, gorras sudadas, cuando por momentos se quita la mirada del televisor, se puede ver el estadio en pleno sobre las paredes o el techo de la casa y cuando vamos a la cocina pareciera que corriéramos hacia el montículo, o de primera a segunda.</p> <p>Eso más o menos fue lo que experimenté en el juego de anoche, 02 de noviembre de 2009, el quinto de esta serie de 2009, cuando los Yanquis trataban de rematar a los Filis. Cliff Lee a pesar de no estar en su mejor noche, contuvo a los mulos en 5 carreras y Chase Utley descargó dos toletazos allende las cercas para llevar la serie de vuelta al Bronx y abrir un capítulo de interrogantes de cara al sexto juego.</p> <p>La primera es ¿podrá Andy Pettite responder al reto de lanzar con tres días de descanso? Es la primera vez que lo intenta este año. El manager Joe Girardi tomó una decisión discutible al designar a A.J. Burnett con sólo 3 días de descanso para lanzar el quinto juego, dependiendo del resultado de la serie, Girardi pudiera ser muy criticado por los analistas del juego. Ningún campeón ha ganado la serie con tres abridores desde 1991 cuando ganaron los Mellizos de Minnesota, entonces sólo se jugaban dos rondas de play offs. Por otro lado ¿Será capaz Pedro Martínez de silenciar a la explosiva alineación de los Yanquis? Hace rato que no puede quitarse de encima los cánticos de los aficionados del Bronx que dicen : “I’m still your Papi”. ¿Hará olvidar Brett Gardner a Melky Cabrera en el jardín central de los neoyorkinos? Pareciera que cuenta con los argumentos para hacerlo. ¿Explotará finalmente la garrocha de Ryan Howard? De hacerlo la serie va a llegar al máximo de su intensidad. ¿Podrá Chase Utley dejar atras a Reggie Jackson como el mayor jonronero en una Serie Mundial? Tiene la inspiración. ¿Contarán los Filis con las agallas necesarias para ganar dos juegos en Yankee Stadium donde los mulos sólo encajaron dos derrotas seguidas una sola vez desde mediados de junio?</p> <p>Todo esto hará que cuando encendamos el televisor para ver el sexto juego sólo respiremos una mezcla de arcilla con grama, de guantes con pelotas, de intensidad con pundonor, de emociones y gritos de las tribunas.</p> <p><strong>English Translation</strong></p> <p>The finals of the sports contests, hide great bags of tension and emotions before the imminence of the championship title. The World Series of Major League Baseball, almost always is coated with many of these suspense scenes like Willie Mays’ catch in the first game of the 1954 series, Sandy Amorós catch in the seventh game of the 1955 Classic, Billy Mazeroski’s homerun in the seventh game of the 1960 series, Willie McCovey’s line drive that almost took off Bobby Richardson’s glove to end the 1962 series, those two fantastic catches by Tommie Agee in the third game of the 1969 Classic, the fielding clinic dictated by Brooks Robinson in the hot corner of the Baltimore Orioles in the 1970 series, Roberto Clemente’s courage in the 1971 classic, the cardiac dinger of Carlton Fisk in the sixth game of the 1975 series, the pitching duel between John Smoltz and Jack Morris to define the 1991 classic, the cracked bat hit by Luis González before Mariano Rivera to give Arizona the 2001 series. Those are moments that stop the time for seconds and everything breathed is grass, pine tar, gloves, etched baseballs, sweat caps. When you move your eyes from the TV set for a while, you can watch the whole game on the walls or the ceiling and when you go to the kitchen it seems like if you were running to the mound, or from first to second base.</p> <p>That’s in some way what I experienced in last night’s game, November 2nd, 2009. The fifth of the World Series. When the Yankees tried to win it all. But the Phillies with Cliff Lee, in spite of not having his best command, who could kept the Yanks in five runs. And Chase Utley hit two home runs to send the series back to the Bronx and open a whole chapter of questions in front of the sixth game.</p> <p>The first one is: Will Andy Pettite be able of having a good performance with only three days of rest? It’s the first time he’ll try to do it this year. The manager Joe Girardi took a hard decision by designing A.J. Burnett to pitch the fifth game with only three days of rest. Depending on the result of the series Girardi could be reprobated by the game’s analysts. Since 1991, when the Minnesota Twins got the championship, no team has won the series with just three starters, by those days there were only two play offs rounds. In the other hand: Will Pedro Martínez have the stamina to silence the explosive bats of the New York Yankees? He still can’t stop the shouts and banners in Yankee Stadium that say: “I’m still your Papi”. Will Brett Gardner susbstitute Melky Cabrera in such a superb way? It seems that he has the tools to do it. Will Ryan Howard finally make explode his bat? If he can do it the series will reach the top of its intensity. Will Chase Utley leave behind Reggie Jackson as the home run leader of a single World Series? He has the inspiration. Will the Phillies have enough guts to win two games at Yankee Stadium, where the Yanks have only lost two consecutive games just once since mid June?</p> <p>All of this will make us to breath a mix of clay with grass, gloves with baseballs, great plays and hustle, emotions and shouts from the stands, once we turn on the TV set.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=dcgBjKiONuE:MpzApDohyew:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=dcgBjKiONuE:MpzApDohyew:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>“POD ’10” – ’Birds of a Feather Flock Together</h1> <p>Kurt Hunzeker — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:00:30 +0000</p> <p><em>This is now the very definition of “fantasy baseball.” In case any new onlookers sees this for the first time, I want to clearly state that none of the following is true, factual or even remotely going to happen. This is purely a “what if”/hypothetical case study of what the birth of a new Minor League Baseball team could be like leading up to Opening Day 2010….</em></p> <p>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE<br /> <strong>Cardinals fortify Minor League operations closer to St. Louis; buys and moves Class A team to Columbia, Mo.</strong></p> <p>COLUMBIA, Mo. (November 3, 2009) – The St. Louis Cardinals today announced the purchase and relocation of the Class A Midwest League Beloit Snappers to Columbia (Mo.) for the 2010 season. The franchise will be called the “Columbia Cardinals” and play at Taylor Stadium.</p> <p>In addition, the St. Louis Cardinals transferred its Player Development Contract (PDC) with the Class A Quad Cities River Bandits to the Minnesota Twins in exchange for the PDC with the new Columbia franchise. St. Louis’ PDC with Columbia now runs indefinitely due to its ownership of the affiliate.</p> <p>“As we continue to maximize efficiencies within our baseball operations department, we look for opportunities to bring affiliates closer to St. Louis,” said Bill DeWitt III, President of the St. Louis Cardinals. “By placing our Midwest League team in Columbia, we consolidate our on-field operations while also providing a new outlet for Cardinal fans in mid-Missouri to enjoy our brand of baseball when they cannot make it to games at Busch Stadium.”</p> <p>The Columbia Cardinals join other full-season, St. Louis affiliates within a 4.5-hour drive from Busch Stadium: Class AAA Memphis Redbirds and Class AA Springfield (Mo.) Cardinals. The Palm Beach Cardinals, St. Louis’ Class A-Advanced affiliate in the Florida State League, plays at St. Louis’ Spring Training complex in Jupiter, Fla.</p> <p>To lead the “Baby ’Birds” – as some within the organization have already begun to dub the new team, Columbia hired University of Missouri alum Kurt Hunzeker as its first General Manager. Hunzeker previously served as a consultant for a previous attempt to bring affiliated baseball to Columbia in 2005.</p> <p>“I have always maintained that Columbia is an ideal Minor League Baseball market for numerous reasons,” Hunzeker said. “The smartest affiliation is obviously with St. Louis, considering the fact that Mid-Missouri is deep in the heart of ‘Cardinal Nation.’”</p> <p>As the closest affiliate to St. Louis, Columbia should also benefit from having big-league rehab assignments come through Taylor Stadium in 2010. St. Louis has shown a penchant to send big leaguers to Springfield more than Memphis in recent years for rehab assignments due to proximity.</p> <p>With the relocation to Columbia, the Midwest League expands its boundaries again after extending further eastward and to the south with the addition of the Lake County (Eastlake, Ohio) Captains and Bowling Green (Ky.) Hot Rods, respectively. The Captains and Hot Rods will transition from the South Atlantic League beginning in 2010.</p> <p>Hunzeker announced that the Columbia Cardinals will unveil its full brand identity package and unveil a first-of-its-kind partnership in sports later this week.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=vYGV2IB-VDk:_KNXyc95QB0:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=vYGV2IB-VDk:_KNXyc95QB0:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>“POD ’10” – Expanding Opportunities</h1> <p>Kurt Hunzeker — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:18:28 +0000</p> <p>While Major League Baseball teams are consolidating their Minor League affiliates and bringing them closer to the big-league markets (what I like to call “Project Come Home”), Minor League Baseball continues to expand its opportunities to tap into new markets and revenue streams (“Project Expand Horizons” sounds right).</p> <p>And in 2010, these two, competing operational considerations continue to gain momentum.</p> <p>One of the greatest challenges for this fictional franchise birth was the existence of the Player Development Contracts (PDC). My targeted team-to-move, the Beloit Snappers, recently signed an extension for its PDC with the Minnesota Twins through 2012, and the deal makes sense for both Beloit (the closest MLB team to Beloit not named Milwaukee) and the Twins (a relatively close affiliate to the Twin Cities).</p> <p>But “trading teams” and “trading PDCs” just don’t happen in MiLB. As I was trying to find a solution to this last remaining puzzle piece for my fictional case study – and I have been stuck on this since Opening Day 2009 – a beautiful story came across the wire last Thursday:</p> <p>“Pirates, Reds to swap affiliates”</p> <p>With the news that the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds traded their High Class A affiliates (Lynching and Sarasota, with the ex-Reds relocating to Bradenton), the door blocking my idea came flying off its hinges. Everything I thought I could do with this hypothetical idea – but couldn’t lacking a precedent – became an instant possibility. And trading affiliations within the same League should be easier to gain approval and execute than what the Pirates and Reds have to do with Sarasota/Bradenton (Florida State League) and Lynchburg (Carolina League).</p> <p>Two other aspects of this affiliate-switch hammers home my theoretical takeover of Beloit: 1) Pittsburgh is purchasing the now-Bradenton franchise and will own the team outright, and 2) the former Sarasota franchise ranked amongst the lowest of all MiLB teams in attendance in 2009.</p> <p>The Pirates are jumping on the “Project Come Home” bandwagon by bringing an affiliate to its Spring Training home in Bradenton.</p> <p>Pirates President Frank Coonelly outlined all of the benefits having a team in Bradenton will provide: “If completed, the move will allow us to take even greater advantage of McKechnie Field and our new Pirate City facilities. In addition to the benefits to our Minor League players and our development staff, the move of our High-A team to Bradenton would allow us to have rehabbing Major League players begin their return to work in Bradenton, where we have our rehab coordinator and rehab facilities.”</p> <p>And it is not like anyone in Sarasota is going to miss the Reds. The team ranked dead last (176 of 176) in all of Minor League Baseball in average attendance with a grand total of 527 per game; so the bar is not set very high for Bradenton in 2010.</p> <p>Beloit actually increased its average attendance in 2009 – up 2% to 1,264 per game. Unfortunately, that still ranks as second-to-last in the Midwest League (Burlington) and 154th in all of MiLB. What also doesn’t help Beloit’s cause is its estimated population is just a bit more than 37,000, or about four times more than what the attendance-leading Columbus Clippers averaged per game last year.</p> <p>On the opposite but still-parallel path, the Midwest League will expand its territory in 2010 into eastern Ohio and Kentucky with the addition of the Lake County Captains and Bowling Green Hot Rods.</p> <p>Prior to this expansion, the longest bus trip between markets was 8 hours and 28 minutes between Midland (MI) and both Burlington (IA) and Cedar Rapids (IA). The addition of Bowling Green (KY – the southernmost market) and Eastlake (OH – the new eastern edge of the League) extends those drive times across the league. The Appleton (WI) to Bowling Green shuttle is 9 hours and 47 minutes.</p> <p>With the remaining roadblocks now rendered obsolete, it is time to liquidate the Snappers’ remaining merchandise and pack the moving vans for a 6-hour, 44-minute drive south to a new home in the middle of a Nation….</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=FoSlrB_Rn_w:s8s3eJ7cYDY:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=FoSlrB_Rn_w:s8s3eJ7cYDY:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>All-Time Infields: 2009 Yankees and Phillies Are in the Discussion</h1> <p>Tom Stone — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 21:36:30 +0000</p> <p>The 2009 baseball championship is underway, Yankees vs. Phillies. A few weeks ago the sports editor for my city’s local paper, Bob Matthews of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, <a href="http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20090927/SPORTS0101/909270343/1007/SPORTS/Buffalo+Bills+better+off+at+QB+than+many+others">noted how strong the Yankees infield is this year </a>(defined as 1B, 2B, 3B, and SS — not including catcher). But now with the Phillies as their opponent, it is interesting to note that they too have a strong infield foursome. Here are the numbers from this year for these eight players:</p> <p><strong>Yankees 2009:<br /> </strong>1B: Mark Teixeira (.292, 39 HR, 122 RBI, .383 OBP)<br /> 2B: Robinson Cano (.320, 25 HR, 85 RBI, 48 D)<br /> SS: Derek Jeter (.334, 18 HR, 66 RBI, .406 OBP, 30 SB)<br /> 3B: Alex Rodriguez (.286, 30 HR, 100 RBI, .402 OBP, 14 SB)</p> <p>Rodriguez had a down year by his standards, but of course he has very high average numbers. And if you define infield as including catcher, than the Yankees this year have the ever-steady Jorge Posada who hit .285, 22 HR, 81 RBI.</p> <p><strong>Phillies 2009:<br /> </strong>1B: Ryan Howard (.279, 45 HR, 141 RBI, 37 D)<br /> 2B: Chase Utley (.282, 31 HR, 93 RBI, .397 OBP, 23 SB)<br /> SS: Jimmy Rollins (.250, 21 HR, 77 RBI, 31 SB)<br /> 3B: Pedro Feliz (.266, 12 HR, 82 RBI)</p> <p>Clearly not the equal of the Yankees, but still quite good overall. Rollins had a very slow start, and only returned to form late in the year. And both he and Feliz have pathetically low OBP (.296 and .308 respectively). And finally if you throw catcher into the mix, the Phillies don’t matchup well with the Yankees, since Ruiz (.255, 9 HR, 43 RBI) is no equal of Posada.</p> <p>Matthews’ column mentioned several other famous infields, so I thought I’d provide his commentary, and chime in with some of my own in each case.</p> <p>“<strong>1913 Philadelphia Athletics</strong> — 1B Stuffy McInnis, 2B Eddie Collins, SS Jack Barry, 3B Home Run Baker. They were called “The Million-Dollar Infield” because manager Connie Mack said he wouldn’t sell them for $1 million. Now he couldn’t get a decent spare infielder for $1 million.”</p> <p>For some reason he declined to give the stats for this foursome, perhaps assuming most readers wouldn’t be impressed with the deadball era numbers. Here they are:<br /> 1B: Stuffy McInnis (.324, 4 HR, 90 RBI, 16 SB)<br /> 2B: Eddie Collins (.345, 3 HR, 73 RBI, 55 SB, .441 OBP)<br /> SS: Jack Barry (.275, 3 HR, 85 RBI, 15 SB)<br /> 3B: Home Run Baker (.337, 12 HR, 117 RBI, 34 SB, .413 OBP)</p> <p>One interesting thing to note about this group is their young ages that season: 22, 26, 26, and 27 respectively.</p> <p>“<strong>1927 New York Giants</strong> — 1B Bill Terry (.326, 20 HRs, 121 RBI), 2B Rogers Hornsby (.361, 26 HRs, 125 RBI), SS Travis Jackson (.318, 14 HRs, 98 RBI), 3B Fred Lindstrom (.306, 7 HRs, 58 RBI). They’re all Hall of Famers, though Jackson and Lindstrom were controversial selections.”</p> <p>Obviously Terry and Hornsby were the big mashers in this group, kinda like Howard and Utley for this year’s Phillies infield.</p> <p>“<strong>1934 Detroit Tigers</strong> — 1B Hank Greenberg (.339, 26 HRs, 139 RBI), 2B Charlie Gehringer (.356, 11 HRs, 127 RBI), SS Billy Rogell (.296, 3 HRs, 100 RBI), 3B Marv Owen (.317, 8 HRs, 96 RBI).”</p> <p>Interestingly, once again the stronger half is the 1B/2B side, where again we have two major hall-of-famers in Greenberg and Gehringer. And a few more numbers from this statistics-inflated era: Greenberg hit 63 doubles this year and Gehringer hit 50; the OBPs for these four were .404, .450, .374, and .385 respectively. Oh, and they had two other Hall-of-Famers in their lineup that year: catcher Mickey Cochrane (.320, 2 HR, 76 RBI) and outfielder Goose Goslin (.305, 13 HR, 100 RBI).</p> <p>“<strong>1976 Cincinnati Reds</strong> — 1B Tony Perez (.260, 19 HRs, 91 RBI), 2B Joe Morgan (.320, 27 HRs, 111 RBI, 60 stolen bases), SS Dave Concepcion (.281, 9 HRs, 69 RBI), 3B Pete Rose (.323, 10 HRs, 63 RBI). If you could use the best season of each of the four players, they’d be No. 1. But this was their best season collectively with Rose at third base. Perez and Morgan are Hall of Famers. Rose has Hall of Fame numbers. Many people believe Concepcion has been shortchanged by the voters. He was an excellent fielder and a tough clutch hitter.”</p> <p>And yes, they had Johnny Bench as their fifth infielder behind the plate, but he had poor numbers in 1976 hitting .234 with 16 HR and 74 RBI. And I’m not one who thinks that Concepcion has been shortchanged by HOF voters: a fine career with 9 all-star selections and 5 gold-gloves, but he is not a Hall-of-Famer.</p> <p>“<strong>2004 Texas Rangers</strong> — 1B Mark Teixiera (.281, 38 HRs, 112 RBI), 2B Alfonso Soriano (.280, 28 HRs, 91 RBI), SS Michael Young (.313, 22 HRs, 99 RBI), 3B Hank Blalock (.276, 32 HRs, 110 RBI). Underrated. Could be No.2 or No. 3.”</p> <p>Here we see Mr. Teixiera again.</p> <p>Now I’ll toss a few more into the mix for your consideration:</p> <p><strong>1906 Cubs:<br /> </strong>1B: Frank Chance (.319, 57 SB, .419 OBP)<br /> 2B: Johnny Evers (.255, 49 SB)<br /> SS: Joe Tinker (.233, 30 SB)<br /> 3B: Harry Steinfeldt (.327, 29 SB, .395 OBP)</p> <p>This being the dead-ball era, the HR numbers were low and everyone stole lots of bases. Two of these four had high BA and OBP, but obviously the fame of the defense from “Tinker to Evers to Chance” is what gets them mentioned in discussions of all-time infields.</p> <p><strong>1951 Dodgers:</strong><br /> 1B: Gil Hodges (.268, 40 HR, 103 RBI, 118 R, .374 OBP)<br /> 2B: Jackie Robinson (.338, 19 HR, 88 RBI, 106 R, 25 SB, .429 OBP)<br /> SS: Pee Wee Reese (.286, 10 HR, 84 RBI, 20 SB)<br /> 3B: Billy Cox (.279, 9 HR, 51 RBI)</p> <p>This foursome was together for a number of years, from 1948 - 52, with Jim Gilliam coming into the picture for 1953-54. You could argue their infield was better in any of those years, but I’ve chosen 1951 as what I think is one of the better statistical combinations in this span.</p> <p><strong>1970 Orioles:<br /> </strong>1B: Boog Powell (.297, 35 HR, 114 RBI, .412 OBP)<br /> 2B: Davey Johnson (.281, 10 HR, 53 RBI)<br /> SS: Mark Belanger (.218, 12 SB)<br /> 3B: Brooks Robinson (.276, 18 HR, 94 RBI)</p> <p>This infield was together for several years, from 1968 - 1972, with Bobby Grich replacing Johnson in 1973. Brooks and Belanger were particularly strong fielders. Take your pick between 1969 and 1970 as to which was the better offensive foursome. Belanger was generally a very weak hitter, though he hit .287 in 1969 (Brooks had an off-year hitting only .234 that season).</p> <p><strong>1979 Dodgers:<br /> </strong>1B: Steve Garvey (.315, 28 HR, 110 RBI)<br /> 2B: Davey Lopes (.265, 28 HR, 73 RBI, 109 R, 44 SB)<br /> SS: Bill Russell (.271, 7 HR, 56 RBI)<br /> 3B: Ron Cey (.281, 28 HR, 81 RBI)</p> <p>This infield foursome was together for a very long time, 1974 - 1981. One could argue which was their best overall season offensively: 1977, 1979, or others. Russell was generally the weakest offensive player of the crew, lacking both the power of Garvey and Cey and the speed of Lopes (whose 28 HR in 1979 were an abberation — he only topped 11 in two other seasons his entire career, with 17 in 1978 and 17 in 1983).</p> <p><strong>1982 Brewers:</strong><br /> 1B: Cecil Cooper (.313, 32 HR, 121 RBI)<br /> 2B: Jim Gantner (.295, 4 HR, 43 RBI)<br /> SS: Robin Yount (.331, 29 HR, 114 RBI, 129 R, 46 D)<br /> 3B: Paul Molitor (.302, 19 HR, 71 RBI, 136 R, 41 SB)</p> <p>The 1982 World Series team clearly had a great infield. Gantner was the weakest hitter of this group, though he came through in this season with a .295 average.</p> <p><strong>2000 Indians:<br /> </strong>1B: Jim Thome (.269, 37 HR, 106 RBI, 106 R, .398 OBP)<br /> 2B: Robert Alomar (.310, 19 HR, 89 RBI, 111 R, 39 SB)<br /> SS: Omar Vizquel (.287, 7 HR, 66 RBI, 101 R, 22 SB)<br /> 3B: Travis Fryman (.321, 22 HR, 106 RBI, 38 D, .392 OBP)</p> <p>Thome and Alomar had more impressive numbers in some of the other years. But this was arguably the best all-around offensive year for this foursome. And their collective defense was outstanding.</p> <p><strong>1999 Mets:<br /> </strong>1B John Olerud (.298, 19 HR, 96 RBI, 107 R, .427 OBP)<br /> 2B Edgardo Alfonzo (.304, 27 HR, 108 RBI, 123 R, .385 OBP)<br /> SS: Rey Ordonez (.258, 1 HR, 60 RBI)<br /> 3B: Robin Ventura (.301, 32 HR, 120 RBI)</p> <p>Ordonez was a light hitter. But amazingly, only 27 errors in 1999… for all of them combined!</p> <p>So which is the best infield-four of all time… I’m not entirely sure. The Yankees of 2009 are great, but so were the others listed above. Thoughts?</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=tSWCR7Cvth4:IJigACe6pa8:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=tSWCR7Cvth4:IJigACe6pa8:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Rambling On About My Glory Days: Welcome to Professional Baseball Moment</h1> <p>Jack Perconte — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 20:02:26 +0000</p> <p> You may recall my previous post about being drafted and the joy my family and I felt when I was chosen in the 16th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers. To celebrate Dodger Blue, I went out and spent my whole bonus on a shiny, metallic “Green” Buick Century? Upon signing, the Dodger brass told me that I was being sent to Lodi, California (Dodger high A team) because they needed a second baseman. Being on cloud nine, I was sure there was nothing that could dampen my enthusiasm for getting the opportunity to follow my lifelong dream. However, my first day in professional baseball proved very enlightening and a great effort towards dimming that enthusiasm. Here is how it went down.</p> <p>What is all that ringing noise and people shouting in the Reno, Nevada airport, I wondered on my first stop in pro ball? “Cool,” I thought of the slot machines which I had never seen before. This could only mean good luck in my estimation. I arrived at the road ball park where the Lodi Dodgers were playing, only to see my new team get demolished something like 22 – 4. My first acquaintance was the team trainer, who informed me that I was now the 5th second baseman on the team. Maybe, luck wasn’t on my side after all.</p> <p>Having arrived too late to dress for the game, it wasn’t until after the game when I received my indoctrination to professional baseball. It definitely was an eye opener and put some fear into me. Our manager, obviously disgusted with the game and my new team’s play, broke into an expletive filled tirade that would have made any managers’ highlight reel proud. Having grown up in catholic schools and having attended college in the heart of the Bible belt in Murray Kentucky, coach packaged more four letter words together than I had heard or said my whole life. Even though I was shaking in my shoes, I marveled at his linguistic abilities and realized I was no longer in college.</p> <p>He threatened that changes would be made if things didn’t improve. I became enlightened to the fact that baseball is now a business, where things were taken serious and people’s livelihood depended on performance, and success. Changes did come and quickly, which was fortunate for me. The following day two of the team’s players who shared time at second base were released, one was sent back to lower A ball and one was relegated to a utility role. I was now the starting second baseman with the opportunity I had always dreamed of having. When I look back at my professional career, I believe that was the best introduction to pro ball I could have had because I gained the understanding that it was either produce or “get lost,” because there is always someone else willing and ready to take your job away.</p> <p><em>Former major leaguer Jack Perconte is the author of </em>The Making of a Hitter <em>(<a href="http://www.themakingofahitter.com/" target="_blank">www.themakingofahitter.com</a>) and has a baseball instruction blog that can be found at <a href="http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball" target="_blank">http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball</a>. He has recently published his second book </em>Raising an Athlete - How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport<em> and has an additional blog at <a href="http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com/" target="_blank">http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com</a> </em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=-G88OsdU4Ws:Fp921h4qJ98:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=-G88OsdU4Ws:Fp921h4qJ98:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Cincuenta y nueve años después (Fifty nine years later)?</h1> <p>Alfonso L. Tusa C. — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:46:32 +0000</p> <p>Ha pasado más de medio siglo desde aquella temporada de los “Whiz kids” y su dramático pase a la Serie Mundial de 1950 al ganar el banderín de la Liga Nacional con un triunfo en el último juego de la temporada. El estelar Robin Roberts hizo tres aperturas en cinco días incluida la del triunfo decisivo, por eso no pudo abrir el primer juego.</p> <p>Los expertos pronosticaban que los mulos de Manhattan ganarían la serie en cinco juegos porque tenían un gran equipo y sobre todo buen pitcheo en los brazos de Vic Rashi, Allie Reynolds, Ed Lopat, Tom Ferrick, Whitey Ford. Eran los Yankees de Joe DiMaggio, Phil Rizzuto, Johnny Mize, Billy Martin, Yogi Berra.</p> <p>Los Filis contaban con Richie Ashburn, un catcher convertido en jardinero porque cada vez que salía un rolling al cuadro llegaba a hacer la asistencia detrás de primera antes que el corredor, Del Ennis, Bill Nicholson, Dick Sisler, Mike Goliat y los lanzadores Robin Roberts, Jim Konstanty, Ken Heintzelman, Russ Meyer, Bob Miller.</p> <p>Este 2009 los Filis llegan a la Serie Mundial luego de ganar la División Este de la Liga Nacional. Vencieron a los Rockies de Colorado (3-1) en la serie divisional. Y luego dejaron en el camino a los Dodgers de Los Ángeles (4-1). Esta es la novena de Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley, Raul Ibáñez, Jayson Werth, Carlos Ruiz. Cliff Lee, Pedro Martínez, Cole Hamels, A.J Happ, Jaime Moyer, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, Chad Durbin.</p> <p>Los Yanquis trazaron su ruta a través del banderín del Este de la Liga Americana, una barrida ante los Mellizos de Minnesota en la serie divisional, y luego dejaron encunetados a los Angelinos de Anaheim (4-2) en la serie de campeonato. Alex Rodríguez es la respuesta a Howard, Derek Jeter la de Jimmy Rollins, Johnny Damon puede equipararse a Victorino; además de Mark Teixeira, Robinson Canó, Jorge Posada e Hideki Matsui. El cuerpo de lanzadores está encabezado por CC Sabbathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettite, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Dámaso Marte, Alfredo Aceves, Mariano Rivera.</p> <p>El primer juego de la serie de 1950 lo ganaron los Yanquis 1-0, con trabajo completo de Rashi ante Konstanty relevado por Meyer en el noveno. Los Mulos repitieron con victoria 2-1 en el segundo. Fue un duelo entre Reynolds y Roberts que decidió DiMaggio con vuelacercas en el décimo episodio. Ferrick le dio el tercer lauro a los Yanquis 3-2, en relevo de Lopat quién salió en el noveno; Meyer salió derrotado en relevo de Konstanty y Heintzelman. Los Yanquis completaron la barrida con victoria 5-2 ejecutada por Whitey Ford ante Bob Millar.</p> <p>Aún cuando los “Whiz kids” venían de un gran momento al ganar el banderín de la Liga Nacional, su cuerpo de lanzadores llegó extenuado al Clásico de 1950. Cincuenta y nueve años más tarde los cuáqueros llegan con varios días de descanso a la Serie Mundial en medio de una confrontación muy pareja en todos los terrenos. ¿Llegó la hora de vengar a los “Whiz kids”? ¿Ganarán los Yanquis otra Serie Mundial?</p> <p><strong>English Translation</strong></p> <p>It’s been more than half a century since that season of the “Whiz Kids” and their dramatic advance to the 1950 World Series, after winning the National League pennant with a victory in the last day of the season. The pitching star Robin Roberts made three starts in five days including that of the clinching win. That’s why he couldn’t start the first game of the series.</p> <p>The experts predicted that the Yanks would win the series in five games because they had a great team and most of all an outstanding pitching staff with Vic Rashi, Allie Reynolds, Ed Lopat, Tom Ferrick, Whitey Ford. Those were the Yankees of Joe DiMaggio, Phil Rizzuto, Johnny Mize, Billy Martin, Yogi Berra.</p> <p>The Phillies had Richie Ashburn, a catcher shifted to outfielder because each time there was a grounder to the infield he always arrived behind first base before the runner, Del Ennis, Bill Nicholson, Dick Sisler, Mike Goliat, and the hurlers Robin Roberts, Jim Konstanty, Ken Heintzelman, Russ Meyer, Bob Miller.</p> <p>In 2009 the Phillies arrive to the World Series after winning the National League East Division. Afterwards they beat the Colorado Rockies (3-1) in the NLDS. Then they stopped the Los Angeles Dodgers (4-1) in the NLCS. This is the team of Ryan Howard, Jimmy Rollins, Shane Victorino, Chase Utley, Raul Ibáñez, Jayson Werth, Carlos Ruiz. Cliff Lee, Pedro Martínez, Cole Hamels, A.J Happ, Jaime Moyer, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, Chad Durbin.</p> <p>The Yankees traced their way through the conquest of the American League East Division pennant, a swept of the Minnesota Twins in the ALDS, then they defeated the Anaheim Angels (4-2) in the ALCS. Alex Rodríguez is the answer to Howard, Derek Jeter the one for Jimmy Rollins, Johnny Damon can keep the pace of Victorino. Besides they have Mark Teixeira, Robinson Canó, Jorge Posada e Hideki Matsui. The pitching staff is led by CC Sabbathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettite, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Dámaso Marte, Alfredo Aceves, Mariano Rivera.</p> <p>The Yanks won the first game of the 1950 World Series 1-0, Rashi got the win in a complete game before Konstanty who was relieved by Meyer in the ninth inning. The Manhattan Mules won the second contest 2-1. It was a pitching duel between Reynolds and Roberts decided by DiMaggio with a dinger in the tenth frame. Ferrick gave the third victory to the Yankees 3-2, he relieved Lopat in the ninth inning. Meyer got the loss in relieve of Konstanty and Heintzelman. The Yankees completed the swept with a 5-2 win executed by Whitey Ford before Bob Miller.</p> <p>Although the “Whiz kids” came from a great momentum after winning the National League pennant, their pitching staff arrived exhausted to the 1950 Classic. Fifty nine years later the Phillies arrive with some resting days to the World Series in the middle of a very tight confrontation in all the fields. Is it the time for avenging the Whiz kids? Will the Yankees win another World Series Champioship?</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=bwGb_g_xWTE:QPfYG6Z91XQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=bwGb_g_xWTE:QPfYG6Z91XQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Continuing Reaction</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:24:19 +0000</p> <p>The ripples from Monday’s press conference are still rolling around Cardinal Nation. Without Mark McGwire there to answer questions, the reverberations may continue for quite some time.</p> <p>The latest two questions in the UCB Roundtable dealt with McGwire. Bernie Mikalsz and Brian Burwell both write about the subject, with similar viewpoints. Everywhere you look, people are weighing in on the McGwire story.</p> <p>I’ve made my position pretty clear on this, I think. I know there are people that are up in arms about it, that are cancelling season tickets and venting their outrage. I just can’t be one of those people, partly because it’s not my nature, but partly because I’m still waiting to see what McGwire has to say.</p> <p>I seriously can’t believe the Cardinals would bring him on or that he’d come out of seclusion only to repeat the “talk about the past” line. They have to know that isn’t going to fly, I would think, and it’s going to cause more trouble than it’s worth.</p> <p>Honestly, I’d put odds around 50/50 that McGwire doesn’t actually make it to spring training as the hitting coach. I could see where he would find out he’d misread the scrutiny, bitten off more than he wanted to chew, and bow out. Until we hear from him, there’s really no way of telling what is going to happen.</p> <p>I will say that Hal McRae was very graceful about losing his job. Not that you expect anything less, of course, but there was no reason that he had to speak about being let go. I did think it was time for him to move on, but hopefully he catches on somewhere else.</p> <p>The players apparently are very fond of Cardinal pitchers. Chris Carpenter was named the Players’ Choice Comeback Player of the Year and, I heard this morning driving into work, Adam Wainwright was named their Outstanding Pitcher in the NL. (Not to be confused with the Cy Young. I found that out with the BBA!) Carpenter was a no brainer, of course, but I was glad to see Wainwright got the nod over Carp and Tim Lincecum. I don’t think that’s how the actual Cy Young voting will go (and it wasn’t how the Baseball Bloggers Alliance voted either), but it’s nice to see him get some recognition.</p> <p>Wednesday night means UCB Radio Hour. Tonight, it’s just scheduled for a half hour and will start later, at 10:00 CST. We’ll probably talk McGwire and maybe some from our interview with Bill DeWitt III. (If you’ve not heard that interview, you can find it here.) Hope you can join us!</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a></em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=H-Rw25g6CDY:5IoCEasv5gA:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=H-Rw25g6CDY:5IoCEasv5gA:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Chalmer “Bill” Cissell: The $123,000 Lemon</h1> <p>Mike Lynch — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 23:03:36 +0000</p> <p><em>Twenty-four-year-old shortstop Chalmer “Bill” Cissell was so highly regarded by scout Danny Long in 1927 that he convinced White Sox owner Charles Comiskey to send what was estimated to be a record sum of $123,000 in cash and players (outfielder Ike Boone and pitcher Bert Cole) to the Pacific Coast League’s Portland Beavers for Cissell. Long considered Cissell one of the finest prospects he’d ever seen, but after four disappointing seasons, it proved to be a terrible deal, one of many the White Sox made in the wake of the Black Sox scandal.</em></p> <p>Chalmer William Cissell was born in Perryville, Missouri on January 3, 1904 and came from a long line of ballplayers. “Down where I came from there never was a Cissell who couldn’t and didn’t play baseball,” he once said. “There were nine Cissells on Perryville’s team in 1902.” Cissell followed in their footsteps and began playing third base for the Perryville team when he was 14, then played high school and semi-pro ball before quitting school and enlisting with the Second Cavalry at Fort Riley, Kansas in 1922.</p> <p>While at Fort Riley, Cissell showed off his horsemanship by winning 18 silver cups and 53 medals atop “Chance,” a horse he named after former Cubs first baseman and manager Frank Chance. He was also allowed to play ball with the Junction City semi-pro team every Sunday, making $25 a week, more than twice his salary as an army corporal.</p> <p>Cissell reenlisted in 1925 with the Fourteenth Cavalry at Fort Des Moines in Iowa and was playing for the army team in an exhibition game when he was discovered by the Des Moines Demons of the Class A Western League. The Demons bought Cissell’s release from the army for $85, then signed the youngster to a contract.</p> <p>“I made up my mind that I was going to be a major league ball player during the World Series of 1925 while I was on a cavalry hike from Des Moines to Omaha,” Cissell later recounted to sportswriter Edward Burns. “It rained all along the trip and if you’ve ever ridden a horse cross-country in the rain 30 miles a day for five days you’ll agree with me that it’s no such life as that of a major league ball player. As much as I loved horses I decided on that hike that the cavalry was not to offer me my career.”</p> <p>But before Cissell could make it to the majors, he was going to have to perform at the minor league level, and he was finding it difficult to get on the field. In 1926, new Demons manager John “Shano” Collins was so impressed with the youngster’s abilities that he admitted to stashing Cissell on the bench whenever scouts were around for fear that he’d lose him to the draft. Instead, Collins was hoping to sell his new prodigy to the highest bidder.</p> <p>Because of this strategy, Cissell appeared in only 78 games, but he made the most of it, batting .345 and slugging .469 in 226 at-bats. He was named second team all-league by the Western League’s skippers before being sold to Portland of the Class AA Pacific Coast League for a reported $13,000 and two unnamed players. It was alleged to have been the highest price ever paid by one minor league team to another.</p> <p>He arrived in Portland in time to appear in 22 games and batted .259, slugged .318, and fielded at a .952 clip. Then he broke out in 1927 and became one of the two best hitting shortstops in the Pacific Coast League, batting .323 with 225 hits, 112 runs scored, and 18 steals. He ranked ninth in hits and was among the top 20 in total bases with 284. Few were surprised. The <em>Salt Lake Tribune</em> reported in mid-March that Beavers owner Tom Turner expected Cissell to “start many brush fires” in the P.C.L. that season, and manager Ernie Johnson, a former major league shortstop, told reporters that he was impressed with Cissell’s makeup.</p> <p>“Cissell has had but four months of professional experience and Johnson believes the kid is doing well, considering all things,” wrote Eddie Murphy in the <em>Oakland Tribune</em>. “The Beaver boss likes him because he never gets excited. If he makes a boot he settles right down and may come up with a sensational play on the next hit ball. All that Johnson asks for is the fans to give his young shortstop a fair chance to make good.”</p> <p>He made a lot of boots that year, committing 76 errors in 182 games for a .924 fielding percentage, but sportswriter John B. Foster chalked that up to effort. “His error column was big, but a wise manager will take a player who tries in preference to one who ambles after none but the easy ones.” In fact, his hustle, impressive range, and wiry 160-pound frame earned him the nickname “Spider.”</p> <p>In mid-July, Cissell began to be touted as a big league prospect, along with Mission Bells shortstop Gordon Slade and second baseman Neal “Mickey” Finn, and Oakland Oaks shortstop Lyn Lary and second baseman Jimmie Reese. In early August, it was rumored that Cissell was to be sold to Connie Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics in the fall, and the rumors continued into late August, when it was reported that Mack had told several scouts that he was going to acquire Cissell prior to the 1928 season.</p> <p>Meanwhile, Lary and Reese were being courted by the Yankees, White Sox, Cubs, and Tigers, and were being shopped as a package worth as much as $150,000, or either could be had individually for $100,000. In mid-August, the Cubs offered $75,000 and a handful of players for Lary and first baseman Jack Fenton, but Oakland balked. In early September, it was reported that Lary had been acquired by the White Sox for $100,000, Ike Boone and Elmer Jacobs. Then in mid-September, the <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported that the Yankees had paid the $150,000 asking price for both Lary and Reese, but the Oaks’ owners refused to confirm or deny the reports.</p> <p>Finally in early November, the White Sox tired of pursuing Lary and acquired Cissell from Portland for what was valued at $123,000. Portland received $75,000 in cash and two players—slugging outfielder Ike Boone and veteran southpaw Bert Cole—who were valued at $5,000 and $35,000, respectively. The remaining $8,000 was to come from two players to be named later, both to be valued at no less than $4,000 apiece.</p> <p>The deal was a record at the time, surpassing the $100,000 the White Sox sent the San Francisco Seals for third baseman Willie Kamm in 1922. It wasn’t long before Foster dubbed Cissell, the “$100,000 Beauty” and speculated that if the shortstop lived up to his billing, the White Sox could offer up shortstops Roger Peckinpaugh and Bill Hunnefield and second baseman Aaron Ward in trades. He also wrote that Tom Turner believed that Cissell “would hit as hard in the American League as Paul Waner has batted in the National League.”</p> <p>The pressure on Cissell was enormous. In fact, he would later admit, “The ballyhoo I got when Portland sold me for that sum was the greatest burden any player ever carried to the majors.” Cissell was also facing off-the-field pressures and burdens; only two days after the deal between Portland and Chicago was finalized, the new White Sox shortstop found himself on the wrong side of a woman scorned, 20-year-old Valley Junction, Iowa telephone operator Bernice Ryner, who filed charges of seduction against Cissell with Polk County Sheriff Park A. Findley. Cissell was indicted, but was nowhere to be found. A nationwide search failed to uncover his whereabouts until he was discovered and arrested in St. Louis on November 9.</p> <p>According to Ryner, she and Cissell met on New Year’s Eve 1926 and dated steadily before he departed for Portland’s training camp two months later. Cissell had promised to marry her and she began making preparations to join him in Portland, but he failed to send her train fare. Then he promised to come to Des Moines in August, but failed to appear. The bride-to-be was understandably upset; not only did Cissell’s promise of marriage appear to be hollow, but she was also carrying his baby. It wasn’t until she gave birth to their son, Chalmer Jr., that she decided to file charges.</p> <p>Cissell had two choices: face felony charges of seduction or marry Ryner and have the charges automatically dismissed. He chose the latter and tied the knot in Valley Junction on November 15. “We always wanted to get married,” Cissell told the clerk who issued his marriage license. Bill and Bernice were together for the rest of their lives and had two more children, Charlene and Gary.</p> <p>Heading into the 1928 season, much was expected of the Pacific Coast League star. Foster predicted he’d hit .300 in the majors, while other sportswriters lauded his talents, calling him a “flashy shortstop with plenty of speed” who “performs equally as well with the bat,” and referring to him as “sparkling.”</p> <p>Former White Sox infielder Frank Isbell was equally high on Cissell. “They will have a hard time preventing that boy becoming the best shortstop in the big leagues,” he said. “They will have a hard time stopping this boy because he knows something about taking care of himself in any kind of a contest, and if they will just let him go he’ll very quickly show them some new things about playing shortstop.”</p> <p>But the highest praise came from Turner who insisted that Cissell was “as great at shortstop as Hans Wagner, as great on the bases as Ty Cobb, and as great at the bat as Rogers Hornsby.”</p> <p>Apparently White Sox manager Ray Schalk bought the hyperbole and started singing Cissell’s praises even before the team’s train headed for Shreveport, Louisiana for spring training. “He’s my idea of just the right physical type for a shortstop and his mental attitude indicates he is not going to fade out on the brilliant record which caused the White Sox to pay a record price for him,” Schalk told reporters. According to Ed Burns, the team felt that Cissell’s time in the army gave him an advantage over other rookies because he was unlikely to become unnerved under pressure.</p> <p>Shortly after the White Sox arrived in Shreveport, they made headlines again when it was reported that the team had insured Cissell for $100,000. The <em>Baltimore Sun</em> reported that terms of the policy were not disclosed, but Burns claimed with tongue in cheek that the policy covered “the rigors of death, fire, and theft, seven year locusts, pernicious fallen arches, and chronic hives.” Burns also reported that trainer William Buckner wanted to trim five pounds from Cissell’s frame, which he jokingly valued at $768.75 a pound, and that if Buckner succeeded “$3,843.75 of shortstop will disappear, which goes to show how careless some people are with money.”</p> <p>Some were unimpressed, however. Alan J. Gould wrote only three weeks into spring training that Cissell “has not yet measured up to his $123,000 price tag”; Burns reported in late March that the infielder had been “beset with the jumps” and wasn’t earning his salt; Werner Laufer called Cissell a disappointment and wondered if he’d be able to handle big league pitching; and Norman E. Brown lauded Cissell’s great glove, but called him “just another out at bat.” It was even rumored that Sox management was considering sending him back to the Pacific Coast League.</p> <p>It wasn’t until White Sox coach and future Hall of Fame pitcher Ed Walsh noticed weaknesses in Cissell’s swing and worked with him that the youngster started to show everyone why he was so highly touted, going 5-for-9 with a triple, two doubles, and two singles late in camp.</p> <p>“Spring training seems to be a complete zero with me,” Cissell later explained to Tigers manager George Moriarty. “I try everything, but I don’t seem able to do the right thing. I looked like an amateur and I knew it, but I also knew it wouldn’t last long. My first spring with Portland was just as bad. The harder I tried the worse I looked in fielding and at bat. This spring I figured that the smoother major league diamonds would be a big help when the season began, and this proved to be the case. I think a ballplayer who is in a slump should keep on thinking that his best days are ahead. This thought will pull him out.”</p> <p>Despite Cissell’s early spring struggles, Moriarty remained high on him. “Chicago has seen such great shortfielders as George Davis, Buck Weaver and Swede Risberg perform at the White Sox park, and Cissell is sure to measure up to his brilliant predecessors.” And John Foster compared him to former Giants second baseman Larry Doyle, calling him a “replica” of Doyle, but with a better glove.</p> <p>“He is loose, fast, throws without effort and with no lost motion,” Foster observed. “He knows where second base is, and why it is—a thing that’s fine for any shortstop to know. In practice he can get to second and shove the ball along for a double play as well as any infielder in action today. There is no reason in evidence why he should not be able to do the same thing in the regular season.”</p> <p>But Foster didn’t stop there, also likening Cissell’s personality to Doyle’s. “At this writing Cissell is as sound as a dollar and bubbling over with a splendid disposition, which makes one think of Larry Doyle, one of the happiest and best natured players who graced the national game with his sunshine and goodwill to men.” It was this disposition that earned Doyle the nickname “Laughing Larry,” and the same disposition that earned Cissell his second sobriquet, “Smiling Bill.”</p> <p>Umpire Hap O’Connor thought Lary would be the better player, but gave Cissell high marks as well. “He can hit into right field on the old hit-and-run play with the best of them,” O’Connor told writer Damon Runyan. “He has a true throwing arm, and is an expert at tagging runners coming into second base. He knows that ‘dipsy-do’ toss to the second-sacker, too. He looks as good as any shortstop I know going to his right.”</p> <p>Sportswriter Stoney McLinn called Cissell a “worthy guardian of short field” and reported that “veteran observers insist he will be even better than [Swede] Risberg was at his best.”</p> <p>Once the regular season began, Cissell wasted no time proving that he could hit big league pitching, going 3-for-4 with a double and a run against Cleveland’s George Uhle on Opening Day, but committing two errors in the 8-2 loss. He went 2-for-4 and scored the team’s only run in their second game, a 2-1 loss to the Indians, then went 1-for-3 with a double and a run in a six-inning, rain-shortened 1-1 tie. After only three games, Ray Schalk was convinced Cissell was the real deal. “The kid’s a comer and worth the money,” said the White Sox skipper.</p> <p>Cissell went 0-for-5 in his next two games against the St. Louis Browns, then embarked on a 14-game hitting streak, during which he went 20-for-55 (.364), and found himself hitting .366 on May 1. His hitting streak was snapped on May 2, but he went 3-for-5 against the Yankees on May 4 and earned a promotion from seventh in the batting order to the leadoff spot. He was hitting .363 with a .378 OBA at the time and was getting a little cocky, telling reporters that the majors were easier than the minors. “I’ve faced tougher pitchers than these in the big leagues many a time.”</p> <p>But he spoke too soon. He batted first or second for 12 games before moving back to seventh in the order and by the end of May, his average had plummeted exactly 100 points to .263. Opposing pitchers found his weakness and began feeding him a steady diet of high fastballs. His slump continued through June and his average dropped to .248 before he rebounded in July and boosted it to .272. That’s where it stood on August 16 when he broke his finger in two places while attempting to catch an errant throw from first baseman Bud Clancy. He was expected to miss the rest of the season, but returned in mid-September and batted only .167 the rest of the way to finish his first big league season at .260.</p> <p>Despite being one of the weaker hitting shortstops in the American League and finishing in the middle of the pack defensively, Cissell earned MVP votes and finished 15th in the balloting, tied with four other players, including Detroit slugger Harry Heilmann. Among White Sox, only third baseman Willie Kamm, who finished fifth, and pitcher Tommy Thomas, who tied Cissell at 15th, were considered as valuable.</p> <p>The White Sox wisely ignored the voters and encouraged manager Lena Blackburne to work with Cissell on both his fielding and hitting. Blackburne, who replaced Schalk 74 games into the 1928 season, wasn’t much of a hitter or fielder himself during his eight-year career, but he knew enough about both that he felt he could turn Cissell into one of the game’s best shortstops.</p> <p>“The youngster’s greatest fielding drawback seems to be his tendency to fight the ball,” wrote Bert Demby. “He covers plenty of ground but pushes his hands into the ball instead of allowing the ball to hit his glove while his hands are on a backward motion, which would put him into position to throw immediately.” Blackburne insisted that Cissell had simply never been taught how to field properly. He also promised to change his hitting style. “The White Sox manager thinks Cissell can be made into a mighty tough ‘chop hitter’ to face,” wrote Demby. “Cissell can time them at the plate and he should develop into a good ‘puncher’ of short hits.”</p> <p>Blackburne was confident that his pupil would improve in both areas. “Just watch and see the difference,” he said. “Cissell is going to be one of the greatest baseball players yet. He is a natural.”</p> <p>Despite spending his time during the offseason playing basketball, Cissell had gained weight, something sportswriter Irving Vaughan thought might benefit the shortstop. “In his first season…Cissell didn’t exactly come to the expectations aroused by his $75,000 and four players purchase price, but the impression prevails that he is still on the upgrade,” wrote Vaughan. “He hasn’t had as much experience as the average youngster coming up to the majors and the hullabaloo about his purchase undoubtedly dazzled him a bit.”</p> <p>Cissell agreed but was optimistic about the 1929 season. “I tried too hard last summer to make good,” he explained during spring training, “and I didn’t have as much confidence then as I have now. But I feel set now and, while I’m not bragging, I should be better than in 1928.” One of the reasons for Cissell’s confidence was the arrival of second baseman Johnny Kerr, who was stellar for the Hollywood Stars of the Pacific Coast League, batting .301 with 16 homers, and fielding at a .977 clip. “You know I played with five different second basemen last summer and that is one reason I didn’t go any better than I did,” Cissell alibied. “It looks like Johnny Kerr will be at second regularly this summer, and he’s good…with Kerr on second, we ought to make as many double plays this year as any keystone pair.”</p> <p>But only two days after making the above statement, Cissell was benched for his poor play, losing playing time to Bill Hunnefield. “Either Cissell is severely handicapped by a minor leg injury or his baseball this spring is mediocre,” wrote the <em>Chicago Tribune</em>. “Mr. Blackburne hopes Cissell is a good shortstop, but there has been nothing to encourage him thus far.” Soon after, the <em>Hartford Courant</em> reported that Cissell was still plagued by his stiff-armed fielding style and errant throws, especially on double plays; that his hitting was being affected by his fielding lapses; and that Hunnefield may be called on to spell Cissell at short.</p> <p>The same day the <em>Courant’s</em> report came out, the White Sox were in Ennis, Texas, enjoying a post game barbecue thrown by the locals, when Blackburne spotted Cissell, who was clearly inebriated. “He didn’t look right,” Blackburne explained a few days later. “There was to be a dance for the gang that evening but when I saw our shortstop I decided the dance was off…I asked Cissell for an explanation and he told me he was a bit upset because things hadn’t been breaking right for him during the training trip.”</p> <p>The next night, Blackburne had to deal with another of his players, first baseman and team captain<a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/05/18/punch-drunk-the-art-shires-story/"> Art Shires</a>, who drunkenly wandered past the manager at 12:30 in the morning without recognizing him, made his way to the hotel courtyard and began howling at the moon. The next morning Blackburne stripped Shires of his captaincy. A few days later he called a team meeting. “I didn’t try to conceal from the others that both Shires and Cissell had taken something stronger than pink lemonade,” Blackburne told Irving Vaughan. “I finished by remarking that the next man caught coming in after midnight would be plastered with a fine and that goes whether the tardy arrival comes in wet or dry.”</p> <p>Shires and Cissell charged that Blackburne was “incompetent and tyrannical” and reports out of Dallas, where the White Sox trained, had half the team on the verge of a rebellion. Charles Comiskey sent Shires back to his home in Italy, Texas, where he was ordered to get into playing shape at his own expense.</p> <p>Cissell apologized and was reinstated to good standing, but his drinking would continue to be a problem for the rest of his career. “The White Sox paid a good chunk of gold for him as a rookie in 1928 and he should have been a great star, but he drank,” wrote legendary reporter Red Smith years later. “He looked like a guy who couldn’t miss. He could do anything on the infield and there never was a rougher clutch hitter and there wasn’t anything in the world that could frighten him a little bit…Cissell had it, all right. He had everything except the ability to take care of himself.”</p> <p>A week before the regular season started, George Kirksey reported that Cissell might begin the 1929 campaign on the bench “as a result of his disregard for training rules” and that Hunnefield or George Redfern would take his place, but he was in his familiar position on Opening Day, playing shortstop and batting seventh against the Browns. In fact, Cissell would go on to lead the team in games played (152), at-bats (618), runs (83), hits (173), and stolen bases (25), falling only two swipes short of the league’s stolen base crown, and came within one three-bagger of pacing the team in triples.</p> <p>He wasn’t spectacular at the plate—no other batter in baseball made more outs than Cissell’s 481 and he sported the sixth worst OPS among A.L. qualifiers—but he was fairly steady and consistent and the White Sox knew what they could expect from him. His average climbed to a season-high .311 on May 18 before settling into more familiar territory, and from June 1 until the end of the season, it never dropped lower than .261 nor climbed higher than .281. He finished the season at .280, a 20-point improvement over his previous mark, and boosted his slugging percentage 57 points, from .330 to .387.</p> <p>In the field, he displayed even better range than in 1928, leading all A.L. shorstops in that category, but his glove remained merely average at .937. Still, Cissell led the league in putouts, tied Joe Cronin for the league lead in assists, and finished third in double plays. And his arm received high marks from <em>New York Times</em> senior sports columnist John Kieran, who rated Cissell’s wing number one among A.L. shortstops. “Chalmers [<em>sic</em>] Cissell of the White Sox can go behind third base and still throw out fast runners at the first station, which is the real test.”</p> <p>The White Sox apparently remained unimpressed, however. Blackburne was fired after leading the team through a tumultuous season that included two fist fights with Shires and a seventh-place finish on the back of a then franchise-worst 59-93 record. With four games remaining in the 1929 season, Comiskey announced that he’d hired former Tiger shortstop Donie Bush to lead the team in 1930. Cissell had once been described as a larger version of the diminutive Bush, but the new White Sox skipper had his eye on two new shortstop recruits, Irv Jeffries and Ernie Smith, and was planning on moving Cissell to second base to replace Kerr, who fielded well and had the league’s best range, but boasted an anemic bat.</p> <p>Jeffries batted .305 with 10 home runs for the Dallas Steers of the Class A Texas League while playing third base, but he began his professional career as a shortstop. Smith, a 30-year-old, eight-year minor league veteran, was named MVP of the Southern Association after batting .309 and slugging .462 for Birmingham, while finishing first in putouts, and second in assists, fielding percentage, and range.</p> <p>In February 1930, Cissell opened up to Henry P. Edwards about a handful of issues, including his hitting. “It is not the pitching that bothers me,” Cissell explained to Edwards, “as much as it is the fielding of the opposition in the big league. I am meeting the ball just as well as in the minors but they play for a batter more, shifting around, sometimes on each pitched ball. Consequently, you do not find as many alleys through which you can drive the ball safely.” Later in the article, Edwards concluded that Cissell’s move to second base was all but guaranteed, considering the Sox had Hunnefield, Jeffries, and Smith battling for the shortstop position.</p> <p>Less than two weeks later, Ed Burns reported that Bush had made Cissell’s switch to second base official and that it looked like Jeffries would be the team’s new shortstop. Burns was critical of Cissell, calling him “more or less of a bust,” that he had lost his aggressiveness during the previous season, and that the “naturally happy and spirited youngster” had become “something of a crab,” which affected his performance. “His game fell off accordingly and there were times when the money invested in him probably was all that staved off his banishment.”</p> <p>According to reports, Bush was “tickled pink” to have Cissell at second base. “Cissell is a natural second baseman, and will be a star unless I miss my guess,” Bush told reporters in late March. And Jeffries was making a favorable impression on the new skipper and was reported to have the edge over Hunnefield and Smith, but when the season finally started for the White Sox after two straight rainouts, Smith was leading off and playing short.</p> <p>Cissell came out of the gates like a man possessed, starting the season with a 12-game hitting streak, during which he batted a league-leading .431 and scored 13 times. His streak was snapped by the Yankees on May 4, but he fashioned another 10-game streak immediately after and was batting .388 after going 2-for-3 in the first game of a doubleheader against Cleveland. But that proved to be his high-water mark of the season, as he batted only .246 the rest of the way to finish at .270. And Bush’s proclamation that Cissell would be a star at second base was far from accurate. Cissell made more errors than any other A.L. second sacker, had the worst fielding percentage, and finished second-to-last in assists, double plays, and putouts.</p> <p>After only one season at second base, speculation was that Bush would move Cissell to third in 1931. Willie Kamm had anchored the hot corner since 1923 and became the best fielding third baseman of the era, but he was disciplined in 1930 for a lack of hustle and rumors had Cissell moving to third base to take the former captain’s spot. “One thing Bush may attempt before considering the return of Kamm is placing Bill Cissell on third base,” suggested the <em>Chicago Tribune</em> in August 1930. “Spider Bill had faults at short that Bush figured could be eliminated by playing the peppery youth at second. But at second Cissell continues to flash in dazzling style one moment and blow the next. Third base might be the spot to which he is naturally adapted.”</p> <p>Kamm was put on the trading block and was rumored to be heading to Cleveland for Indians infielder and former batting champion Lew Fonseca, but Comiskey denied a deal was in the works. That left Kamm at third and Cissell fighting Greg Mulleavy and Luke Appling for second and short. Mulleavy played shortstop in 1930 and was a disaster, but was still on the team heading into spring training. Appling batted .326 and slugged .508 for the Atlanta Crackers of the Southern Association, then hit .308 in a cup of coffee with the White Sox and, though his fielding left much to be desired, he had the inside track on the shortstop position.</p> <p>Cissell arrived at camp weighing 182 pounds, prompting Irving Vaughan to call him “Fat Man Cissell” and “Hack” in his <em>Chicago Tribune</em> column of February 27. Vaughan also reported that Cissell worked out at second base. Mulleavy was eventually shipped to Toledo, and Appling was all but assured the starting shortstop job when it was reported in late March that Bush predicted he’d “blossom into a real sensation.” As the season drew closer, Bush settled on an infield that featured Bennie Tate behind the dish, Cissell at second, Kamm at third, and Appling at shortstop. The only hole he had yet to fill was at first base, but that problem was soon solved when the Sox purchased Lu Blue from the Browns for $15,000.</p> <p>Less than two weeks before Opening Day, Dixon Stewart wrote an article in which he attributed Cissell’s second and third chances to his huge purchase price. “Just how long would have been the major league career of Cissell had he come from the minors at a cost of, say, $10,000 is speculative,” wrote Stewart. “Better ball players than Cissell have come to the majors for less money. But baseball magnates are human and they find it difficult to face the necessity of sending a heavily priced ball player back to the minors. And so, Cissell’s ace in the hole would seem to be that price tag, whereas he was the object of pity when he first joined the Sox.”</p> <p>The 1931 season proved to be a difficult one for Cissell. He began the season at second base and batted fifth, but unlike in his previous seasons, he didn’t get off to a red hot start. He drove in 14 runs in his first 12 games and earned a brief promotion to the cleanup spot, but he promptly went 1-for-22 with no RBIs in his next five games and was dropped to sixth in the order when he average fell from .286 to .207. When Appling’s average dropped to .188 on May 14, Cissell was moved over to shortstop and Johnny Kerr was given his old starting job back at second base.</p> <p>Three days later, Kamm was dealt to the Indians for Fonseca who took over second base for three weeks before moving to the outfield, while Irv Jeffries was given Kamm’s old spot at third. During all of this calamity, Cissell’s average continued to drop and he was at .186 on May 20, prompting Claire Burcky to write, “Cissell has practically dropped out of sight.”</p> <p>So it was a bit odd that on May 28 with Cissell batting .209 and slugging .275, another writer waxed poetic about the White Sox infielder, claiming he “has come back in big style,” was “winning game after game for the White Sox with long hits in the pinches and has turned in some of the choicest fielding to be seen around the American League.” At the time the article hit newsstands, Cissell had seven extra-base hits and 18 RBIs in 37 games, and only two of those long hits and four of those runs batted in had come since May 1.</p> <p>Cissell’s batting average hovered around .200 for more than half the season before he boosted it to .220 on July 18. Then on July 27, during a road trip to New York, Cissell found himself in the news again when he lost a race to 56-year-old tap dancer Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, who ran 75 yards backwards and defeated two of his three opponents. The race occurred at Yankee Stadium between games of a doubleheader and pitted Robinson against Ben Chapman and Dusty Cooke of the Yankees and Cissell, all of whom had to run 100 yards, but facing forward. Chapman passed Robinson with only a few yards to spare and won the race, but the dancer beat Cooke and Cissell, and finished second.</p> <p>Once August began, Cissell’s bat heated up, but only in comparison to his previous effort. He batted .258 and slugged .348, but was only able to nudge his average to a season-high .223 on August 17. It fell again to .220 after his next game, then his season almost ended prematurely when he tore ligaments in his knee while covering second base on August 20. But he was somehow able to return for the last three games of the season, going 3-for-14 to finish at .220. He wasn’t great in the field either, but he was above average in both fielding percentage and range for the first time in his career.</p> <p>Bush resigned in October and Fonseca was named to manage the team, making him the fourth different major league manager Cissell had played for in five years. Fonseca was planning on keeping Cissell at shortstop, but announced he was going to overhaul the infielder’s batting. “Fonseca is going about the job from the ground up,” reported the <em>New York Times</em>, “altering his stance, stride, swing, and timing, and expects the young infielder to hit .300 or better.”</p> <p>Fonseca’s work appeared to pay off when Cissell began the 1932 campaign with seven hits and four RBIs in his first five games, and was batting .350 on April 16, but he fell into a funk, went 2-for-19, and saw his average plummet to .231 on April 23. He went 2-for 4 with a double, a homer, a walk, an RBI, and three runs scored on April 24 against Detroit and bumped his average to .256, but little did he know that that would be his last game with the White Sox.</p> <p>After his stellar performace against the Tigers, Cissell was traded (along with pitcher Jim Moore) to the Indians for second baseman Johnny Hodapp and outfielder Bob Seeds. White Sox secretary Harry Grabiner explained that the Sox needed more punch in their offense, which Hodapp, a career .319 hitter going into the 1932 season, was expected to deliver. But Hodapp was batting only .125 at the time of the trade, prompting the Indians to ship him to Chicago for Cissell, a player they’d coveted for a few years and one they hoped would strengthen their weakness at second base.</p> <p>At least one writer thought Cleveland was taken to the cleaners by the White Sox. “For two years the Tribe has been hot after [Cissell] and now that they have him—well, what of it? Granted the Tribe needs a shortstop and needs one badly. But whether Cissell will help them any is something I doubt very much. Cissell has been a complete bust ever since he hit the big time.”</p> <p>William Braucher somewhat agreed. “Cissell has failed to live up to his $123,000 reputation, though he has been a very good utility infielder,” he wrote. But he also thought the acquisitions of Kamm in 1931 and Cissell in 1932 made the left side of Cleveland’s infield one of the best in the league. But the Indians had other plans and moved Johnny Burnett over to shortstop and put Cissell at second.</p> <p>The move paid off and Cissell became a different player with Cleveland. He batted .287 and slugged .457 in May, then batted .297 in June, and knocked in 31 runs in his first 47 games with the Indians. His momentum carried over into July and his numbers really took off from that point forward. He had a six-game hitting streak to close out June, then extended it another seven games before going hitless. He immediately embarked on an eight-game hitting streak, giving him hits in 21 of his previous 22 games, and raised his average to .320 on the season.</p> <p>The Yankees were running away with the league, boasting a nine-and-a-half game lead in mid-July, but the Indians were hanging tough in second place and Cissell was earning praise for his performance. “In the Cleveland camp much credit is given to Chalmer Cissell for keeping the Indians going in their recent drive,” wrote John Kieran. “When the trade was made with the White Sox some of the Indians thought they were losing more in Hodapp and Bob Seeds than they were getting in return. But ask them now and the boys will vote for Cissell under the unit rule.”</p> <p>Gayle Talbot wrote that Cissell was beginning to resemble the player he was supposed to be when he first entered the league and that he was getting hits “where they count” for the Indians. Another writer insisted Cissell was finally justifying his price tag and had become one of the most valuable players in the American League.</p> <p>“Cissell took over the job at second base where the Indians had been weak for several years. Not only did his hitting average soar…but he inspired the whole team with his fighting qualities. Day by day, the realization became more apparent that Cissell, the player who had been hooted and booed in Chicago, was becoming the idol of the Cleveland fans. Always scrapping, always trying, never letting slip a chance to help his team.”</p> <p>He batted .338 in July and .328 in August before finishing with a flourish and batting .340 in September, capped off by a modest season-ending seven-game hitting streak. He batted .320 for Cleveland and finished the season with a .315 average. The Indians fell to fourth place, but Cissell continued to receive plaudits. Braucher credited him with being “the life of the [Indians] club,” and named Cissell the starting second baseman on his all-star team, alongside future Hall of Famers Lou Gehrig, Bill Dickey, Lefty Grove, Chuck Klein, and Lloyd Waner.</p> <p>Few writers were as impressed as Braucher, naming Cissell on only 10 of 191 ballots on a poll conducted by <em>The Sporting News</em>, and awarding Tony Lazzeri of the Yankees the second base berth on their 1932 All-Star team. Cissell finished fifth behind Lazzeri, Charlie Gehringer, Billy Herman and Tony Cucinello. He did slightly better in MVP voting, finishing 11th in the league, but was fourth among second basemen, behind Lazzeri and Gehringer in the American League and Herman in the National.</p> <p>In 1933, Cissell showed up for spring training overweight again, then was warned by the <em>Hartford Courant</em> of a second base jinx that had plagued Cleveland since 1926, when Fred Spurgeon had a solid year followed by a collapse in 1927, then Carl Lind pulled the same trick in 1928 and ‘29. “Cleveland has had a succession of sensational keystoners who went sour,” the paper reminded readers. Indians manager Roger Peckinpaugh apparently didn’t believe in jinxes, however, and penciled Cissell into the cleanup spot on Opening Day.</p> <p>Cissell got off to a slow start, hitting only .235 a little more than a week into the season, but he was doing his job as a cleanup hitter, slugging .412 and driving in five runs in his first eight games. Unfortunately, it was all downhill from there. Hitting .232 with a .241 on-base percentage and a .354 slugging average on May 16, Cissell was moved up to third in the order for three games before moving up to second on May 25, despite a still anemic .250 OBP. He responded well, boosting his OBP to .286 on June 8, but was still batting only .236 with only 14 RBIs.</p> <p>Peckinpaugh was fired on June 9 after the Indians went 26-25 in their first 51 games and dropped from first place on May 11 to fifth place less than a month later. Bibb Falk managed the team for one game before Walter Johnson, the Indians’ new skipper, arrived from his Maryland farmhouse. Johnson left Cissell at second base and in the two hole for most of the rest of the month and, though he continued to struggle, Cissell finished fifth among A.L. second basemen in fan balloting for the league’s first official All-Star game to be played at Comiskey Park.</p> <p>Finally on June 30, Johnson replaced Cissell with Odell Hale, a 24-year-old backup third baseman with only 10 games of experience at second. Although he was a below average glove man at second, Hale responded well, leading the league in range and finishing the season as Cleveland’s second best hitter.</p> <p>Cissell, on the other hand, began to find it difficult to get on the field, serving as a pinch runner and hitter, splitting time with Bill Knickerbocker and Johnny Burnett at shortstop, and spelling Hale at second base on occasion. He hit .256 the rest of the way to finish at .230, and enjoyed a “power” surge in August when he smacked three of his six home runs, all coming in a six-game span in the middle of the month. But his season ended on September 15 when he underwent an appendectomy at New York Post Graduate Hospital a day after the Indians arrived in New York to play the Yankees.</p> <p>Less than a month after his surgery, Cissell was dealt to the Boston Red Sox for southpaw hurler Lloyd “Gimpy” Brown, a soon-to-be 29-year-old seven-year veteran who had gone 9-17 with a 4.63 ERA for the Browns and Red Sox in 1933, and was 67-69 in his career, albeit with a respectable 4.08 ERA in 251 games. According to reports, Cissell had impressed Red Sox general manager Eddie Collins and was slated to play second base, replacing player-manager Marty McManus who had been released on October 2.</p> <p>Then, to erase any doubt that Cissell was Collins’ man, the Boston GM sold Johnny Hodapp to the St. Louis Cardinals less than three weeks after the deal. It was the second time in his career that Cissell replaced Hodapp in a team’s lineup. But things got murky when, on December 12, the Red Sox acquired second baseman Max Bishop and pitchers Lefty Grove and Rube Walberg from the Athletics. Cissell was seemingly out of the running for the second base job when Red Sox skipper Bucky Harris announced in February that Bishop was his keystone man and that Cissell would be battling Billy Werber and Bucky Walters for shortstop and third base.</p> <p>Bishop, Werber and Walters were in the starting lineup on Opening Day, but Cissell eventually worked his way in and ended up getting a majority of the playing time at second. He showed good range, but his glovework left much to be desired and he was the Red Sox’s worst hitter, batting .267 and slugging only .346. Only three other A.L. hitters had an OPS lower than Cissell’s .661.</p> <p>Cissell spent only one year with the Red Sox before he was shipped back to Portland on February 1, 1935 for pitcher Jack Wilson and an option on outfielder Nino Bongiovanni. The infielder had come full circle; after seven years in the big leagues, he was back with the team that had sold him for the record sum that scribes wouldn’t let him forget. He enjoyed a very good year with Portland, batting .316 and rapping out 204 hits, successfully piloting the team for most of the season after skipper Buddy Ryan resigned on May 31, and earning a spot on Bob Ray’s P.C.L. All-Star team. But his heart was still in the big leagues.</p> <p>“Managing a minor league club is okay,” Cissell told Ray, “but there’s only one place to play ball and that’s in the majors. I still think there are four or five years of major league ball left in my system, and if I don’t land back in the big show next season I’ll be mighty disappointed.”</p> <p>In fact, Cissell refused to play for Portland again in 1936 and was told to make a deal for himself. He ended up being shipped to the Baltimore Orioles of the International League for first baseman Bill Sweeney. Meanwhile the Beavers hired none other than Max Bishop to follow in Cissell’s managerial footsteps, but Bishop was fired early in the season and replaced by Sweeney.</p> <p>The Orioles were happy to have the veteran infielder, especially Baltimore general manager Jack Ogden. “Ogden is sold on Cissell,” wrote Jesse A. Linthicum of the <em>Baltimore Sun</em>. “He believes that Bill will make a big hit in the International League. He is peppery, and eager to play here.” Few expected him to be there long, though. “The big leagues booted one when they let Cissell go back to the minors,” insisted catcher Bill Cronin, one of Cissell’s former teammates with the Beavers. “Look for him to go up again, for he’s the best infielder we had in our league.”</p> <p>Before the 1936 regular season could get under way, yet another writer reminded his readers about the record price the White Sox paid for Cissell back in 1927. “There was Bill Cissell out there playing shortstop for the Baltimore Orioles this afternoon, and it was not difficult to recall him as the most expensive piece of baseball bric-a-brac who ever came into the big leagues,” wrote Shirley Povich in the <em>Washington Post</em>. “The late Charles A. Comiskey paid $126,000 [<em>sic</em>] for Cissell when he was a star in the Coast League seven years ago and the guy never did justify that kind of a price.”</p> <p>Perhaps not, but once the season got under way he thrilled fans in Baltimore with his stellar play at second base, including Linthicum who named Cissell the team’s most valuable player in mid-June. Cissell fractured his index finger again in July, but kept playing and was batting .348 with 12 homers and a league-leading 118 hits after 83 games. The injury got worse, though, and he was forced to miss some time in late July and early August. His absence from the lineup appeared to solidify his status as the Orioles’s MVP when the team underperformed without him, and he was, in fact, awarded a trophy as the team’s most valuable player towards the end of the season. Cissell finished the year at .349 with career highs in homers (15) and slugging (.523), and was second in the league in range factor.</p> <p>“No one will doubt the wisdom of the selection,” wrote Linthicum. “Cissell has been the spark plug of the infield. He has been a steadying influence to young Red Hoffner at shortstop. In fact, the deal bringing Cissell to this city probably was the best of many engineered by Jack Ogden. Cissell’s value to the club was emphasized when an injury forced him to the sidelines. The Birds did not look the same. Cissell is the ideal type of player. He fights himself out of slumps instead of sulking. There are not enough of that type of player in the game.”</p> <p>Cissell’s performance was rewarded when Connie Mack acquired him in the Rule 5 draft on September 29 (When Mack was asked why he’d take a chance on a player known for his appetite for alcohol, Mack replied, “I understand he only drinks at night now.”) It had been 10 years since Mack first expressed a desire to add the then young up-and-coming Pacific Coast League star to his A’s squad. But Cissell was now in his early thirties and merely a middling journeyman infielder, hoping for a second chance to stick in the big leagues.</p> <p>“Cissell turned in a first-rate job with the Birds this season and earned his chance under the big top again,” wrote C.M. Gibbs. “There is no question but that the former White Sox star can still measure up to major standards.”</p> <p>Cissell capped off his 1936 season by placing second in International League MVP balloting behind Buffalo Bisons outfielder Frank “Beauty” McGowan.</p> <p>He carried that momentum over into 1937 and got off to a fast start as the Athletics’ starting second baseman, going 3-for-5 with a double, a run, and an RBI in Philadelphia’s 4-3 Opening Day win over the Washington Senators. By May 15, he was batting .333 and just missed ranking among the top 10 hitters in the American League. But by the end of the month, his average had slipped to .278, and by June 6, it was down to .265. His glove had also been subpar, committing eight errors in 33 games, and though he had the best range in the league, Mack had seen enough and sent Cissell back to Baltimore on June 11.</p> <p>Despite not living up to expectations in Philadelphia, Cissell made quite an impression. Mack called him “one of the smartest players in baseball,” and Red Smith wrote a touching farewell letter to Cissell in the <em>Philadelphia Record. </em></p> <blockquote><p>Dear Bill—They just don’t ever come back, do they fella? It was just a month ago that we sat together with a couple of dishes of beer between us and you said quietly: “I’ll bat about .330 this year, and drive in maybe 120 runs.”</p> <p>You weren’t bragging. You believed in yourself. So did I. So did all of us up here in the press coop watching and marveling at the comeback you were making.</p> <p>We watched you swinging that stick in the clutch, batting in the runs that kept the Athletics’ May winning streak alive. We watched you on second base playing the hitters, making your head spare those 32-year-old legs…</p> <p>Well, you made a grand try, Bill. For a while we all thought you had the Indian sign on that sunuvagun with the sickle, as Gabby Street used to call the gentleman who soon or late calls the third one on all of us.</p> <p>Well, I’m getting maudlin, Bill, which is something you wouldn’t go for. I just want to thank you for the thrills you gave us a month ago. I’m going out now to lift one to your luck.</p></blockquote> <p>Not all of the A’s were upset to see Cissell go, however. When asked about the team’s nine-game losing streak to end the month of May, dropping the team from 15-9 to 15-18, an unnamed player said, “See that spot out there between first and second base? Well that’s where we lost 10 games in one month. Poor Bill Cissell, our second baseman, couldn’t go to his left and young Chubby Dean, our first baseman, couldn’t go to his right. Between the two of ‘em, they left a hole that you could move the dugout through. Anything hit toward right centerfield on the ground was a hit. It was pitiful.”</p> <p>Cissell was a welcome sight back in Baltimore, but he struggled mightily in his first month with the team, batting only .222. He eventually recovered, though, and batted .319 for the rest of the season to finish at a respectable .296 on the year. At 33, Cissell appeared to be losing a step, and the Orioles had a hole to fill at third base after incumbent third sacker “Smokey Joe” Martin was drafted by the White Sox in the 1937 Rule 5 draft, so Cissell was moved to third in 1938.</p> <p>Despite his admiration for Cissell, Linthicum called the move “a gamble.” But Gibbs insisted it was the right call, that too many hits that Bill would have swallowed up in 1935 and ‘36 had gotten past him in 1937, and that Cissell was demonstrating in camp that he was a capable third baseman. Before he could prove it, however, an X-ray discovered a chipped bone in the index finger that he’d fractured twice before in his career. He played through the injury and got off to a slow start, batting .250 in his first 14 games.</p> <p>He also found himself in some off-the-field trouble early in the season when his wife called the police and had him cited for disturbing the peace, resulting in a fine of $11.45. Orioles manager Buck Crouse insisted that he wouldn’t fine Cissell for the infraction because his trouble was “at his home and I haven’t anything to do with a player’s home life,” but C.M. Gibbs reported that Cissell was fined $50 and suspended indefinitely. The Orioles left for Rochester without Cissell and pitcher Bill Perrin, who had also been fined and suspended for getting into a fistfight in front of the city jail, but Jack Ogden wired Cissell the next day and ordered him on a plane to Rochester to rejoin the team.</p> <p>Two weeks later, Cissell was in the news again when his son, Bill Jr., filed a lawsuit against John Pymer and the City Baking Company seeking damages of $25,000 for injuries he received when he was struck by Pymer’s automobile on March 9. Bill Sr. and his wife also filed suit for $2,500 for medical expenses and the loss of their son’s services.</p> <p>But Cissell’s off-field issues didn’t end there. On May 28, it was reported that Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis ordered that Cissell be placed on the ineligible list after Cissell failed to respond to letters from Landis asking about a financial deal the player had with some one in Florida. When Cissell insisted Landis’ letters had never reached him, the commissioner relented and allowed Cissell to keep playing.</p> <p>Once he was able to concentrate on playing baseball, he rebounded and posted a solid .293 average and a .401 slugging percentage in 382 at-bats before he was purchased by the New York Giants on August 1 for $20,000 and Blondy Ryan, who was optioned to Baltimore to fill the vacancy left by Cissell. Back in the big leagues, he struggled at the plate, batting .268 with an anemic .297 on-base percentage, but he enjoyed his best season in the field, posting a career-best .977 fielding percentage at second base and a 6.48 range factor that would have easily led the league had he qualified.</p> <p>Unfortunately, his 38-game cup of coffee with the Giants would be his last taste of the majors. On December 6, New York sold the soon-to-be 35-year-old infielder to the Hollywood Stars of the P.C.L. where he’d spend the next two seasons playing second base.</p> <p>Of course, before the 1939 season could get under way, Cissell had to be reminded once again of the $123,000 Charles Comiskey spent to acquire him from Portland. “Unhappily, the $123,000 was thrown to the wind mainly because Cissell was a care free youngster who didn’t make use of his natural ability,” wrote Irving Vaughan in the <em>Chicago Tribune</em>. Then Bob Considine piled on. “[Bill Cissell] cost the White Sox about $100,000 and started out well, but he cut years off his playing life and shaved his general effectiveness by taking abysmal care of himself,” he wrote in the <em>Washington Post</em>.</p> <p>Almost a year to the day that Commissioner Landis threatened to place Cissell on the ineligible list, he found himself facing banishment again in June 1939 when P.C.L. president Wilbur C. “Two Gun” Tuttle got wind of deragatory comments Cissell made about him to an <em>Oakland Tribune</em> newspaper reporter named Art Cohn. While sitting in Jack Fenton’s Oakland tavern, no doubt enjoying a drink or two, Cissell told Cohn that “Tuttle doesn’t know anything about baseball,” and that former major league umpire George Hildebrand would make a better league president than Tuttle.</p> <p>He also criticized the P.C.L. rule permitting the use of using “too many rookies,” and stated that the International League and American Association were stronger circuits than the Pacific Coast League. And he criticized Commissioner Landis for “gypping” him out of $5,000 when he attempted to procure a chunk of the $123,000 purchase price the White Sox doled out for him in 1927. Cissell’s contract showed that he was entitled to the money, but when Landis asked to see the original document and Cissell was able to provide only a copy, the commissioner told him he couldn’t help him. “The judge demanded to see the original or nothing,” Cissell complained.</p> <p>After conferring with Judge W.G. Bramham, president of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, the minor leagues’ governing body, Tuttle meted out swift justice and suspended Cissell indefinitely without giving the ballplayer a chance to defend himself. The speed and severity of the punishment should have surprised no one; Tuttle was the son of a frontier sheriff and writer of Wild West fiction that featured men like Hashknife Hartley and Sleepy Stevens “riding the fiction range…and shooting off the bad guys…” Apparently, Tuttle viewed Cissell as one of the bad guys. Bramham was even more adamant about punishing Cissell and threatened lifetime suspension “if the remarks attributed to him could not be proved erroneous.”</p> <p>The adjudicators performed an immediate about face, however, and lifted the suspension only two hours into the penalty after receiving a phone call from Stars vice president Bob Cobb. Bramham ordered Tuttle to investigate the matter and determine if Cissell was quoted correctly before deciding on an appropriate penalty. Cissell didn’t deny the allegations, but insisted he didn’t realize he’d been talking to a reporter at the time. “I don’t know Cohn or any other newspaperman,” Cissell swore. “I discussed certain baseball rules last week in an Oakland tavern owned by Jack Fenton but did not talk to any sports writer. I wouldn’t know Cohn if I met him right now.”</p> <p>Cohn stood firm, however. “I am sorry Cissell is in a jam, but he knew he was talking to a newspaperman. His remarks were correctly reported and there were two others present who could verify them.”</p> <p><em>Los Angeles Times</em> columnist Bob Ray came to Cissell’s aid, though he admitted that Cissell was wrong for “rapping the game that has given him his living,” and “popping off against his ‘meal ticket’” in public, and felt a verbal dressing down and an apology were in order. In Cissell’s defense, though, Ray reported that Cohn had a “reputation for having a vivid imagination,” that “he isn’t happy unless he’s embarrassing or irritating somebody,” and that he doubted Cissell had directed his remarks to Cohn, but that the reporter had overheard them. He also took Bramham to task and accused him of being a dictator who was threatening a punishment that was much too severe for the crime.</p> <p>Whether or not Cissell had been talking directly to Cohn or not, the player had a habit of criticizing the P.C.L. in the newspapers, so perhaps Tuttle can be excused for finally taking action. In 1935, Cissell told Bob Ray that there were too many teams in California, especially in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and that two of them should be moved to Vancouver and Tacoma, “but I don’t suppose any of the owners will pay any attention to it,” he said. “That’s the trouble with the owners out here, practically all of them lack the ability to look ahead and they’re afraid to attempt something new.”</p> <p>In the end, Bramham and Tuttle agreed that a lifetime ban was too harsh a penalty. Instead of suspending Cissell, they fined him $200 and placed him on a season-long probation with a warning that future critical remarks by Cissell that found their way into newspapers would result in “severe suspension.” Tuttle explained that he refrained from suspending Cissell because he had no desire to penalize the Hollywood Stars for one man’s actions.</p> <p>But six weeks later, the Stars suspended Cissell themselves for breaking training and though they wouldn’t specify why, rumor was that he’d fallen off the wagon on a trip from Seattle to Portland. Cissell returned to Hollywood’s lineup on July 25 and helped the Stars defeat Oakland with three hits in the 4-0 win. He was able to stay out of trouble the rest of the way, but finished with subpar numbers, batting .269 and slugging only .359 on the year. And though he was no longer one of the league’s better second baseman, his fielding was right in line with his career averages. Still, he was voted the team’s MVP by the Hollywood fans.</p> <p>Cissell spent October playing for Joe Pirrone’s All-Stars in the California Winter League, competing with and against players like Bob Feller, Lou “The Mad Russian” Novikoff, Ernie Orsatti, Babe Herman, then 19-year-old minor league hot shot Jerry Priddy, and Negro league stars such as Mule Suttles, “Wild Bill” Wright, and Lloyd Bassett. He was also mentioned among a list of candidates to take over the managerial reins of the Hollywood Stars in 1940, but lost the job to Bill Sweeney who succeeded Red Killefer.</p> <p>At 36 years old, Cissell entered spring training of 1940 as the second oldest member of the Stars, behind only fellow California Winter Leaguer and new teammate Babe Herman, who was 37. He had to compete early on with Joe Hoover and Don Johnson for his second base job, but beat them both out with Hoover moving back to shortstop and Johnson to Tulsa of the Texas League. Cissell also turned over a new leaf in his personal life, vowing to cut down on hard liquor in favor of the occasional beer or two.</p> <p>Like clockwork the annual mention of the $123,000 purchase price hit newsstands on April 23 when the <em>L.A. Times</em> reported that no deal had included as much money before or since. But the article was a positive one. “Whatever Cissell’s faults may have been in the past,” it read, “one of them never was lack of hustling. Cissell has played the game hard at all times with only one object in view—winning. Bill may be no spring chicken any more, but he’s hustling as much as any player on the Hollywood club.”</p> <p>Cissell got off to a fast start in 1940 and stayed fairly consistent throughout the season, at least at the plate. He batted .327 through his first 37 games and had one stretch where he rapped out 23 hits in 12 games, including two homers, three doubles, and a triple. He couldn’t maintain his torrid pace, but was hitting .305 at the end of July and might have finished the season over .300 had he not been badly spiked in late August. Despite a heavily bandaged foot, Cissell refused to come out of the lineup and his average dropped about 20 points, but he finished the year at a solid .289. His glovework began to slip, however, and he finished last among P.C.L. second basemen in fielding percentage and range.</p> <p>Cissell spent another offseason playing in the California Winter League before preparing for his 17th and final season of professional baseball. Heading into the 1941 season, the writing was on the wall almost immediately for the aging keystone man when the Stars purchased 28-year-old second baseman Ham Schulte from the Philadelphia Phillies. Schulte was almost 10 years younger than Cissell and had paced the National League in fielding percentage (.980) in 1940, committing only 12 errors in 119 games. Prior to that, he led the International League in fielding in 1938 and finished second in 1939.</p> <p>The move proved to be a good one for the Stars. Schulte was a much better player at that point in his career than Cissell was in his, posting a .970 fielding percentage and batting .280. In June, the Stars needed to make room for new pitching coach Johnny Bassler, so they released Cissell, who had been serving as a part-time coach and utility player. He was picked up by the San Francisco Seals two days later but didn’t see much playing time and ended the 1941 season with a .247 average, only one extra-base hit in 40 games, and four errors in 61 chances. At 37 years old, “Spider Bill” Cissell’s professional career was over.</p> <p>In 1942, Cissell played semi-pro ball in California, first with the North America Aviation club, then with the Calship Mariners. From that point on, Cissell popped in and out of the news on occasion. In April 1944, Arch Ward reported in the <em>Chicago Tribune</em> that Cissell was cutting beef for the Iowa Packing Company in Marshalltown, Iowa. Other reports had him working for the railroad. Less than two months later, the <em>Los Angeles Times</em> reported that Cissell had signed with Minneapolis, but there’s no evidence that he ever played for them. It was also around that time that Cissell’s wife, Bernice, died.</p> <p>In 1947, Cissell entertained the idea of playing in the Mexican League, but he was offered a job by Dave Leahy, Comiskey Park’s chief electrician, which he accepted. Besides working as an electrician at the stadium where he made his major league debut, Cissell also played semi-pro ball on Sundays for $25 a game. “He’s worth the dough they pay him, even though he’s getting on in years,” Leahy insisted.</p> <p>Cissell’s last hurrah as a ballplayer came in 1948 when he participated in an Old-Timers’ game at Wrigley Field that also featured Rogers Hornsby, Freddy Lindstrom, Jim Thorpe, and 78-year-old John Hollison, who played for Cap Anson’s Chicago Colts in 1892. Cissell drove in the first run of the game, but the National League won, 5-4, when Bob O’Farrell’s single knocked in Ed Cronin with the winning run.</p> <p>From there, Cissell’s life spiraled out of control. In December, he was stricken with what appeared to be Buerger’s disease (incorrectly reported by some as Berger’s disease), an inflammation and clotting of veins and arteries in the hands and feet, which made it impossible for him to walk without excruciating pain. He had also fallen on hard times and was living in a tiny one-room apartment in Chicago with his 13-year-old son Gary, who was supporting both of them with his $7-a-week grocery store job. In addition to the disease, he was malnourished, resulting in a 60 lb. weight loss, and had hardening of the arteries.</p> <p>“When my wife died I went to hell for a while,” Cissell told Robert Cromie of the <em>Chicago Tribune</em> in January 1949. “In fact, I never did come all the way back. I used to drink too much, altho I haven’t had any since Thanksgiving. But if I can just get back on my feet again I’ll be all right. If a man can’t make a livin’ in this town he can’t make it anywhere. But I’m just skin and bones now, must be down to 100 pounds.”</p> <p>When White Sox vice president Charles Comiskey II and general manager Frank Lane learned of Cissell’s plight, they rushed to his aid, called an ambulance and had him taken to Mercy Hospital, and also arranged for Gary to live with a neighboring family so he could continue going to school (Bill Jr. had reenlisted in the Navy and Charlene was living with friends in Des Moines). Win Clark, secretary of the Association of Professional Baseball Players, issued an emergency check to Cissell to help him get by. “Bill’s case is pathetic,” Clark said. “While he dropped out of the association when his playing days ended…Bill faithfully paid his dues for the 15 years he was active and we are going to help him all we can.” Soon contributions from fans began to be sent as well.</p> <p>After his first day in the hospital, Cissell’s prognosis looked promising. Dr. John P. Waitkus leaned away from Buerger’s disease and towards polyneuritis-multiple inflammation along the nerves, with some hardening of the arteries. “We still have to get him in good enough shape so that we can run vascular tests, but I don’t think we’ll find anything too serious,” said Waitkus. Cissell’s condition improved in early February—thanks to treatment and a strict diet, the inflammation subsided and was affecting only one foot from the ankle down, and Cissell had already gained 15 pounds.</p> <p>“I’m feeling a little better,” Bill told reporters from his hospital bed. “I’ve had some rough days but I’m sure the worst is over.” Lane reported that doctors expected Cissell to be up and around in a few days and when he was able to work, the White Sox had a job waiting for both him and Gary.</p> <p>During Cissell’s recovery, Milton Richman took Organized Baseball to task for not doing more to help former ballplayers after their careers are over. “Baseball wasn’t responsible for the poor circumstances of all these ex-players but the game might have provided more help,” he wrote. “Some of these men, in fact, ruined themselves but baseball might have taken a more charitable view of their difficulties.” Richman cited the cases of Danny Gardella, former Giant and Cardinal, who was living in a dilapidated building in Yonkers, New York with his wife and 16-month-old son while trying to make ends meet as a hospital orderly, and former slugger Hack Wilson, who died penniless at age 48 only three months earlier.</p> <p>Things were looking bright for Cissell as February turned to March. He had fully recovered from the nerve inflammation in his legs and feet and was almost ready to be discharged from the hospital. But he suffered a heart attack on March 5 and was listed in critical condition. Almost a week later Waitkus announced that Cissell was not responding to treatment and was getting weaker. He died the next day, March 15, at the age of 45.</p> <p>Cissell was survived by his three children, his mother, Mrs. Ida French, and two sisters, Mrs. P.F. Sudbeck and Mrs. Alma Miller. He’s buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in his home town of Perryville, Missouri.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=Tsb8WplA9Dc:QpqHFqs-3vo:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=Tsb8WplA9Dc:QpqHFqs-3vo:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>When a World Series Becomes a Defining Moment For a City</h1> <p>Matt Aber — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:30:17 +0000</p> <p>Through much of my childhood, and probably further in to my adult life than I would like to admit, I followed pro wrestling. One of my favorite wrestlers was the bad guy and heavy weight champ Ric Flair. Flair would hold up his championship belt and yell, “To be the man, you have to beat the man” and for the Philadelphia Phillies this is their shot at taking down the biggest name in sports.</p> <p>The Phils are reigning World Series champs but let us be honest; when you face the Yanks on the biggest stage in the game you are the challenger regardless of your recent accomplishments. The Yankees’ 26 titles is the most in any of the four major sports besting the Canadiens’ 23 Stanley Cups, the Celtics’ 17 titles and the Steelers’ 6 Super Bowl wins. “Greatest franchise in sports” is the title that those who wear the pinstripes have earned. But in this time of clichés and political correctness when it comes time to answering the media’s questions those with the Phillies have given answers from the heart which is somewhat refreshing. As soon as the Phils put the final nail in the Dodgers’ coffin both Ruben Amaro Jr. their GM and their manager Charlie Manuel basically said they wanted to play the Yanks because they were the best team in baseball.</p> <p>You never just play the Bombers, though, in a World Series. The opposing team plays the icons of the game in Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio and Mantle along with the historic moments that the Yanks have given baseball in the WS like Babe’s called shot in 1932, Larsen’s perfect game in ‘56 and Jackson’s three home runs on three swings in ’77. Even when the Yankees lose a World Series doesn’t it seem like it always takes some type of Divine Intervention in a Game 7 to beat them? Bill Mazeroski’s home run in ‘60 and Luis Gonzalez’s broken bat hit off of Mariano Rivera in 2001 as exhibits A and B.</p> <p>A short drive from New York City, though, is a city that knows that if they want to be respected beyond baseball they want, no make that need, to beat the Yankees. Last year the Phillies beat the Tampa Bay Rays, and though it is great to earn that ring, it would have been nice to have had a shot at the Red Sox. In sports it is often more fun to beat a team whose name carries a little more cache like the BoSox as compared to who truly was a better team like the Rays.</p> <p>Living just outside of Philly I can tell you that this was a championship starved city. No major sports team had won a title in 25 years and it was in 1980 the last time a WS was won here. People were so stoked that fans were flying to Tampa last year and buying tickets down there for the WS because paying for the trip and tickets was cheaper than getting scalped tickets in Philadelphia.</p> <p>Either way, now that the title is here the fans are feeling it and want a shot at the bully. The Yanks are the biggest and the best and beating them in a series could lead to a word seldom heard in Philly sports – dynasty. The town would have a baseball team with back-to-back titles with a team from The Big Apple as a notch on its belt and would be set up nicely for a …gulp….third possible title with the core of the team coming back in 2010.</p> <p>You pick up any local paper here and you read about the complex the city has for being second rate in all things to NY and how before Philadelphia was taunted as NY’s “sixth borough.” Nothing makes people here happier than to beat up on the Mets and demoralize them, but that is getting tiresome now. Two late season collapses and a Mets season destroyed by injury have the Philly Phaithful thirsting for new blood. The Yanks are Gotham’s heart and soul and I can tell you the fans want nothing more than to use that city as a stepping stone to being called something special in sports.</p> <p>This will be the Yankees’ 40th World Series appearance and they’re seeking title number twenty seven. On the flip side Philadelphia was established in 1883 as the Quakers and became the Phillies in 1890, this will be their seventh WS appearance and looking for title number three. The team is also the only one in professional sports where the organization has over 10,000 losses. Starting to see now where that insecurity from the “City of Brotherly Love” is coming from? The Phillies team today represents a new source of pride for the city when it comes to sports and the foreign territory of miracle wins and impossible endings actually going the home team’s way.</p> <p>For Philadelphia, the excitement for November 1st is basically Christmas morning, hitting the lottery and having a date with Megan Fox all rolled into one. At 1 o’clock the Eagles play the NY Giants at Lincoln Financial Field and then literally across the street that night the Phils will be hosting Game 4 of the WS against yet another NY team. Are you kidding me? You can’t tell me the Man Upstairs isn’t a sports fan. This is one of those days where calling in The National Guard seems like a reasonable option.</p> <p>Essentially you are bringing together the football and baseball fans of Philly and NY to watch the most violent team sport in one rivalry and then turning around a few hours later and matching two more teams in a championship game. Toss in some animosity between the cities, a dash of jealousy by Philly fans, a hint of arrogance from NY ones and a healthy dose of tailgating (code word for alcohol) for everyone and this has all the makings of an epic day on the field and in the stands.</p> <p>It will be interesting to see how some of the Yankees respond to the Philly fans. They have a huge advantage merely because they are the team everyone wants to see, so playing in front of sold out crowds is nothing noteworthy to them. But I question if they will have played in front of a larger or angrier crowd than they will get on the road here. Fenway, you say? Possibly, but the Sox and Yanks play so often each year it is tough for a crowd to get up for every game, I will argue.</p> <p>Players like Jeter feed off of the hostility, you don’t get called “The Captain” because you wilt under pressure. I do question, though, thin skinned players with rabbit ears for the crowd like A-Rod. In the NLCS the Philly fans were relentless on Manny Ramirez with the chants of “cheater” and “you used steroids.” You just know the fans will be all over A-Rod and his past, and will surely dial it up a notch, so the question becomes whether he can block it out or does he press too hard and turn back into the choking A-Rod. If he truly loves Kate Hudson he will not bring her with him on the road - that would be like tossing chum into a shark tank. I picture Kate Hudson succumbing to the crowd’s jeers, crying, and then being pelted by rally towels with the chants of “wipe your tears – wipe your tears.”</p> <p>In the end, it will be a series that a fan with a true appreciation of the game will enjoy. Each team pretty much has a lineup that is loaded from top to bottom with guys who can flat out mash. Not to mention that they will be playing in the two ballparks that saw the most home runs this year, so some of the games could be slugfests. On the other hand, though, hurlers like Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia can shut down any lineup on a given night with the stuff they bring to the table.</p> <p>Both have some of the biggest stars in the game. The Yankees trot out sure fire Hall of Famers in Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera along with possibly A-Rod (will his steroids admission keep him out?) They also have teammates trying to build their resumes and make their mark in Bomber’s lore like Sabathia and Mark Teixeira. The Phillies sport possibly the best second baseman in the game with Chase Utley, and at first base with Ryan Howard. Though still in the early part of their careers, I think if the two can avoid injury and continue to produce like they have then Cooperstown could be calling them both when all is said and done. Just like their opponents, the Phils have players like Jimmy Rollins and 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamels as complimentary players who can take over a game.</p> <p>I can’t see this series being a cake walk for either squad because they both appear to be so evenly matched. The Yanks are great and you can see why they won over 100 games this year. The Phils want to repeat and know what a Series win over NY would mean to Philadelphia. My prediction: The Yankees will win title number 27….but not this year. Put me down for the Phillies in 7 games of what I hope will be one for the ages.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=PXbBgEZYlnM:Ugm5pgjXdlM:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=PXbBgEZYlnM:Ugm5pgjXdlM:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Big News On Many Fronts</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 19:24:27 +0000</p> <p>For an offseason weekend with a team already out of the playoffs, there have been some seismic shakes going on in St. Louis.</p> <p>First, the relatively expected news that Tony LaRussa <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/commishs-hot-stove/commishs-hot-stove/cardinal-beat-updates/2009/10/tlr-back-mcrae-out-big-mac-appears-in/">will be back at the helm</a> of the Cardinals for his 15th season with the Redbirds. One report indicated that it would be a multi-year deal, but as always TLR will take it year by year and decide whether he wants to return or not. A strong finish to 2010 might be the end of the road for him.</p> <p>We’ve talked about this in the <a href="http://sports.insidepulse.com/2009/10/21/ucb-cardinals-roundtable/">UCB roundtable</a>, but I think that having TLR (and, by extension, Dave Duncan) back is probably a good thing for the club. LaRussa does a lot of good things for this team and tends to get the most out of the players. While some may criticize how he does it, he usually is able to have the team overachieve. October is another matter, but you never know what you are going to get there. It sure wasn’t LaRussa’s fault that Chris Carpenter had a terrible Game 1 in this year’s NLDS.</p> <p>The bigger news, of course, is that Hal McRae was fired as hitting coach. That was expected–I <a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/stlouiscardinals/chopping-wood-for-the-hot-stov.php">mentioned that</a> a week or so ago. What wasn’t expected by anyone in the baseball world was that his replacement would be none other than troubled slugger Mark McGwire.</p> <p><a href="http://cardsclubhouse.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=23027&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0">A lot of people</a> are really up in arms over this. Which strikes me as fairly ridiculous, really. Look, we know what the rumors are about McGwire, though there’s been little hard evidence to connect him to it. Say it’s true, though. How worked up can we be?</p> <p>I will admit, I’ve been a McGwire fan since his rookie year, so I’m not completely unbiased in this regard. But, as Pip will likely point out, a team that had Troy Glaus, Ryan Franklin and Rick Ankiel, players either tied to or actually suspended for steroid use, has little room for a high road. If people aren’t going to be worked up about those guys, can you really get steamed about McGwire?</p> <p>Some would say the difference between those active players and McGwire is that they’ve admitted their guilt and served their time, as it were. There’s some truth to that. My personal opinion, though, is that we are going to see something come out of this press conference tomorrow. I don’t believe the Cardinals would have hired him naively thinking they could tell the press “don’t ask about it” and that’d happen. I don’t believe McGwire would bring himself out of retirement and subject himself to those kind of questions and harassments if there wasn’t a plan in place.</p> <p>I wouldn’t be surprised at tomorrow’s press conference that McGwire doesn’t say, “OK, here you are. One time thing. I’m answering the questions and then I’m moving on. Yes, I did it. It was not something I’m proud of. It was a time where a lot of people were doing the same thing and I felt like I needed it to stay in the game. I don’t think anyone should use them and I’m sorry for what I did. That said, I’m here to do a job, and that’s what I plan to do.”</p> <p>There’s going to have to be some addressing of the issue, otherwise this McGwire experiment will likely not last until spring training.</p> <p>Looking at it from a strictly baseball point of view, though, the move makes some sense. We’ve seen what McGwire’s tutelage has done for Skip Schumaker the last couple of years. Obviously, Mac’s not all about power and “grip it and rip it.” He seems to have some general fundamental knowledge of hitting and how to impart that to other players. While he and Matt Holliday didn’t necessarily work out well, I don’t think that’s an indication that he’s not going to be effective with the players.</p> <p>It was obvious that there needed to be a change. The last couple of years the offense has struggled and sputtered, for the most part. Whether it was McRae’s teachings getting old or just not being that effective, a change was definitely needed. There’s no doubt that this counts as a change. We’ll see if it was the right one.</p> <p>Needless to say, this isn’t quite to that level, but it’s still pretty big news nonetheless. Cardinals team president Bill DeWitt III will be our guest on a special UCB Radio Hour tomorrow night at 5:30 pm Central. Here’s <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/F860B05BE250FD5E8625740C00098716?OpenDocument">some background</a> on Mr. DeWitt and we are very excited to have him on tomorrow!</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a></em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=hK9u3Py-msg:aZ96OHO_sKQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=hK9u3Py-msg:aZ96OHO_sKQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Down to Cases</h1> <p>Ted Leavengood — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:59:00 +0000</p> <p><em>It’s down to the Phillies and the Yanks, remarkably similar teams, but built in different ways. Both have weaknesses in their bullpens, but relievers that any other team would love to have. Both can mash with the best, but the Yankees </em>are<em> the best. So what will the series come down to? The Phillies have home field advantage and their “exuberant” fans will have the house rocking when Sabathia hands the ball off to relievers like Aceves and Hughes, untested under that kind of pressure.</em></p> <p>Starting pitching favors the Phillies and I am predicting–more likely hoping–that it will carry the day. The Phillies top two starters–Lee and Hamels–are better than Sabathia and Burnett but the big man carries a lot of weight, enough that the margin disappears. Beating Sabathia will be difficult for anyone.</p> <p>Part of Sabathia’s strength is the lineup he has behind him. The pressure to keep them in check was too much for John Lackey in game one of the ALCS. So no matter how good Cliff Lee is, he is pitching against the deepest lineup in the majors. Regardless how much success he has against Teixeira or A-Rod, there are plenty who can provide Sabathia enough of a margin to win.</p> <p>Lee is the scheduled starter for game one and has proven during the playoffs to be a big game pitcher. He can beat the Yankees. He pitched against their lineup three times for Cleveland in 2008 and 2009 and won twice. Over the course of those three very high-quality starts, he allowed the Yankees only 5 runs, shutting them out to win in 2008.</p> <p>He lost a 3-2 heart breaker to them in 2009, but was in the contest all the way and pitched well. Can he beat his former team mate Sabathia? It is a tall order and even if he can match him until the late innings, whose bullpen will step up at the finish line? That will be the telling question.</p> <p>It is a tough prediction, but the Phillies late inning relievers have more experience in this setting. Ryan Madson and Chan Ho Park were perfect for Philadelphia in crucial game four against the Dodgers and they will put pressure on the New York relievers. The fewer times Joe Giradi goes to the mound before handing the ball to Mariano Rivera, the better the Yankees will look.</p> <p>The downside question is which Brad Lidge shows up for the World Series? That may be as important a variable as any. The betting line on that cannot favor Philadelphia.</p> <p>The Phillies’ lineup presents Sabathia his biggest challenge, although Ryan Howard is neutralized against a strong left-hander. That is a huge difference, but Utley and Victorino hit lefties well. So does Rollins, which means the big man will have his hands full with the Philadelphia hitters.</p> <p>Home field advantage may be a big factor given that the first two games are played in Philly. If the Yankees get off to a bad start in the first two games, if they don’t win coming out of the chute behind Sabathia, it hurts them more than it does the Phils. It will mean that their weaker starters–not that Andy Pettite and AJ Burnett are chump change–but they will have to step up or put pressure on a bullpen that is suspect.</p> <p>Pettite has been tough in the playoffs and like Sabathia, he has a better chance against Ryan Howard as a lefty. But Pedro Martinez is the perfect counter to Pettite–the experienced pitcher who has shown in the playoffs that he still has a little bit left when the chips are all in.</p> <p>The urge is to declare the Yankees the favorite, to follow the money right to the doorstep of the best team that money can buy. But a careful analysis shows there is far less separating these teams than what a mere $100 million will buy.</p> <p>It really comes down to the Yankee’s depth of talent, Mariano Rivera and their mystique going up against the Phillies’ fight and experience. Philadelphia does not have Matt Stairs this year, but they are still the blue collar team, still the defending champs.</p> <p>Philadelphia saw this movie last year and they are hungry for the repeat. They have the advantage of starting in their park, and I say that will be enough in what I hope will be a great contest of seven closely-matched, well-played games. But let’s get it on for heaven’s sake. There is snow in the forecast and they don’t play baseball in November do they?</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=fBRCHCF7sD4:7vIDC3MQ34k:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=fBRCHCF7sD4:7vIDC3MQ34k:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The 1985 California Angels</h1> <p>Derek Bain — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 18:31:55 +0000</p> <p>The Angels attempted to regroup after two consecutive seasons in which they failed to live up to their potential. Gene Mauch replaced John McNamara, reprising his role as manager after a two-year hiatus. California promoted Mike Port to the dual role of Executive Vice President and General Manager in September 1984. Port allowed ten players to walk as free agents, including Fred Lynn. The Angels claimed relief pitcher Donnie Moore from the Atlanta Braves on January 24, 1985, as compensation for the loss of Lynn. Port signed Ruppert Jones to replace Lynn as an outfield/DH option, and promoted Angels minor league prospects to fill the remaining roster spots. The infusion of young talent included starting pitcher Kirk McCaskill, relievers Stew Cliburn and Pat Clements, and backup infielder Craig Gerber.</p> <p>Rick Burleson, Ken Forsch, and Frank LaCorte missed the entire season due to injury, and Geoff Zahn was limited to 7 starts due to a shoulder injury. The offense generally under-performed, with one exception: The Halos led the American League in walks. A few highlights included 56 stolen bases from Gary Pettis, a third consecutive .300 season from Juan Beniquez, and an .847 OPS from Reggie Jackson (.252/27/85). Brian Downing led the squad with 85 RBI. Downing, along with Doug DeCinces and Ruppert Jones, surpassed the 20 home run mark.</p> <p>On August 4, 1985, Rod Carew became the 16th player in Major League Baseball history to collect 3,000 career hits. He delivered an opposite-field single off Twins’ lefthander Frank Viola. Carew stated, “When you’ve been around 19 years, you’re bound to collect a lot of hits. To be mentioned with the Cobbs, Hornsby, Rose and Clemente, it’s a great feeling for me. You hear those names for so many years and then you’re right there with those guys.”</p> <p>Gary Pettis commented, “Most guys hit when they can—he hits when he wants to.” Bobby Grich echoed similar sentiments about his long-time teammate. “He stays within himself so well. He doesn’t try to hit home runs. Because of that, there are hitters who can cause more damage and can carry a team further, but for getting on base and getting base hits, he’s the best.”</p> <p>The Angels pitching staff shined in ’85. Mike Witt continued his development into one of the top starting pitchers in the American League. Witt compiled a 15-9 record, with a 3.56 ERA over 250 innings. Ron Romanick followed a solid rookie season with a 14-9 mark, with a 4.11 ERA. However, his peripheral numbers indicated that he wasn’t fooling too many batters (210 hits allowed in 195 innings, and a 1:1 walk/strikeout ratio). Kirk McCaskill turned in a decent rookie effort, earning 12 victories. Tommy John was released in mid-June after 12 largely ineffective outings (2-4, 4.70 ERA, 1.722 WHIP). Urbano Lugo enter the starting rotation, and won 3 of 4 starts in June. He struggled in July, and was banished to the bullpen in August.</p> <p>Port made two mid-season deals to bolster the pitching corps. On August 2, he acquired John Candelaria (7-3, 3.80 for the Angels), George Hendrick, and Al Holland (1.48 ERA) from the Pittsburgh Pirates, in exchange for outfielder Mike Brown, and pitchers Pat Clements and Bob Kipper. On September 10, Port sent two minor leagues to the Oakland Athletics, in exchange for veteran starting pitcher Don Sutton (2-2, 3.69 for the Angels).</p> <p>Donnie Moore enjoyed a sensational debut season for the Halos. He amassed 31 saves with a stellar 1.92 ERA, along with 8 victories. Moore earned an invite to the All-Star Game, finishing sixth in the A.L. MVP voting, and seventh in the A.L. Cy Young race. 28-year-old Stew Cliburn placed fifth in the A.L. Rookie of the Year voting after compiling a 9-3 record, with a 2.09 ERA in the setup role. Fellow rookie Pat Clements pitched to a 5-0 record with a 3.34 ERA prior to the deal with the Pirates.</p> <p><strong>Down on the Farm</strong></p> <p>OF Reggie Montgomery led the Midland Angels (AA) with 22 home runs and 101 RBI along with a .289 batting average in 1985. He followed that effort with a .285/18/82 season for the Edmonton Trappers, but never received the call to the major leagues. Third baseman Jack Howell’s torrid start for the Trappers (.373/13/48) earned him a mid-May recall to the Angels. Future gold-glove outfielder Devon White received a cup of coffee after swiping 58 bags along with a .274/8/74 season, split between Midland and Edmonton.</p> <p><strong>Fight to the Finish</strong></p> <p>California rode a six-game winning streak at the end of April into sole possession of first place in the American League Western Division. The Angels fell out of first place briefly in early June, but by the All-Star Break (July 15-17), they had stretch their lead to six games over the Athletics. The Royals sat 7.5 games behind in third place. California lost 5 straight at the end of July (4 in Toronto), and their lead shrank to 2.5 games over Kansas City.</p> <p>The Angels remained in first place until the first week of September. The Royals reeled off an eight-game winning streak at their home park, taking three straight from the White Sox, then five in a row from the Brewers. Kansas City traveled to Anaheim, and proceed to win 2 of 3 from the Halos. The Angels then took 3 of 4 from the Rangers, and 2 of 3 from the White Sox, while the Royals lost 4 straight at home to the Mariners (after winning 3 of 4 in Oakland).</p> <p>On September 20, the Angels and Royals were deadlocked at 82-64. The White Sox were 7.5 games behind with 16 remaining, so this was essentially a two-team race. California won five of their next 10 games, while Kansas City went 4-6, giving the Angels a one-game lead entering their final series with the Royals. The four game set was scheduled for September 30 to October 3 in Kansas City. Bret Saberhagen delivered his 20th victory in the opener, 3-1. He struck out 10, allowing only a solo home run to 3B Doug DeCinces. George Brett and Jim Sundberg countered with long balls against John Candelaria.</p> <p>In the second game, the Angels countered with a 4-2 victory. Bobby Grich launched a solo homer in the second inning off Charlie Leibrandt. In the fifth inning, Brian Downing doubled in a run, followed by RBI singles by Rod Carew and DeCinces. Mike Witt pitched 7 2/3 innings for his 14th win, with Donnie Moore notching his 30th save. Kansas City pulled even with California in the third game, on the strength of a 3-hit shutout by Bud Black. George Brett cracked his 27th round-tripper, a three-run blast off Ron Romanick in the first inning.</p> <p>The Royals took the final game of the series, 4-1, with Don Sutton yielding gopher balls to Frank White, Steve Balboni, and Brett. The Angels scratched their lone run in the ninth inning, as Bobby Grich tripled in DH Rufino Linares to chase starter Danny Jackson. Royals’ closer Dan Quisenberry walked pinch-hitter Reggie Jackson, bringing the tying run to the plate. Juan Beniquez struck out to end the threat, and the Angels headed for Arlington, Texas, trailing the Royals by one game.</p> <p>Dave Schmidt twirled a 7-hit shutout, while the Royals beat the Athletics, 4-2, setting the Angels two games back with two games remaining. California attempted to keep pace with Kansas City, defeating the Rangers, 3-1. Kansas City put an end to the suspense, eliminating the Angels with a 5-4 victory over Oakland in 10 innings. The Royals lost their final game, while Mike Witt and the Halos “B-Team” beat Texas, 6-5. Rufino Linares, Darrell Miller, and Pat Keedy all dialed long distance for the Angels.</p> <p>Kansas City ultimately won the 1985 World Series, after coming back from 3-1 deficits in the American League Championship Series (vs. the Toronto Blue Jays) and the World Series (vs. the St. Louis Cardinals).</p> <p><strong>Silver Lining</strong></p> <p>California won 90 games for the second time in franchise history (93 victories in 1982). The farm system consistently produced talented ballplayers, providing the Angels with the means to replace the veterans that were nearing the end of line due to age or injury. Gary Pettis received his first Gold Glove award. Donnie Moore and Stew Cliburn emerged as a spectacular 1-2 punch from the bullpen. 24-year-olds Mike Witt, Ron Romanick, and Kirk McCaskill anchored a promising starting rotation.</p> <p><strong>On Deck</strong></p> <p>Gene Mauch leads the Angels within one pitch of the World Series. Alas, they would have to wait another 16 years to finally attain their goal.</p> <p><strong>References and Resources</strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/">Baseball-Reference</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.baseballamerica.com/execdb/?show=franchise&fid=laa">Baseball America – Executive Database </a></p> <p><a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1119740/index.htm">“Rod Reels In His 3000th Hit” – <em>Sports Illustrated</em> article, Bruce Anderson, 8/12/1985</a></p> <p><a href="http://articles.latimes.com/1985-08-05/sports/sp-3576_1_hit-carew-angel">“Carew Collects 3,000th Hit in Angel Win” – <em>Los Angeles Times</em> article, 8/5/1985</a></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=21TAcFXof2w:AQfoTgAwH_c:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=21TAcFXof2w:AQfoTgAwH_c:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>News In a Newsless Void</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:30:03 +0000</p> <p>As you know, there aren’t many things going on right now that are Cardinal related. So you have to pick out the small nuggets that are around and blow them up into talkable topics. Thankfully, I’m a blogger. That’s my job, that’s what I do.For example, there’s <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/47E2EAFA58DC2C9B86257658000E30A7?OpenDocument">a story up</a> at the <em>Post-Dispatch</em> site that the bullpen next year will be pretty similar to what it was this year. Being that Ryan Franklin and Trever Miller signed extensions at the end of last year and Dennys Reyes had a two-year deal to begin with, this isn’t exactly the biggest of shockers.</p> <p>I don’t think anyone expects that Franklin will lose his closer job over the offseason, even with the terrible run he went on to close 2009. The general official opinion on that is that he got worn down with all the innings he had thrown, so you have to figure a few months’ rest and he’s good to go. I’m not necessarily sold on that–Franklin worried me while he was going well, though not as much as he had in the past–but I do think you have to give him a shot and see, especially after the extension.</p> <p>Miller and Reyes will be the left-handed specialists again this year. That’s what they do. I will say I’m still surprised Miller turned out to be the better deal than Reyes did. We’ll see if that continues in 2010 or not.</p> <p>The rest of the bullpen are young guys with enough experience and success not to have to worry about the Memphis shuttle, at least not for a while. Blake Hawksworth, Kyle McClellan and Mitchell Boggs might have a shot at the back of the starting rotation (though I expect Jaime Garcia will be written in there), but if not they’ll be back in the ‘pen. Jason Motte, who best be learning something offspeed this winter, will be back in the seventh-eighth inning mix.</p> <p>The only thing that will be different is that, after so many years, the young face of Brad Thompson is not likely to be in Cardinal red. Thompson’s done a lot for the team and I wish him well, but he’s declined every year he’s been in the majors. Maybe someone can use him regularly and get more production out of him, but the Cardinals won’t be that team.</p> <p>Tony LaRussa still hasn’t said officially whether he is <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/51699C95D20D2BFA86257657000E8220?OpenDocument">coming back or not</a>, but very few people expect him to actually walk. I am surprised that it has taken this long, though. I wouldn’t be surprised if the pull of staying home isn’t starting to get to him, and that next year, if he comes back for another of his one-year deals, a more pleasing ending doesn’t have him sailing off into the sunset.</p> <p>Bernie Miklasz <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/columnists.nsf/berniemiklasz/story/544DE166FC75CFA386257657000F7F83?OpenDocument">talks about</a> Albert Pujols’ recovery from elbow surgery and the thought that the Cards should try to give him more rest next season. Like he points out, though, the problem is AP wants to play. He has a similar motto as Cal Ripken–you have plenty of time for rest in the offseason. Still, another day off here and there might not be a bad thing, especially if he starts showing symptoms of more elbow problems in the pennant race next year.</p> <p>Old friend Mark McGwire <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/bird-land/bird-land/2009/10/mcgwire-cardinals-pujols-is-worth-30-million-plus/">surfaced recently</a> to talk about Mr. Pujols. Most notably, that he thinks AP could get $30 million per if he hits free agency. Well, at least that he’s worth that. I don’t think any of us will argue that Pujols is worth more than anyone in baseball. The issue is, whether the Cardinals will have to prove it. If they do, they probably won’t, due to payroll restrictions. I think you’ll see the team come to a below-market-value agreement with AP, but it may not be until the end of next season.</p> <p>While Chris Carpenter wasn’t able to pull down the Baseball Blogger Alliance’s <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.com/home/2009/10/baseball-bloggers-alliance-selects-grienke-lincecum-as-cy-young-winners/">Cy Young award</a>, he did get another cool honor, <a href="http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091022&content_id=7524256&vkey=news_stl&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl">winning the Bullet Rogan Award</a> from the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum as the top NL pitcher. Not sure if it is significant that both the AL and NL winners played in Missouri, where the museum is located.</p> <p>Part of being in the BBA is to help out other bloggers in the organization. With that in mind, and because the prize is pretty darn cool, I want to suggest you check out SoDo Mojo. The Seattle blog is <a href="http://sodomojo.com/2009/10/17/sodo-mojos-free-100-gift-certificate-giveaway/">giving away a $100 certificate</a> to sportsmemorabilia.com, so you’ll want to get in on that!</p> <p>Blogging will probably be somewhat sporadic for a while as news trickles out. Keep</p> <p>checking back!</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a></em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=c952u6o7jMI:sLxK4h_fMFA:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=c952u6o7jMI:sLxK4h_fMFA:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Rambling On about My Post Glory Days: Bring on the Red Flags</h1> <p>Jack Perconte — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:11:45 +0000</p> <p>I am not usually a bandwagon jumper, but it has been very difficult to watch the game I love during these baseball playoffs. When I played major league baseball, I never was close to being thrown out of a game so I am not normally an umpire basher. I recall umpires as being very good, hard working and mostly consistent. I also do not enjoy watching NFL football video replay stops when a coach tosses the red flag. I never thought I would say this, let alone write it down, but I believe it may be time for “Red Flag” baseball.</p> <p>After watching this year’s playoff baseball, I recognize the need for the flag football idea. I have no choice but to jump on the “bash the umpires” bandwagon, but for a different reason than most. Obviously, they have missed many calls on the base paths as everyone has seen. I honestly feel like they are just in a slump or are feeling the pressure, which happens to everyone. Just like hitting and pitching, making incorrect calls is contagious and runs in cycles.</p> <p>What bothers me is how wrong they seem to be on pitched balls. I can only assume the technology is correct with the strike zone box and the pitch location designated by the pitch tracker. Why then does it seem like the umps miss one out of every four or five pitches according to the pitch tracker. They are right there, three feet from the strike zone. It gets funny in my home when my 92-year-old mother raises her hands and says, “What did he call that?”</p> <p>It is inconceivable to watch a hitter battle like crazy and then get called out on a pitch that is clearly way outside the TV box. It happens both ways of course, a pitcher makes a great pitch in the box, only to be called a ball and then the batter follows the call with a base hit. I thought baseball was always concerned with the integrity of the game and concerned with what the kids are thinking. Kids watching, like my mom, must be shaking their heads wondering about fairness.</p> <p>With this in mind, here goes my plan. Every player begins the game with one red flag in their pocket; managers get two and starting pitchers get three. Players can choose to throw their personal flag whenever they feel wronged on pitched balls. If they are proven right by replay they get to keep their flag to use for a future call. If replay proves them wrong, they lose their flag and cannot contest another call that game. Same goes for managers, they can object to base calls as long as they have a red flag to use. Relievers would receive one flag when they enter the game. Players have a four second time limit in which they can toss their flag. Immediately after a flag is thrown, the replay booth makes the replay call within thirty seconds and then play resumes. Once again, there is no arguing of calls, just a quick review after a thrown red flag.</p> <p>No worries; game times may even be quicker because arguments are no longer allowed. OK, pretty ludicrous I know; but at least there is more fairness and I can enjoy watching games again. Maybe a more plausible solution is to get rid of those boxes and pitch trackers. They really don’t make watching the game more enjoyable, at least for me. It is more enjoyable to wonder if the ump was right or wrong as opposed to knowing they are wrong so often. I understand they will be wrong at times; I just don’t want so much proof. So, for the integrity of the game, let’s get rid of those strike zone boxes and pitch trackers.</p> <p><em>Former major leaguer Jack Perconte is the author of </em>The Making of a Hitter <em>(<a href="http://www.themakingofahitter.com/" target="_blank">www.themakingofahitter.com</a>) and has a baseball instruction blog that can be found at <a href="http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball" target="_blank">http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball</a>. He has recently published his second book </em>Raising an Athlete - How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport<em> and has an additional blog at <a href="http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com/" target="_blank">http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com</a> </em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=GvgaJyNhRM4:iz5qj_4Dt0Y:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=GvgaJyNhRM4:iz5qj_4Dt0Y:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Back In the Saddle</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 20:27:27 +0000</p> <p>Been a while, hasn’t it? I’ve been out of the office, been busy with the <a href="http://www.baseballbloggersalliance.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a> award work, and there’s not been just a ton of Cardinal news to talk about. There are a few stories today, though, that I thought I’d touch on.</p> <p>First off, the top story is, of course, that <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/D876A4C8EB06E0DB862576560010A163?OpenDocument">Albert Pujols will need more surgery</a>. There was a link out there last night indicating that Pujols would need Tommy John surgery, which would keep him out until June or so. (Well, normal people would be out that long. We know AP tends to heal faster than regular mortals.) Thankfully, that’s not the case.</p> <p>In fact, apparently, things went great today in the surgery. Here’s the official press release:</p> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><font size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: bold">ST. LOUIS</span></font></strong><strong><font size="4"><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-weight: bold">, October 20, 2009 </span></font></strong><font size="4"><span style="font-size: 14pt">- St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols this morning <font color="black"><span style="color: black">underwent arthroscopy of the right elbow with debridement of bone spurs and removal of bone chips. </span></font></span></font></p> </blockquote> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal"><font color="black" size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="font-size: 14pt; color: black">During the procedure, doctors determined that Pujols did not require ligament reconstruction. The arthroscopy was not related to the previous nerve transposition surgery that Pujols underwent last year. This morning’s procedure was performed in Birmingham, Alabama by Dr. James Andrews. </span></font></p> </blockquote> <blockquote> <p class="MsoNormal"><font color="black" size="4" face="Times New Roman"><span style="font-size: 14pt; color: black">Pujols will begin his rehabilitation next week in St. Louis. Pujols is expected to fully recover. No timetable for his return has been set. </span></font></p> </blockquote> <p>So the Cardinals dodge a pretty big bullet there. Hopefully this surgery will work out a little better than last year’s, at least in how long the effects last. There’s doesn’t seem to be any doubt that it started to mess with him as the season wore on.</p> <p>Next up is the fact that David Freese is the <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/6746C9ECB0B801E586257655000A7683?OpenDocument">leader in the clubhouse</a> for the third base slot for the 2010 Redbirds. I think this is good news, not only because Mark DeRosa wasn’t the offensive wunderkind that we thought he was going to be when the deal with Cleveland was made but also because it indicates this organization is going to be clear-headed about moves.</p> <p>Jess Todd and Chris Perez are sunk costs–they are gone no matter what happens with DeRosa. Freese proved he was ready for a shot at the job, and that should help also with the financial aspects of pursuing Matt Holliday. Holliday is the one guy this organization really wants to keep, I think. All the other free agents can walk (though hopefully after they’ve accepted arbitration).</p> <p>Finally, the club is starting to look into the backup catcher slot and try to decide what they want to do with it, since <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/10025E4698B18565862576560011DF02?OpenDocument">resting Yadier Molina more</a> might be a good thing. If so, that means Jason LaRue will be gone, since he probably can’t play much more than he’s playing now. Will that mean that Bryan Anderson finally gets a shot? I don’t think that many people in Cardinal Nation would be that excited about Matt Pagnozzi if the idea is for the backup to play more often.</p> <p>It’s a small decision and it doesn’t necessarily indicate anything, but it’s interesting nonetheless. At this time of the year, you take what you can get!</p> <p>The United Cardinal Bloggers are working on their annual year-end roundtables. Whiteyball <a href="http://www.whiteyball.com/ucb-blog/">has the first transcript up</a>, looking at the Holliday issue. More are on the way throughout the next couple of weeks.</p> <p>And be sure to tune in to Josh and Nick tonight on the thirty-minute <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/UCB-Host/2009/10/22/United-Cardinal-Bloggers-Radio-Hour">UCB Radio Hour</a>!</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a></em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=AE0f6WeK0Vk:Er7oX0xJvMc:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=AE0f6WeK0Vk:Er7oX0xJvMc:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Mr. Owen? Mr. Branca? Mr. Niedenfuer? Meet Mr. Broxton</h1> <p>Jeff Polman — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:29:31 +0000</p> <p>I have a friend named Jay who not only bleeds Dodger blue, but drinks a tall glass of it for every meal. He still hates the Braves because Atlanta was the chief Dodger rival during the 80s, and he can still argue for hours that Steve Garvey should be in the Hall of Fame.</p> <p>After last night’s debacle in Philadelphia on the 27th out, I couldn’t bear to call him, and resorted to a semi-humorous e-mail this morning which he responded non-suicidally to. Now the Cubs and Red Sox have a long history of famous collapses, but for whatever reason, maybe due to their small closet of championship trophies, the Dodgers never seem to get included in the all-time choking circle.</p> <p>Following last night, that may have changed. Rarely has there been a more exciting and shocking conclusion to a game than Jimmy Rollins’ laser gap shot, and for one night at least, longtime Dodger fans were able to put the dark fates of catcher Mickey Owen (1941), Ralph Branca (1951), and Tom Niedenfuer (1985) aside, for Broxton’s meltdown was on a nightmarish par with those. Even more incredible, it was actually a two-part story.</p> <p>I’m never one to agree with the ill-informed blatherings that pass for Bill Plaschke’s baseball columns in the <em>Los Angeles Times</em>, but this morning’s was actually right on target. Broxton unraveled, said Plaschke, because he was haunted by the home run pitch he grooved to Matt Stairs in last year’s NLCS. Last night he said to hell with this and threw him four “unintentional” wide ones. What did that do? Well, after getting the much tougher Ibanez on a grounder to start the inning, it threw him off his game. He hit Carlos Ruiz with the first pitch, and had suddenly put himself in an unnecessary pickle jar, which Rollins would subsequently smash open with one swing.</p> <p>I’m a Red Sox fan, so Papelbon’s 9th inning collapse against the Angels last week brought back nightmares of another “closer” at an ‘86 Shea Stadium contest, an affair I will forever call the “Schiraldi Game” as opposed to the Buckner one. So I can feel deeply for Jay and other loyal Dodgerites, although my grief last night was more due to the fact I have tickets for Games 6 and 7 out here, an experience (should it happen) to be certainly recounted for this Web site.</p> <p>When a baseball moment like Rollins’ hit happens, though, it’s always fascinating and sometimes comforting to look at it from the opposite perspective. My brother lives in downtown Philadelphia, and here’s his account of how it all went down for him:</p> <p><em>“I was falling asleep during the final 2 innings (east coast time), and could no longer keep my eyes open in the ninth. I assumed that Broxton would blow away the bottom of the order, so I set up the tiVo and went to bed. And just as I was falling asleep, my neighborhood suddenly exploded. I started hearing male screaming and whooping and various testosterone outbursts on 16th and in the apartments in the back alley….and I knew instantly. I ran down four flights of stairs, and played the entire inning back…then watched it again.”</em></p> <p>As always, the sweet with the bitter.</p> <p><em>You can find more of Jeff Polman’s work at <a href="http://1924andyouarethere.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://1924andyouarethere.blogspot.com/</a> where he’s conducting a fascinating replay of the 1924 season.</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=cjEclpq_6eg:J7LugdYZgSs:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=cjEclpq_6eg:J7LugdYZgSs:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Picking a People’s Champion</h1> <p>Ted Leavengood — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:32:59 +0000</p> <p><em>Finding a people’s champion among the four teams fighting for baseball’s world championship is a tough assignment. Last year the Tampa Bay Rays won the honor without a contest. This year there is nothing even close to a small market team. All four teams are among the top ten in salaries, so no one can deck themselves out as “Underdog.”</em></p> <p>The Phillies’ payroll of $113 million is seventh highest in the game, but in many ways they are the most home-grown of all four teams in the playoffs and could offer a road map to any of the other franchises. Deft use of their amateur draft picks and player development produced the core of the Phillies roster: Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, and Cole Hamels. Even the Pineapple Express won his stripes in the Phillies farm system.</p> <p>When those core talents reached a level of performance that warranted an increase, the Phillies ownership moved from the bottom tier in payroll to the top tier. But they did it by signing those key players to long term contracts. Ryan Howard is the highest paid player on the team and this playoff series is making that look like some of the smartest money in the game. Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins are also among the highest paid players on the team, given long term contracts that keep them in Phillies uniforms for their peak playing years. </p> <p>Philadelphia has added players wisely to complement their base. Adding Brad Lidge last season was the perfect addition to a weak bullpen–this year not so much. But in 2009 they beat the odds again with Raul Ibanez. No one expected him to be the perfect corner outfielder to complement Jayson Werth? </p> <p>The Dodgers have the lowest payroll of the four teams at a paltry $100 million–ninth best among all teams. They feature a bevy of home grown talent like James Loney, Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw, but the presence of Manny Ramirez, the second most prized free agent at the beginning of the season, belies any comparison to the Phillies. Rapheael Furcal and other big name free agents dot their lineup.</p> <p>The Dodgers have always been more about finding talent than developing it. Branch Rickey raided the Negro Leagues to build his best teams. Today’s Dodgers are in that proud tradition more than any other.</p> <p>I won’t belabor the points about the Yankees with their $200 million in payroll that laps the field and makes a mockery of competitive balance (Give Jimmy Hoffa a team, bring Major League baseball to New Jersey). But the Los Angeles Angels are little better. They are constantly near the top of the payroll structure, but have been limited in recent years by Vladimir Guerrero’s long-term contract that made it difficult to pay Tori Hunter $100 million.</p> <p>Deploying my AIG World Series Handicapping Strategy, I derive a distinct favorite: the Philadelphia Phillies. They call themselves the “Fighting” Phllies and they are the closest thing we have to a blue collar presence in the playoffs. This endorsement has nothing to do with the 11-0 beat down they administered to the Dodgers Sunday night or the come-from-behind victory late last night. I am not swayed by the sense of inevitability growing around them.</p> <p>No, if the Dodgers can pull it off, I will hold my nose and just go with the National League team. But the Phillies are the best we have. So I am hoping they can finish off the Dodgers. Then it is on to whomever wins the AL. I still assume it will be the Yankees. The Phillies will give us underdog fans a modicum of hope against the machine. They provide a role model for other struggling teams and the best chance in baseball to beat the Yankees.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=1Xng3JOKLKE:aeqM2wDTuSc:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=1Xng3JOKLKE:aeqM2wDTuSc:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>1901 Milwaukee Brewers Are First Team In Deadball Monument Series</h1> <p>David Stalker — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:15:30 +0000</p> <p>The 1901 Milwaukee Brewers became the first team recognized in a monument series remembering the Deadball Era by David Stalker. The monument was unveiled at Miller Park on June 23, 2009 by Rick Schlesinger the Brewers executive V.P. of business operations and David Stalker.</p> <p>Leading off the dedication ceremony Rick Schlesinger spoke about the importance of remembering baseball history. He stated, “The Brewers franchise takes great pride in providing a top quality experience and competitive team on the field, and while we focus on the current, we never forget the past. In baseball in particular, we feel that recognizing the past is a crucial part of our franchise and a crucial part that we do not want to forget. Baseball is the best sport when it comes to connecting history through different generations.”</p> <p>Stalker followed by speaking about the American League forming in Milwaukee in 1900, and the 1901 Brewers being part of the A.L. inaugural season. “I wanted this piece of Milwaukee baseball history put in stone, so its story would be forever told.”</p> <p>Stalker mentioned the five Wisconsin natives that were a part of that team, and talked about the monument series. Thanks were given to the Brewers for their efforts in helping preserve baseball history, and to all those that made the monument possible.</p> <p>Those that contributed to the monument were invited to join Schlesinger and Stalker for proper acknowledgement. The group consisted of, Dale and Jeff Wetzel (father and son Brewer season ticket holders since the teams move from Seattle) Dan Wackman (grandson of 1901 Brewer Bert “Pete” Husting) and Archie Monuments. Acknowledged but unable to attend was Jim Kluge (grandson of former player Wattie “Roscoe” Holm).</p> <p>Among those attending the ceremony were family members of the 1901 Brewer player Bert “Pete” Husting. They traveled from California, Texas, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The Husting Family also attended a ceremony and unveiling two days prior, in Mayville, Wisconsin. This was honoring player Pete Husting on his own monument, at the Limestone School and Museum</p> <p>Along with the 1901 Brewers, this monument tells about the American League forming in a Milwaukee hotel room, and five Wisconsin natives that were fortunate enough to play major league ball in front of admiring fans in their home state.</p> <p>Well-known names such as Charles Comisky, Connie Mack and American League president Ban Johnson met with Brothers Matt and Henry Killilea at the Republican House in 1900 and established the league. The inaugural season of the AL began in 1901 and Milwaukee was awarded the Brewers. The new league gave an opportunity for a couple hundred more players to play major league baseball. Wisconsin had much talent to offer the majors during the early years of the league.</p> <p>Brief biographies of Wisconsin players on the 1901 Brewers as follows:</p> <p><u>Ed Bruyette</u></p> <p>Bruyette was born in Manawa, WI on August 31. Baseball sources say the year was 1874, but his obituary from the Wenatchee Daily World states he passed away at the age of 60, in 1879.</p> <p>Ed made his major league debut on August 6, 1901 with the Milwaukee Brewers. He played in 26 games mainly as an outfielder, but also filled in at second base, first base and shortstop. According to his obituary, he played with Seattle in the Northwest League, and was player-captain with the Butte, Montana team.</p> <p>He organized and kept active in the Fruit Growers Association. For a number of years he was a grading foreman in a packing plant. Ed died of a heart attack while tending the sprayer in his orchard on August 5, 1940, in Peshastin, Washington.</p> <p><u>Emerson “Pink” Hawley</u></p> <p>Hawley was born in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin on December 5, 1872. The veteran pitcher ended his ten-year major league career in Milwaukee. He brought much experience to the young Milwaukee club. Hawley was known as a real workhorse pitcher. He Pitched 300 or more innings for 6 seasons, with a league leading 444 innings in 1895 for Pittsburgh. During his stay in Pittsburgh, he was named “The Duke of Pittsburgh”. He chalked up winning seasons of 31, 22 and 27 wins. With Milwaukee, he had a record of 7 wins and 14 losses, and an era of 4.59.</p> <p>After the 1901 season, Pink played for the American Association Milwaukee Brewers, managed at La Crosse and Oshkosh. While with La Crosse, he coached Ed Konetchy before his major league career. Pink returned to Beaver Dam and managed the La Sonia bowling alleys.</p> <p>Hawley is buried with his family at Oakwood Cemetery in Beaver Dam. Pink had a brother named Blue that played baseball, Blue caught for his brother at Wayland Academy in Beaver Dam. There is a story told that Pink and Blue were twins and they received their names at birth, when the hospital tied colored ribbons to the boys to tell them apart. However, their grave markers list Emerson P. Hawley’s birth in 1872 and Elmer B. Hawley’s birth in 1873.</p> <p>I believe Hawley certainly desires a spot in the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame. I am currently planning a memorial for Mr. Hawley in Beaver Dam for early part of 2010.</p> <p><u>Davy Jones</u></p> <p>Jones was born in Cambria, Wisconsin on June 30, 1880. He got his start with the 1901 Milwaukee team on September 15. Davy made his presence known with three home runs in 14 games played.</p> <p>When Milwaukee lost their team to St Louis after one season, Davy played for St. Louis in 15 games before he joined the Cubs to finish the season. During his 14-year major league career, he also played for Detroit, Chicago AL and Pittsburgh of the Federal League.</p> <p>Jones was a member of the 1907, 1908 and 1909 AL Champion Detroit Tigers. Jones played in the outfield with Hall of Fame players Ty Cobb and Sam Crawford. He formed friendships with them that lasted a lifetime.</p> <p>Davy remained in Detroit for a number of years and operated his own chain of drug stores. He returned to Wisconsin and lived in Milwaukee, before spending his final years in Mankato, Minnesota.</p> <p>Davy was elected to the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1964. In 2006, he was honored in his hometown of Cambria, Wisconsin. With financial help from the Jones family, and time donated from Jay Williams and Phil Slinger planning a dedication, Jones became the second player honored in Stalker’s Deadball Monument Series.</p> <p><u>Bert “Pete” Husting</u></p> <p>Husting pitched 8 innings in 1900 for Pittsburgh and joined Milwaukee for his first full season of 1901. In 1902, he played in one game with Boston of the AL, and finished the season with a 14 and 5 record for the AL Champion Philadelphia team. Husting’s friendship with Connie Mack lasted a lifetime.</p> <p>For more on Husting read Seamheads article, <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/09/30/berthold-%E2%80%9Cpete%E2%80%9D-husting-honored-with-memorial/">“Berthold ‘Pete’ Husting Honored with Memorial.”</a></p> <p><u>George McBride</u></p> <p>McBride was born in Milwaukee on November 20, 1888 he also got his start with the 1901 Brewers making his debut on September 12, filling in for Wid Conroy. After a brief stay with Pittsburgh in 1905, George finished the season with St. Louis. He played one more year with the Cardinals and then played thirteen years with the Washington Senators. As a shortstop, he was great, leading the American League in fielding average five years.</p> <p>McBride was elected into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame in 1952.</p> <p>McBride passed away in Milwaukee at the age of 92, after enjoying a long healthy life. He drove his automobile six months prior to his death, without the need of eyeglasses. George’s hobbies included bowling, golfing and taking walks to the Elks Club several times a week. He is buried next to his wife Anne at Holy Cross Cemetery, Milwaukee WI.</p> <p>The 1901 Brewer monument is two sided. One side contains the text, and the reverse side lists all the members of the team and those that donated towards the memorial, as shown below.</p> <p class="captionleft8"></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center">IN HONOR OF THE 1901 MILWAUKEE BREWERS OF THE AMERICAN LEAGUE</p> <p>In 1900, the American League was born in a Milwaukee hotel named the Republican House. The following year, during the 1901 inaugural season, the Milwaukee Brewers<br /> were one of eight teams to participate in Major League Baseball’s “Junior Circuit.” The Brewers played their home games at Lloyd Street Grounds, which was located on the city’s north side (Lloyd St. & 16th St.). Player / Manager Hugh Duffy batted .302 that season and was later inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Wid Conroy was the team captain, Bill Reidy led the pitching staff with 16 victories, and John Anderson paced the team with a.330 batting average.</p> <p>Five Wisconsin natives were members of that Brewers team, including Ed Bruyette of Manawa, Davy Jones of Cambria and George McBride of Milwaukee, all of whom made their Major League debut. Pitchers Pink Hawley of Beaver Dam and Pete Husting of Mayville also contributed. In 1902, the Brewers moved to St.Louis and became the Browns, but the league they helped form is still in existence today. The Browns became the Baltimore Orioles in 1954.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"></p> <p>Team members listed on reverse side:</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center">MILWAUKEE BREWERS</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center">1901 BASEBALL TEAM</p> <table align="center" width="50%"> <tr> <td>John Anderson</td> <td width="20%"> </td> <td>Lou Gertenrich</td> </tr> <tr> <td>George Bone</td> <td> </td> <td>Billy Gilbert</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ed Bruyette</td> <td> </td> <td>Bill Hallman</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Jimmy Burke</td> <td> </td> <td>Pink Hawley</td> </tr> <tr> <td>John Butler</td> <td> </td> <td>George Hogriever</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Joe Conner</td> <td> </td> <td>Pete Husting</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Wid Conroy</td> <td> </td> <td>Davy Jones</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Jiggs Donahue</td> <td> </td> <td>Tom Leahy</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Pete Dowling</td> <td> </td> <td>Billy Maloney</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Hugh Duffy</td> <td> </td> <td>George McBride</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Bill Friel</td> <td> </td> <td>Bill Reidy</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Ned Garvin</td> <td> </td> <td>Tully Sparks</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Phil Geier</td> <td> </td> <td>Irv Waldron</td> </tr> </table> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center">Donated in 2009 by</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"> David J. Stalker, Jeff Wetzel, Archie Monuments,</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"> Jim Kluge, Dan Wackman and Dale Wetzel</p> <p>In this Deadball Monument Series the 1901 Milwaukee Brewers join players, <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2008/11/26/a-lasting-tribute-to-the-deadball-era/">Fred Merkle</a>, Davy Jones, <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/03/08/a-tribute-to-billy-sullivan/">Billy Sullivan</a>, Addie Joss, Pete “Red” Kleinow, Charley Faust, Bob Groom, <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/09/30/berthold-%E2%80%9Cpete%E2%80%9D-husting-honored-with-memorial/">Pete Husting</a>, <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/10/11/killefer-brothers-9th-and-10th-in-monument-series-honoring-the-deadball-era/">Bill Killefer</a> and <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2009/10/11/killefer-brothers-9th-and-10th-in-monument-series-honoring-the-deadball-era/">Wade Killefer</a>.</p> <p>For those interested in adding a player, team or ballpark to this series, or financially contributing towards this series, please do contact me.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=icV7CKLZOiE:f1L4N6GbPSg:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=icV7CKLZOiE:f1L4N6GbPSg:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Félix versus Zack</h1> <p>Alfonso L. Tusa C. — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 21:39:19 +0000</p> <p>Hace cuarenta años un serpentinero cubano acompañaba a los Leones de Ponce en la Serie del Caribe a efectuarse en Caracas en febrero de 1970. Miguel Cuellar abriría el primer juego ante Magallanes. Venía de ganar el Cy Young de la Liga Americana igualado con Denny McLain. Lo recuerdo muy bien, porque a ese lanzador, el jardinero del Magallanes Armando Ortíz le despachó un jonrón enorme que puso números definitivos al juego.</p> <p>Desde mi punto de vista el premio Cy Young de la Liga Americana en 2009 se decidirá entre Félix Hernández y Zack Greinke. Alguién podría preguntar ¿por qué no C.C. Sabbathia? Su mérito más importante fueron las 19 victorias que obtuvo y comparte ese liderato con Hernández. Pero la razón fundamental radica en que Félix y Zack jugaron para equipos que los respaldaron poco tanto a la ofensiva como a la defensiva.</p> <p>Greinke sólo fue respaldado con 100 carreras por los Reales de Kansas City a lo largo de la temporada lo cual implica un promedio de 3.92 carreras por juego. Hernández recibió ayuda de 116 carreras de los Marineros de Seattle para promedio de 4.37 carreras por juego.</p> <p>En cuanto a defensiva los Reales fueron el peor equipo de toda la Liga Americana, lo cual representa una carga muy onerosa a la hora de registrar victorias. Cinco de las posibles victorias de Greinke fueron desperdiciadas por el bull pen, mientras que a Hernández el bull pen sólo le malbarató dos hipotéticos triunfos.</p> <p>Observar a Félix y a Greinke lanzar es en cierta medida recrear las gestas de Juan Marichal en los años sesenta, quién nada más en 1966 tuvo marca de 25-6 con efectividad de 2.23 más 222 ponches, pero el Cy Young fue a parar a manos de Sandy Koufax (27-9, 1.73, 317). O las de Steve Busby (22-14, 3.39, 198) en 1974, Dennis Leonard (20-12, 3.04, 244) en 1977, Paul Splitorff (16-6, 3.69, ) en 1977, Larry Gura (18-10, 2.95, 113) en 1980, Mark Gubicza (20-8, 2.70, 183) en 1988, Bret Saberhagen (23-6, 2.16, 193), Cy Young en 1989, Kevin Appier (18-8, 2.56, 186) en 1993; a lo largo de los 40 años de los Reales de Kansas City. O la de Johan Santana (20-6, 2.61, 265) CyYoung en 2004.</p> <p>¿Qué dicen los números? Félix 19-5 a 16-8 en balance de victorias-derrotas, 238 a 229.1 en innings lanzados, 7.5 a 7.7 hits/ 9 innings, .227 a .230 promedio de bateo de oponentes.</p> <p>Greinke 2.16 a 2.49 en efectividad, 242 a 217 ponches, 195 a 200 hits permitidos, 55 a 66 carreras limpias, 11 a 15 jonrones permitidos, 1.073 a 1.135 whip, 51 a 71 boletos, 4.75 a 3.06 ponches/boleto, 0.4 a 0.6 jonrones/9 innings, 2 a 2.7 boletos/9 innings,.</p> <p>Ambos tienen méritos suficientes para acreditarse el Cy Young de la Liga Americana este 2009. Tanto que pudiera repetirse el empate de 1969 entre Cuellar (23-11, 2.38, 182) y McLain (24-9, 2.80, 181).</p> <p><strong>English Translation </strong></p> <p>Forty years ago, a Cuban pitcher played for the Ponce Lions in the Caribbean Series that would take place in Caracas in February 1970. Mike Cuellar would start the first game before the Magallanes Navigators. He came from winning the American League Cy Young award tied with Denny McLain. I remember it very well, because Cuellar surrendered a home run to the Magallanes outfielder Armando Ortíz in that first game.</p> <p>From my point of view the American League Cy Young Award of 2009 should go to Félix Hernández or Zack Greinke. Somebody can ask Why not C.C Sabbathia? His most important achievement are the 19 wins he got and he shares that leadership with Hernández. But the main reason is that Felix and Zack played for teams that hardly supported them offensively or defensively.</p> <p>Greinke only got 100 runs of support from the Kansas City Royals through the whole season. This implies an average of 3.92 runs per game. Hernández got a help of 116 runs from the Seattle Mariners for an average of 4.37 runs per game.</p> <p>About the defensive game, the Royals were the worst team in the whole American League, which represents a heavy burden at the time of getting wins. Five of the probable victories Greinke could have achieved were blown by the bull pen, while Hernández was only affected by his bull pen blowing two hypothetical wins.</p> <p>Watching Felix and Greinke on the mound is like recreating the performances of Juan Marichal in the sixties, who only in the 1966 season had a 25-6 record, with an ERA of 2.23 plus 222 strikeouts. But the Cy Young Award went to Sandy Koufax (27-9, 1.73, 317). Or those of Steve Busby (22-14, 3.39, 198) in 1974, Dennis Leonard (20-12, 3.04, 244) in 1977, Paul Splitorff (16-6, 3.69, ) in 1977, Larry Gura (18-10, 2.95, 113) in 1980, Mark Gubicza (20-8, 2.70, 183) in 1988, Bret Saberhagen (23-6, 2.16, 193), Cy Young in 1989, Kevin Appier (18-8, 2.56, 186) in 1993, all the way long in forty years of history for the Kansas City Royals. Or that one of Johan Santana (20-6, 2.61, 265) CyYoung in 2004.</p> <p>What do the stats say? Félix 19-5 to 16-8 for wins-losses, 238 to 229.1 innings, 7.5 to 7.7 hits/ 9 innings, .227 to .230 batting average opponents.</p> <p>Greinke 2.16 to 2.49 ERA, 242 to 217 strikeouts, 195 to 200 hits allowed, 55 to 66 earned runs, 11 to 15 home runs allowed, 1.073 to 1.135 whip, 51 to 71 walks, 4.75 to 3.06 strikeouts/walk, 0.4 a 0.6 home runs/9 innings, 2 to 2.7 walks/9 innings.</p> <p>Both pitchers have enough merits to get the American League Cy Young Award in 2009. Such enough merits that we could end seeing a remake of the 1969 tie between Cuellar(23-11, 2.38, 182) and McLain (24-9, 2.80, 181).</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=5A_x0lrYuE8:FULZVEo02Jw:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=5A_x0lrYuE8:FULZVEo02Jw:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Rambling On About My Glory Days: The Sociological Effects of Baseball</h1> <p>Jack Perconte — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:00:58 +0000</p> <p>Don’t worry baseball fans, a college degree is not necessary for this article. The time was early June 1976 and to aspiring young ballplayers like me. it was the biggest week of the year. Forget birthdays, Christmas, graduation and first date with a girl because nothing compares to the week of the major league draft for draft eligible baseball players.</p> <p>From the outside it may have appeared that I did not put all of my eggs in one basket. I had gotten my college degree in Sociology (for reasons I am still not sure of) but on the inside, my very existence depended on getting an opportunity to play professional baseball.</p> <p>For those born after the mid 1980’s it may be difficult to understand this, but back in 1976 there was no up-to-the-minute coverage of events like the major league draft. Unless news was earth shaking, information came days, weeks and even months later if at all. ESPN was not around then so the good old telephone was generally the only way of finding out what was going on for things like the major league draft.</p> <p>I was pretty much “holed” up in my room for those few days waiting for the call to come. I believe there was more than one day of the draft back in the day like today, but whatever, the baseball draft came, went and I had heard nothing. It was very gloomy around my house to say the least. My thoughts were slowly drifting towards my Sociology degree. After another sleepless night, my mom’s voice was heard at least throughout the neighborhood, “The Dodgers are on the phone.” Oh my God! - It was real. Sociology would have to go on without me, at least for a while.</p> <p>It was now on to have new prayers answered and here is where my college degree really paid off. Did I want to be sent down the road a couple of hours from my Illinois home to Danville, Illinois or was I going to pray to be sent to Lodi, California, both A-ball level cities in the Dodger minor league system? Let’s see - Danville, Illinois or sunny California. Tough call (just kidding), but I felt my college degree would serve me better in California.</p> <p>That was the case and I was sent to Lodi to begin “the life” and use my degree to understand the sociology of California. If you believe this latter part, I picked up some land there that ….</p> <p><em>Former major leaguer Jack Perconte is the author of </em>The Making of a Hitter <em>(<a href="http://www.themakingofahitter.com/" target="_blank">www.themakingofahitter.com</a>) and has a baseball instruction blog that can be found at <a href="http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball" target="_blank">http://www.baseballhittinglessons.com/baseball</a>. He has recently published his second book </em>Raising an Athlete - How to Instill Confidence, Build Skills and Inspire a Love of Sport<em> and has an additional blog at <a href="http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com/" target="_blank">http://www.positiveparentinginsports.com</a> </em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=3AswXyT4Kno:sjEuwsNO6Qs:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=3AswXyT4Kno:sjEuwsNO6Qs:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>First Europeans to Play in the Majors</h1> <p>Brendan Macgranachan — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 21:40:45 +0000</p> <p><font size="3">Last year, I wrote an article on the</font> <a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/2008/05/16/an-international-game-first-foreign-players-from-each-country/"><u><font color="#000080" size="3">first players to appear in the major leagues from certain countries</font></u></a><font size="3">. Here is a follow up to that piece on the first players from European countries to make major league appearances.<br /> </font><font size="3"><strong> </strong></font></p> <p align="left"><font size="3"><strong>First Italian – Julio Bonetti (Debut: April 22<sup>nd</sup>, 1937 with the St. Louis Browns)<br /> </strong>Bonetti, born in Genoa, Italy, debuted for the lowly Browns in their second game during the 1937 season. His family moved to San Francisco when he was a teenager and Bonetti made his professional baseball debut with Mission in the Pacific Coast League in 1933. He spent four seasons in the minors before signing a contract with the Browns, whom he pitched for during the ‘37 and ‘38 seasons, compiling a 6-14 record in 65 games. Afterward, Bonetti spent three seasons pitching with Los Angeles in the PCL and played one final major league game with the Cubs in 1940, when he gave up three runs in one inning plus of work during a 9-5 loss to Pittsburgh.</font></p> <p align="left"><font size="3"><strong>First Frenchman – Joe Woerlin (Debut: July 21<sup>st</sup>, 1895 with the Washington Senators)<br /> </strong>Only eight players born in France have ever reached the major league level and Woerlin was the first in 1895, although he only appeared in one game for the Washington Senators. One of the 14 different shortstops used by the Senators that season, Woerlin debuted as a 30-year-old in a July game in St. Louis. Woerlin singled and walked in four plate appearances in a game which the Senators lost by a score of 16-8. The next French-born player to appear in the majors would by Claude Gouzzie, who had one at-bat in his short career with the St. Louis Browns.</font></p> <p><font size="3"><strong>First Dane – Olaf Henriksen (Debut: August 11<sup>th</sup>, 1911 with the Boston Red Sox)<br /> </strong>The native of Kirkerup, Denmark spent seven seasons with the Red Sox as a backup outfielder to the likes of Tris Speaker, Duffy Lewis, and Harry Hooper. Henrikson won three World Series titles in his time in Boston and had a part in the 1912 World Series during the eighth and final game. With the score 1-0 for the opposing New York Giants, Henriksen hit a pinch-hit, game-tying double off of Christy Mathewson in the seventh inning to bring Boston back in the game, which they eventually won 3-2 in extra innings.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Henriksen was a useful pinch hitter for the Sox and had a knack of getting on-base (lifetime OBP: .392). His career wrapped up in 1917. ‘Swede’ played 321 career games, all with Boston, and had a lifetime .269 average.</font></p> <p><font size="3"><strong>First German – Charlie Getzien (Debut: August 13<sup>th</sup>, 1884 for the Detroit Wolverines)<br /> </strong>‘Pretzels’ started his major league career with a bang in ‘84, no-hitting the Philadelphia Phillies in his final start of his rookie season. Despite posting a losing record in his debut season, Getzien had a team-best 1.95 ERA for a terrible Wolverines team and developed into a dependable starter. Getzien broke out in ‘86, his third season, when he won 30 games for the Wolverines, who as a team improved for a second place finish in the National League.</font></p> <p><font size="3">In 1887, Getzien had a NL-best winning percentage (.690) and led the Wolverines staff to a World Series appearance. In a fifteen-game World Series against the St. Louis Browns, Getzien started six games and went 4-2 to help Detroit win the Series by a margin of 10-5. The right-hander pitched one more year for Detroit but the team folded after the ‘88 season.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Getzien pitched in four more seasons for four different NL teams; Indianapolis, Boston, Cleveland, and St. Louis. He finished his career with an overall record of 145-139 in 292 career starts.</font></p> <p><font size="3"><strong>First Norwegian – John Anderson (Debut: September 8<sup>th</sup>, 1894 for the Brooklyn Bridegrooms)<br /> </strong>The first of only three Norwegian-born baseball players to play in the majors, Anderson spent 14 productive seasons in both the American and National Leagues. While Anderson’s glove was poor, his tremendous combo of speed and power helped him led the NL in triples during the 1898 season (22 with both Brooklyn and Washington) and the AL in stolen bases (39 in 1906). After taking a year off at the turn of the century, Anderson came back in 1901 for Milwaukee in the American League (the first year the AL was considered a major league). In the AL’s inaugural season, Anderson was one of its best batsmen, and he posted career-highs for himself in RBIs (99) and average (.330).</font></p> <p><font size="3">In his final seven seasons, Anderson suited up for the St. Louis Browns, New York Highlanders, and the Washington Senators before wrapping up his career as a Chicago White Sox in 1908. His career numbers: .290 average, 49 home runs, 976 RBIs in 1635 games.</font></p> <p><font size="3"><strong>First Swede – Charlie Hallstrom (Debut: September 23<sup>rd</sup>, 1885 with the Providence Grays)<br /> </strong>In the midst of a five-game series with the Chicago White Stockings (4 in Chicago, 1 in Providence), the Greys ran short on pitching. So on the 23<sup>rd</sup> of September, they recruited local amateur player Charlie Hallstrom to pitch for them. When the 21-year-old took the the mound at West Side Grounds, not only was he making his professional debut, he became the first Swedish-born baseball player to play in the major leagues.</font></p> <p><font size="3">Hallstrom’s debut wasn’t overly successful. He gave up 11 earned runs off 18 hits over nine innings of play in a game Chicago won 16-8. It also turned out to be his last major league start for Hallstrom. He spent the following three years in the minor leagues before hanging up his cleats for good in 1888.</font></p> <p><font size="3"><strong>First Finn – John Michaelson (Debut: August 28<sup>th</sup>, 1921 with the Chicago White Sox)<br /> </strong>Michaelson, born in Taivalkoski, Finland, made his major league debut for the White Sox as the third pitcher used in Chicago’s 6-5 loss to Boston on August 28th, retiring the only two batters he saw. Two days later, Michaelson’s next appearance didn’t go as well. In two innings of work, the short right-hander gave up three runs to the opposing St. Louis Browns. That turned out to be Michaelson’s last major league appearance as he was released by the White Sox just a few days later.</font></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=C_Rvo6xWszE:h9pa1zb8T08:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=C_Rvo6xWszE:h9pa1zb8T08:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Independent Map Taking Shape for 2010; New Mexico Will Be Added Next</h1> <p>Bob Wirz — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 19:41:49 +0000</p> <p>The shakedown to identify the exact makeup of various Independent leagues for 2010 is coming into the open now that most of the fall ownership meetings have taken place.</p> <p>The most definitive news about brand new sites since the last time this Indy-wide column was produced has come out of one of the more unlikely of leagues, the <strong>Continental</strong>, which had two travel teams in its six-team lineup for 2009.</p> <p>We have been told one new team will be announced as early as Monday, and it will be in <strong>New Mexico</strong>, a state previously without Independent Baseball. Sources also say another franchise in <strong>West Texas</strong> will join within a few weeks, and there is a possibility of one or even two additional teams in <strong>Louisiana</strong>. The newcomers will join 2009 champion <strong>Alexandria, LA</strong> and ’09 addition <strong>Big Bend, TX</strong> (<strong>Alpine</strong>), which leaves questions surrounding <strong>Bay Area</strong> (<strong>Houston</strong>), where financial woes showed up late in the year, and <strong>Texarkana, TX</strong>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>Can-Am League Still Has a Vacancy</u></strong></p> <p>The <strong>American Association</strong> shakedown is complete, and all 10 teams will return although <strong>Fort Worth, TX</strong> almost certainly will have new ownership. <strong>Miles Wolff’s</strong> other circuit, the <strong>Can-Am</strong>, will have six teams for a second year in a row, although <strong>Nokona Athletic Goods </strong>head <strong>Buddy Lewis</strong>, whose experiment with the military-tied <strong>American Defenders of New Hampshire</strong> failed in <strong>Nashua</strong>. He still needs a home for his franchise. “He (Lewis) is talking to a number of possible cities”, Wolff said this week, with this corner continuing to believe the most likely location will either be in <strong>Norwich, CT</strong>, which recently lost its Double-A team, or in a current <strong>New York-Penn League</strong> city if one of those affiliated teams goes to Norwich.</p> <p><strong>Worcester, MA</strong> has new ownership, although it has only been identified as “a group of experienced <strong>Maryland</strong> investors” to go along with most of the Tornadoes’ key existing business and baseball leadership. The Can-Am’s other <strong>Massachusetts</strong> entry, <strong>Brockton</strong>, still seems to be trying to settle up its financial issues with the city and with current or additional investors, although everyone tells us the Rox will be fine. It was troubling to see an editorial in The Brockton Enterprise stress “the bottom line is that even on a beautiful, clear summer evening, there are few fans in the stands of <strong>Campanelli Stadium</strong>.” That is pretty strong, based on what we have seen and what has been reported.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>Northern League Teams Will Play 100 Games</u></strong></p> <p>The <strong>Northern League</strong> can take heart that it is some other leagues struggling with franchise issues this time since it is back up to eight teams with the addition of <strong>Rockford, IL</strong> out of the <strong>Frontier League</strong>, and <strong>Kevin Costner’s</strong> expansion team, known as the <strong>Lake County (IL) Fielders</strong>, who hope to get into their new stadium not long after the season starts May20.</p> <p>Northern League fathers, probably as a result of solid game-day attendance all around, voted to expand the season from 96 to 100 games. This will make its schedule second only to the <strong>Atlantic League</strong>, which has been playing 140. Lake County’s roster will start growing via a dispersal draft in one week (October 22).</p> <p>All has been quiet of late in the <strong>Golden League</strong>, since it added a 10th team in <strong>Maui, HA</strong>, although additional teams have not been ruled out. The <strong>Frontier League</strong> likely will remain at 12 teams with <strong>Normal, IL</strong> taking Rockford’s spot. The Atlantic League seems solid with its eight-team league, and the <strong>United League</strong> still has its six ’09 clubs.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>Atlantic League ‘Elite Baseball’</u></strong></p> <p>Although rebuffed much of the winter, Cincinnati invited all-Independent left-hander <strong>Tom Cochran</strong> to spring training. The Reds said they liked what they saw, but did not keep him. As a result, the onetime <strong>Middle Georgia Junior College</strong> pitcher went to the <strong>Atlantic League</strong>, working for a month at <strong>Lancaster, PA</strong> (3-2, 4.67) until the Reds came calling again.</p> <p>“It (Atlantic League) was a good experience,” Cochran reflected. “It was definitely good baseball. Elite baseball, no doubt about it. I got my butt beat a few times.” After evaluating his entire year, “I really do believe it is Triple-A level,” said the 6-foot-2, 210-pound hurler.</p> <p>Does he have a message for Independent players, I inquired?</p> <p>“If you want it, don’t give up,” he said, without hesitation. Tom Cochran has the experience to know.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center" align="center"><strong><u>How Does Anyone Stop Somerset?</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Butch Hobson’s Southern Maryland Blue Crabs (Waldorf)</strong> had a very strong season in the <strong>Atlantic League</strong>, but when the final chapter had been written it was <strong>Somerset, NJ</strong> in the throne room for the fifth time in the league’s 12 seasons. <strong> Sparky Lyle</strong> has been the manager every step of the way, and it was the first time any team had won back-to-back titles in the league.</p> <p><em>(This is an excerpt from the column Bob Wirz writes on Independent Baseball. Fans may subscribe at <a href="http://www.WirzandAssociates.com" target="_blank">www.WirzandAssociates.com</a>, enjoy his blog, <a href="http://www.IndyBaseballChatter.com" target="_blank">www.IndyBaseballChatter.com</a>, or comment to <a href="mailto:RWirz@aol.com"><span style="color: windowtext"><font color="#b22222">RWirz@aol.com.</font></span></a> The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=XTtAZ-kDTT0:4_SFKkcCYL4:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=XTtAZ-kDTT0:4_SFKkcCYL4:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The Long and Winding Road–Milwaukee Baseball from microfilm to book</h1> <p>Dennis Pajot — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 11:53:53 +0000</p> <p>My book “The Rise of Milwaukee Baseball: The Cream City from Midwestern Outpost to the Major Leagues, 1859 -1901″ has been published by McFarland & Company. As many of you Seamheads are SABR members you perhaps saw my message at 19th Century and Deadball groups, so this post is not a plug for the book (well perhaps a small plug). It is a story of how a book can take over 30 years to finish, and how research techniques have changed for those a little younger than myself. I think anyone under 30 years old will find researching in the ancient times amusing, and others a shade over 50 no doubt can relate to what I went through.</p> <p>Hopefully it also might be an inspiration for those who have a dream of making the journey from note taker to author–or any dream for that matter. </p> <p>My story starts in the early 1970s at the Milwaukee Public Library. Back then research in old newspapers meant a trip downtown in my 1968 Mustang convertible (yes, I WAS young and cool once), parking at a meter for 25 cents an hour (that is NOT a typo), and finding a vacant microfilm machine. Back then there were no fancy printers attached to the machine, you just took a bunch of pens and lots of paper. Taking notes (readable at a later time) seemed easier then than now. Probably for two reasons: better eyesight and a shorthand system that worked well for me. The age of lap tops and even newer gadgets I am even more unfamiliar with to put your information into was a long way down the road.</p> <p>The next step in the 1970s process was taking these scribbled notes home and at some time writing them out into a readable chapter form. This was done by hand on lined paper, just like you used in middle school (called Junior High School back then) and high school. As I took notes from three or four local newspapers I had much overlapping or conflicting information. This all had to be blended into something that made sense. Cross outs, lines leading to something four pages later, and total confusion seemed almost certain</p> <p>But I had an advantage in this seeming chaos. I had tons of information. And I felt if it was there, it had to be included. One must know my background is as a police officer. Police reports are not written to be light reading and present only the most interesting part of the story. Conflicting statements are part of the territory, and are noted in reports. Police reports are also pretty much written to start at the beginning and progress chronologically to the finish of the incident. And police officers can not take statements and gather information from people in the order events unfolded. It is a hit and miss, helter skelter, interview process at times. Thus my mind perhaps found it a little easier than some might think to place things into somewhat of a proper order. </p> <p>Now this handwritten information on lined paper had to be put into a form that others would be willing to read from. Remember young folk, these were the dark ages. From the handwritten chapter, the words went onto a different (unlined) paper in my old beat up Corona typewriter (with the number 8 always sticking). Word processors??–science fiction stuff, at least at my pay grade. How many of you remember typing slow and accurate. Typing mistakes were a cause to utter bad words your mother would wash your mouth out for using. Correcto-Ribbons and white out were a staple of the trade. </p> <p>After months, that turned into years, the finished product was sitting at my desk. I was finally done, It was 1977. What to do with this lengthy manuscript on early Milwaukee baseball? I knew nothing about publishing, self-publishing or anything on these lines. I guess I worked on the manuscript with no real idea of what I would do with it. Perhaps because deep down I thought it would never be finished, but now it was. </p> <p>But here is where real life entered the picture. This would-be author had to raise a family, work a job with odd hours, and live a life. All this got in the way of Milwaukee Baseball in the 19th Century. The manuscript was put in a drawer. As furniture was moved, new furniture bought, old furniture thrown out, the manuscript changed locations. Kids grew up, marriage status changed, kids left. The manuscript remained tucked away. As a matter of fact, so well tucked away I forgot about it and did not know exactly where it was. The few times I did think about it, I figured it got tossed with some of the old desks or file cabinets and was being read in a landfill by some tiny animals.</p> <p>Then came 2006. I joined SABR, and my interest in baseball, in particular 19th Century baseball, was rejuvenated. I was putting together information on an old ball park in Milwaukee, and digging around SABR’s many highways for information, and thought again about the 30 year old manuscript. I looked and could not find.</p> <p>Then looking for something completely different, guess what I found? Not only my completed manuscript, but a little index box I had kept on the players who played in Milwaukee during those decades. I had completely forgotten I have ever made this file of cards.</p> <p>I was back in business. </p> <p>Over the 30 year span something happened in our homes that made finding information so much easier. THE HOME COMPUTER. I now could ask a question and receive an answer before my toast was done and buttered. So I asked the SABR list what I could do with this manuscript. An answer came. Submit it to a publisher for an opinion. After the usual (at least for me) back and forth thinking–really being afraid it would be rejected, and I would be laughed at–I started my enquiry with a publisher.</p> <p>That publisher was McFarland & Company. I have only one sentence to say about my dealings with the company–”First class from beginning to end.” </p> <p>So work began to put this manuscript into a more manageable form for a book. Thirty more years of reading books helped me a bit. But one’s style is one’s style, and I tried to stick with mine as well I could. I think I did. I think my mind and memory are still fairly sharp, but who can remember details from newspapers 30 years after reading and taking notes. Luckily my original manuscript had a very complete endnote section, so finding needed information again was much easier. Some could be done at home on my computer through various web sites. At the same downtown library I found updated machines (including new parking meters, where I had to pay $1.50 a hour). I could now make copies of long articles instead of the cumbersome process of writing it all down on my Junior High School paper. After a few months the manuscript was ready to go to McFarland. The rest is, as they say, history. Or, at least, not all that interesting.</p> <p>The inspiration I talked over much earlier? Well, let’s not call it inspiration. I am not one to wear T-shirts with cute sayings, or inspirational sayings on signs or pictures hanging from walls in my house. So let me call it not inspiration, but some real life tips for you from a guy who has been there.</p> <p> First. Don’t give up researching and learning on the topics you have a passion for. Whether it is baseball, stamp collecting, old movies, or identifying rare trees, there is so much to find and share with others who are interested in these same areas. And for us a little north of 45 or 50 years, it is great to remember the trill of discovery. Looking for hours at small out of focus microfilm can put you off your subject and make you wander into never-never land. But then there it is. Not what you were originally looking for, but something completely new and unexpected on your topic. Something that jumps out of the machine and says “I am new, not only to you, but to everyone in your circle. Research me.” It is a thrill most will not experience, or even understand.</p> <p>Second: Don’t give up on your dream, even little dreams like publishing a book on 100 year old baseball in a mid-sized middle American town. You would be surprised. I sure was. I put much time into something that was important to me almost half a life time before–to have a manuscript published. Like many important things, the importance diminished as other things became more important. In the real world a job and family are a heck of a lot more important than a book, and I knew what was important and took care of it. But the dream was still there, just buried under layers of more important things. </p> <p>Whatever your dream–be it publishing a baseball book, running a marathon, building the most beautiful doll house in the world for your daughter–don’t ever give it up completely. Put it on the back burner, not the trash bin to go to a land fill. Dreams have a way of coming true, but only if you work at them. But more importantly, if you don’t give them up. Mine took over 30 years. </p> <p>I know the book is not at the top of the list of satisfying moments in my life. Let’s be honest, it is only a book. But I also have to be totally honest. When I first looked at 35 plus years of note taking, note sorting, handwriting, typing, assembling, re-researching, word processing etc. in a finished book form, it was a special moment. I admit I glowed a little inside. </p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=1TmxQD7GPFw:BDQdpAwLGpQ:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=1TmxQD7GPFw:BDQdpAwLGpQ:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Joe Niekro Foundation Throws Its Pitch To Arizona Fall League Fans</h1> <p>Todd Civin — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 17:08:39 +0000</p> <p>A little girl’s unconditional love for her father is a heartwarming story that I can hear over and over again without tiring of it. More so, I feel absolutely within the boundaries of creative license to share the story on more than one occasion.</p> <p>This past August, I told of Natalie Niekro and her love and admiration for her Daddy, the late, great Joe Niekro. My story about her story, entitled <a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/235767-joe-niekro-daddys-little-girl-knuckles-up-for-aneurysm-research" title="Joe Niekro Daddy's Little Girl"><em>“Joe Niekro: Daddy’s Little Girl Knuckles Up For Aneurysm Research”</em> </a> has been quite well received while at the same time igniting a friendship between me and the child of one of baseball’s greats. Just as Joe Niekro was one of my heroes during his brief time on earth, so too is his daughter through his passing.<a href="http://seamheads.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/first-pitch1.jpg" title="first-pitch1.jpg"></a></p> <p>On nearly a daily basis I witness Natalie’s commitment to her father and her undying efforts to carry on his legacy. She has made me realize how lucky I am to still have both of my parents and has enabled me to savor ever precious moment that I will continue to enjoy with them. I encourage the readers of this story to do the same.</p> <p>“Live every moment as if it were your last. Then one day you shall be right.”</p> <p>Additionally, through her creation of <a href="http://www.joeniekrofoundation.org" title="The Joe Niekro Foundation">The Joe Niekro Foundation</a> , Natalie urges us all to learn about and become aware of the many aneurysm factors, causes, treatments and research available today and to support the foundation in it’s quest to help prevent and protect against deaths caused by brain aneurysms.</p> <p>She explains on the Foundation website, “Brain aneurysms can occur in anyone, at any age. They are more common in adults than in children and slightly more common in women than in men.The incidence of reported ruptured aneurysm is about 10 in every 100,000 persons per year (about 27,000 patients per year in the US), most commonly in people between ages 30 and 60 years …</p> <p>Growing up as a child of a professional baseball player has been an indescribable experience and now the torch has been passed to me to leave a legacy just as my father has.”</p> <p>Natalie went on to add “Dad’s aneurysm was sudden, unexpected and undiagnosed. Within 18 hours of Dad’s rupture, he was pronounced dead. Upon losing my father, I made a commitment to dedicate my time, energy and focus on the advancement of neurological treatments for aneurysm patients.”</p> <p>Natalie is taking the Foundation globally later this month after forming a partnership with Major League Baseball and the Arizona Fall League.</p> <p>“The Foundation has a great relationship with the Houston Astros organization, but is not as well known by the other teams that Dad played for. I wanted to find a way to make other teams and their fans aware of the cause and the Foundation,” said Niekro.</p> <p>Through the efforts of long time baseball executive Roland Hemond, Natalie connected with Steve Cobb, the executive director of the Arizona Fall League, who warmed after initially balking at Natalie’s idea.</p> <p>“When I spoke with Steve Cobb, he seemed a bit hesitant to incorporate a program so close to the start of the season, but when I sent him my idea, he called me within minutes wanting to be involved. He said he was touched by my story and could hear the passion in my voice, and knew it was an organization he wanted to partner with.”</p> <p>“We met with each other after church and created the Arizona Fall League Aneurysm Awareness Week.”</p> <p>Aneurysm Awareness Week will begin on Oct. 26th, which marks the day of Joe’s Aneurysm. Throughout the week of 10/26, $36 will be donated to The Joe Niekro Foundation, for any strike-outs by a pitcher wearing a uniform from one of the teams Joe played for during his career.</p> <p>Niekro explains, “The number 36 signifies the number Dad wore during the majority of his 22-year baseball career. These teams include Chicago Cubs, SD Padres, Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, NY Yankees and Minnesota Twins.”</p> <p>Niekro currently has three sponsors, each of whom will donate $36 per whiff, but would love to include several more. She and her husband, Luke, will then match the funds raised and donate to the Foundation.</p> <p>At all games throughout the week, microphone announcements will be made during each game detailing the promotion and reason behind it. The announcements will give a total that has been raised to-date on each day. This will give spectators the chance to hear about the number of strike-outs and who the pitchers were, which is a great way to showcase the league’s talents.</p> <p>In addition, informational brochures will be handed out at each game during that week to raise awareness of the Foundation and brain aneurysms.</p> <p>Niekro herself will appear at three games to throw out the first pitch and address the crowd.</p> <p>“I have chosen two night games (6:35) and one day game (12:35) in which I will be on location to address the crowd and throw out the first pitch. Those games are:</p> <p>10/26 - Peoria Sports Complex - 6:35 p.m.</p> <p>10/30 - Scottsdale Stadium – 6:35 p.m.</p> <p>10/31 – Good year -12:35 p.m.</p> <p>“The week climaxes on Nov. 7 (which also happens to be my Dad’s birthday), there is a nationally televised game on MLB Network at 6:15 p.m. in Surprise, AZ, which will be the game that we will do the check presentation.</p> <p>Niekro will spend some time in the booth with MLB writer Jonathan Mayo, who is expected to do the play by play of the game.</p> <p>“I am so excited to partner with MLB on this concept and hope that this will be an annual event with the AZ Fall League.”</p> <p>Niekro hopes to roll this out to the Arizona Cactus League or with any luck to the entire Major League season.</p> <p>To become a sponsor of the event, please write to nniekro@joeniekrofoundation.org. To simply donate to the cause please visit the website at <a href="http://joeniekrofoundation.org" title="The Joe Niekro Foundation">www.joeniekrofoundation.org</a> .</p> <p>Niekro recently threw out the first pitch at Minute Maid Park in Houston on September 13th after presenting a check to the Foundation following The First Annual Knuckleball.</p> <p>The Foundation raised over $400,000 at the gala black-tie affair which took place on July 31<sup>st</sup> at Minute Maid Park and featured a casino gaming reception, silent and live auction and a special performance by Grammy Award Artist, Collin Raye.</p> <p>Niekro threw out the inaugural pitch at the September 13th game, a knuckleball thrown for a strike of course, to Astro’s star first baseman Lance Berkman. Berkman, who is closely affiliated with The Methodist Hospital, told Natalie that she throws better than most guys who are afforded first pitch honors. I tend to think it must run in the family. <em><strong>TC</strong> </em></p> <p><em>Todd Civin is a freelance writer who writes for The Bleacher Report, <a href="http://sportsthenandnow.com" title="Sports Then and Now">Sports, Then and Now</a> and <a href="http://seamheads.com/" title="Seamheads">Seamheads</a> . He is also a supporter of, <a href="http://agloveoftheirown.com/" title="A Glove of Their Own">“A Glove of Their Own”</a> the award winning children’s story that teaches paying it forward through baseball. The Joe Niekro Foundation is the most recent non-profit organization to join the A Glove of Their Own team and will earn $3.00 from each sale of the book purchased using the donor code <strong>JNF636 Joe Niekro Foundation.</strong> </em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=okeyoo1yANE:2vkAHR0E6DA:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=okeyoo1yANE:2vkAHR0E6DA:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Baseball Bloggers Alliance Cy Young Award Ballot</h1> <p>Mike Lynch — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 19:14:32 +0000</p> <p>As a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, I’ve been asked to vote on the postseason awards. I’m only allowed to vote on one league and since I’m a Red Sox fan and an American League guy, I’m going with the A.L. Here is my A.L. Cy Young ballot:</p> <p>Because I typically have my head buried in the 1920s and ’30s, I asked my good friend Ted Noon to break out his custom formulae for determining pitching excellence. The system is complex and I’m not confident in my ability to adequately explain how it works (<em>“Damn it Jim, I’m a writer not a mathematician”</em>), so I’m not going to try. I will, however, include notes that Ted sent me that might help explain a few things.</p> <p>In a nutshell, the formulae determines park and defense adjusted runs saved by each pitcher in different contexts, such as defense independent runs saved and runs saved on balls in play.</p> <p>Here are Ted’s notes about each category:</p> <p><strong>Adjusted Run Average</strong></p> <p>“Since all defenses and park contexts have been neutralized, I found it redundant to give Adjusted ERA. Everything is based on 1954-2008 averages.”</p> <p><strong>Adjusted Innings Pitched</strong></p> <p>“Since I base EVERYTHING off of Batters Faced, Innings Pitched will adjust along with the other data.”</p> <p><strong>Adjusted Pitcher Control Runs Saved</strong></p> <p>“These are the runs saved by the pitcher due to things he can control alone (K, BB, HBP, HR).”</p> <p><strong>Adjusted BIP Runs Saved</strong></p> <p>“These are the runs saved by the pitcher by letting the ball be put into play and relying on his defense to make the putouts. This has also been neutralized to an average team from 1954-2008.”</p> <p><strong>Adjusted Total Runs Saved</strong></p> <p>“Adjusted Pitcher Control Runs Saved + Adjusted BIP Runs Saved.”</p> <p>Here are the top three A.L. pitchers, based on total runs saved (also the order of my ballot):</p> <table width="100%"> <tr> <td bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Rank</strong></td> <td bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Name</strong></td> <td bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Team</strong></td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Adj.<br /> Run AVG</strong></td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Adj.<br /> IP</strong></td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Adj.<br /> PC RS</strong></td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Adj.<br /> BIP RS</strong></td> <td align="center" bgcolor="#f7f7ef"><strong>Adj.<br /> TOT RS</strong></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center">1.</td> <td>Zack Greinke</td> <td>K.C.</td> <td align="center">2.30</td> <td align="center">230.7</td> <td align="center">-51.78</td> <td align="center">-3.159</td> <td align="center">-54.94</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center">2.</td> <td>Roy Halladay</td> <td>TOR</td> <td align="center">2.87</td> <td align="center">241.3</td> <td align="center">-39.05</td> <td align="center">-2.974</td> <td align="center">-42.03</td> </tr> <tr> <td align="center">3.</td> <td>Justin Verlander</td> <td>DET</td> <td align="center">2.90</td> <td align="center">238.2</td> <td align="center">-52.01</td> <td align="center">11.337</td> <td align="center">-40.67</td> </tr> </table> <p><strong>Greinke</strong>: Before consulting Ted, I was planning on ranking Greinke first on my ballot, so I was happy to see him rank #1 in total runs saved. He went only 16-8, but that was mostly due to poor run support (only 3.8 runs per game) and the fact that he played for a horrible team that lost 97 games. He paced the league in ERA at 2.16, ERA+ (203), WHIP (1.073), and HR/9 (0.4), surrendering only 11 homers in 229 1/3 innings. He started 33 games and 26 were considered “quality,” only one of which I consider cheap (3 ER in 6 IP). If Greinke was pitching for a contender, I think this would be a no-brainer.</p> <p><strong>Halladay</strong>: The Toronto ace enjoyed yet another outstanding year, going 17-10 with a 2.79 ERA, and finished second in Adjusted Total Runs Saved (-42.03) and third in Adjusted Run Average (2.87) behind Greinke (2.30) and Boston southpaw Jon Lester (2.81). He led the league in complete games (9) for the third straight year and fifth time in 12 seasons, and paced the loop in shutouts (4), BB/9 (1.3) and K/BB ratio (5.94). He ranked second in WHIP (1.125) and innings pitched (239), third in ERA+ (157), fourth in wins, and fifth in strikeouts (208). In any other year, Halladay would be a shoe-in, but there are too may strong contenders this season.</p> <p><strong>Verlander</strong>: Nobody saved more Pitcher Control runs than Verlander (-52.01) and the only hurler who was even close was Greinke (Javier Vazquez led the National League at -36.67), but his Adj. BIP Runs Saved of 11.337 knocked him from first in Total Runs Saved to third. In fact, among A.L. qualifiers, only Carl Pavano had a higher mark (20.51). Verlander ranked fourth in Adj. Run Average (2.90) and was second to Greinke (1.74) in Adjusted Pitcher Control Run Average at 2.55. Verlander went 19-9 with a 3.45 ERA and led the league in wins, games started (35), innings (240), strikeouts (269), and K/9 (10.1). Winning two legs of the pitching triple crown and playing for a contender may gove Verlander the edge over the others and I wouldn’t be surprised if he actually won the award.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=VAWiD8Af_14:5VMkopqzJ-w:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=VAWiD8Af_14:5VMkopqzJ-w:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Memo to Mike Rizzo on Tony LaRussa</h1> <p>Ted Leavengood — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:31:30 +0000</p> <p><em>There are growing rumors about a rift between Tony LaRussa and the Cardinals after the failure of the Cardinals to perform to expectations in the NL playoff series. A recent </em><a href="http://http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/insider/news/story?id=4552917"><em>column by Buster Olne</em></a><em>y is one of the more expansive to opine on the subject. I hope Mike Rizzo of the Nationals has read it. </em></p> <p>Before LaRussa came over to the Cardinals, the team had been wandering in the wilderness for almost a decade. The Cardinals are one of the great franchises and getting them back on track was a challenge that helped draw LaRussa to St. Louis. Their previous pennant in 1987 had been followed up by season after season of frustration. Hiring Tony LaRussa not only brought through the Gateway Arch the best manager in the game, but the best group of players and coaches one person could command.</p> <p>LaRussa brought Dave Duncan with him from Oakland. Duncan is arguably the best pitching coach in the game. For anyone who has missed his ability to transform marginal pitching talent into front line starters and relievers, it has been a long, storied, and very classy act. </p> <p>Olney opines in his ESPN article that Duncan may leave regardless whether LaRussa does. Duncan by himself will command a significant following–pitchers who will leave the Cardinals for their mentor. Specifically, Joel Piniero has reclaimed his career with Duncan’s help in 2009. Piniero won 15 games in 2009 and pitched to a 3.49 ERA. Always a prodigous talent, Piniero had almost pitched his way out of baseball after seven less than stellar seasons in Seattle and one in Boston. </p> <p>Getting Dave Duncan to come to Washington to work with Stephen Strasburg might be the best arranged marriage outside the Indian subcontinent. Getting Piniero as a bonus makes computing the dollar value of that one just a set of recurring infinity signs.</p> <p>LaRussa’s worth is exponentially greater. His ability to draw players may not be what it once was when Mark McGwire signed with the Cardinals to play for his former boss, but it is up there. The reunion of McGwire and LaRussa made history. The value of a manager like LaRussa to a team like the Nationals–one that has to beg players to return phone calls–is, again, off the charts.</p> <p>There have been numerous local articles in the Washington papers speculating on the value of this player or that to the Nationals in the hope that the team may land top free agents. Tony LaRussa is the best free agent that is not yet available. But if for some reason he walks away from the Cardinals, if they are willing to cut the ties to possibly the greatest living manager in the game, then the Nationals should forget all the other free agents until they sign this one.</p> <p>Anyone who has read Buzz Bissinger’s book about LaRussa, <em>3 Nights in August,</em> knows something about how hard LaRussa has worked to reach the pinnacle of his profession. LaRussa did not pile up wins with the Yankees or the Dodgers, he won them the old fashioned way. He earned them with teams like Oakland, the White Sox, and the Cardinals. Before there was Billy Beane, there was LaRussa (and Sandy Alderson) making winners of the low-budget Athletics.</p> <p>The reason the Cardinals may let LaRussa walk is contained in the preface of Bissinger’s book. He cites a Sports Illustrated survey of players about the best and worst managers. LaRussa appeared on both lists because, as Bissinger says, he operates with a distinct style “regardless the critics chorus.” LaRussa is not Billy Martin, but something has pushed him to move on even when winning with both Oakland and Chicago.</p> <p>Bissinger calls LaRussa, a “baseball man,” and one who loves to be called such. No one will say in today’s world that Washington, DC is a “baseball town.” Far from it. But Mike Rizzo and the owners of the Nationals could made a lot of progress toward changing that with one move. If he leaves St. Louis, bring Tony LaRussa to Washington to manage the Nationals. </p> <p>Bob Short lured Ted Williams into managing in Washington, so it can be done. It would be the biggest challenge of LaRussa’s life in baseball. But making the case that LaRussa is the greatest manager of all time–or at least better than Torre and Bobby Cox–could be settled right here on the banks of the Anacostia River.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=4HjHVlcEkQo:I3Ng2bAEexI:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=4HjHVlcEkQo:I3Ng2bAEexI:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Astros End Season on a Low Note</h1> <p>Bill Gilbert — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:59:06 +0000</p> <p>The Houston Astros limped to the finish line in 2009 with a 74-88 record after being swept by the lowly Mets on the final weekend. Starting on September 1, the Astros went 11-20 as the Club fell short in all aspects of the game.</p> <p>After a winless road trip (0-6) in mid-September, Manager Cecil Cooper was replaced by Third Base Coach, Dave Clark on September 21 on an interim basis. While Clark brought some energy to the position and established better communications, the team did not perform any better with a record of 4-9 in Clark’s 13 games at the helm. A search is currently underway for a new manager and Clark is one of the candidates.</p> <p>The Astros were well below the National League average in both hitting and pitching. The team scored 643 runs, an average of 3.97 per game, and allowed 770, an average of 4.75 per game. Only Pittsburgh and San Diego scored fewer runs and only Washington, Milwaukee and Arizona allowed more. The team On-Base Percentage was .319, ranking 13th in the league. The team ERA of 4.54 also ranked 13th. The Astros led the league in grounding into double plays with 153.</p> <p>Despite their problems, there were some bright spots in the final month. The Astros swept a four-game series against the Phillies in Minute Maid Park early in the month. Miguel Tejada, after slumping in August, finished strong with a 21-game hitting streak, including a couple of 4-hit games, and he led the league in doubles with 46. His 199 hits were second only to Craig Biggio’s 210 in 1998 in the team’s 48-year history. Michael Bourn continued his breakout year, leading the league in stolen bases with 61 and playing sensational defense in center field, which should win him a Gold Glove. Rookie Bud Norris recorded 4 strong starts in September before being shut down after reaching a pre-set innings limit. He pitched 55 innings with the Astros, slightly exceeding the rookie threshold of 50 so he will not be classified as a rookie in 2010 when he should be in the starting rotation.</p> <p>Tejada led the team in hitting with an average of .313 and Carlos Lee led in home runs with 26, one more than Lance Berkman and Hunter Pence. Lee also led in RBIs with 102 while batting an even .300. Berkman, in an off-year, led the team with a .399 on-base average and a .509 slugging average, but saw his career batting average drop from .302 to .299.</p> <p>Wandy Rodriguez, the only pitcher on the staff with more than 8 wins, became the staff ace with a 14-12 record and an ERA of 3.02. Roy Oswalt, hampered by nagging injuries, had his worst season with an 8-6 record and a 4.12 ERA. Jose Valverde had 25 saves and LaTroy Hawkins had 11. The bullpen experienced considerable turnover and a total of 18 pitchers won at least one game.</p> <p>Rebuilding the minor league system is continuing but, for the second straight year, all of the domestic Astro minor league teams had losing records. The 2008 draft class led by No.1 pick, catcher Jason Castro, looks promising. Castro played well at Double-A Corpus Christi after a mid-season promotion. He should be at Triple-A Round Rock in 2010 but will be given a chance to make the big league roster in spring training. College outfielders T. J. Steele, Jay Shuck and Jon Gaston, all drafted in 2008, had strong showings at High Class A Lancaster, California in 2009 and should be at Corpus Christi in 2010. High school pitchers, Ross Seaton, Jordan Lyles and Brad Dydalowicz, also drafted in 2008, pitched well at Low Class A Lexington and could also be at Corpus Christi in 2010.</p> <p>The Astros’ losing record in 2009 was only their third since Jeff Bagwell’s rookie year in 1991. However, two of the losing seasons were in the last three years. The team obviously needs some reinforcements in order to be competitive, especially in the starting rotation. Some tough decisions must be faced in the off-season with Tejada, Valverde, Hawkins and Geoff Blum eligible for free agency.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=qPQE115XrwU:vWrMkHRbuMM:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=qPQE115XrwU:vWrMkHRbuMM:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Chopping Wood For the Hot Stove</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:23:42 +0000</p> <p>It’s a cold, rainy morning here in Arkansas, which finely matches the mood of Cardinal Nation after the quick exit from the postseason. There’s this kind of limbo that goes on when your team is out of the playoffs early. There are still games going (though the LDS have been pretty anticlimactic this year, save the fact closers can’t seem to get the job done) but your team isn’t a part of them. You can’t go full bore into discussions and rumors of next year just yet, though.</p> <p>What you can do is a little retrospection. At least, that’s what <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/D5D4BA08CC29C3058625764D0011F567?OpenDocument">Tony LaRussa did yesterday</a>. I saw very little of this series, unfortunately, but I have to agree with LaRussa, I expected a better game on Saturday that what happened. Like I say, I didn’t see a single pitch of that one, but just looking at the score and comments, it didn’t seem like they had much fight in them. To score just one run in a game Vicente Padilla is pitching just doesn’t seem right, though par for the course for this year’s version of the Cardinals.</p> <p>The link above notes that Troy Glaus, Rick Ankiel and Joel Pineiro are not likely to return next year. None of these are huge surprises. The focus on Mark DeRosa has knocked Glaus out of the picture, though many of us would be just fine with DeRosa walking and David Freese taking over the job. Either way, though, Glaus really isn’t in the plans, especially after the injury problems this year.</p> <p>Pineiro has really pitched too well for the Cardinals to keep him. They have Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and Kyle Lohse already locked up and management has continually said they want to plug in at least one home-grown arm into the rotation in 2010. With John Smoltz around, <a href="http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20091011&content_id=7431528&vkey=news_stl&fext=.jsp&c_id=stl">most likely back</a> if he decides he wants to pitch again, there’s not much room left to keep Pineiro. Besides, we saw what happened the last time he signed after a contract drive.</p> <p>Ankiel….oh, Rick. Amazingly, the separation between Ankiel and a fan base that has followed him, nurtured him, rooted for him through the good and the bad and the good is not likely to be as painful as was expected six months ago. A .233 average and a propensity for the strikeout will do that. <a href="http://www.fungoes.net/?p=2114">As Pip notes</a>, Rick leaves St. Louis with exactly the same number of strikeouts as a hitter as he had as a pitcher. I’ve always been a fan of Rick, but he doesn’t make enough contact to make him worth a bench slot and the outfield is probably going to be full in St. Louis for some time to come.</p> <p>Today actually will be <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/0BF53AA15EA020F78625764D000DF933?OpenDocument">a busy day</a> around the front office, as a lot of the <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/C87DCD5A3D38EED38625764D0010C6FE?OpenDocument">recap meetings</a> and initial thoughts for next year will be happening. Don’t expect a whole lot of public news out of that, though, unless LaRussa or Dave Duncan <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4552123">decide not to return</a>. Bernie Mikalsz addresses that <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/columnists.nsf/berniemiklasz/story/BCBBEB59E0C449268625764D0012AE38?OpenDocument">along with some other questions</a> and he comes to the conclusion that I had, that TLR isn’t leaving after that performance. He couldn’t go out on that note and be able to rest in retirement, I don’t think. It wasn’t the loss, it was the lack of competitiveness.</p> <p>Someone who probably won’t be back next year, though, is hitting coach Hal McRae. Besides the fact that the offense just never clicked, even with Matt Holliday and DeRosa in the lineup, there’s this quote from John Mozeliak:</p> <p><em>“It did seem the way we were approaching things at the plate, obviously it wasn’t successful,” Mozeliak said. “When things aren’t going right, you’ve got to change. Did we make the right adjustments or not? As we sit here today, we had not.”</p> <p></em>I’d suggest McRae start updating his resume, because that is not a vote of confidence.</p> <p>The stove may not be heated yet, but the preparations are being made. It could be another active offseason for St. Louis, so you better get ready.</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a>.</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=VEFXkgu9Jbs:is1K6tVj8KA:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=VEFXkgu9Jbs:is1K6tVj8KA:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>The Quiet of No Baseball</h1> <p>Daniel Shoptaw — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 17:20:09 +0000</p> <p>This is the way the season ends. Not with a bang but a whimper.How fitting was it that Rick Ankiel was the last out–and a strikeout at that. Rick’s promise, just like that exhilarating promise of August, never quite came to fruition. All the signs of trouble were there, and excuses can be made, but in the end, like Ankiel’s at-bat, it turned into a lot of nothing.</p> <p>On the face of it, this offense is a beast. That seemed to be the consensus of the national pundits, who installed St. Louis as one of the favorites for the World Series. In reality, though, it’s an engine that sputters, that starts and stops when facing good (and sometimes not so good) pitching. I don’t think many in Cardinal Nation were surprised when the Redbirds only scored six runs in three games. For once, six is not a serious number, but a telling one.</p> <p>And yet, it almost was enough. If Chris Carpenter was Chris Carpenter, if Matt Holliday catches the ball or Ryan Franklin shuts the door, the Cards could have been up 2-0 before tonight, even with just five runs.</p> <p>When the story of 2009 is told, it’ll be the pitching that is remembered. Sure, Albert Pujols kept his perfect career going and may win another MVP, but it was tough to watch him go the last calendar month without a home run. Holliday provided a spark, Colby Rasmus established himself as a legitimate major leaguer (even if he slumped in the second half), and Ryan Ludwick showed he wasn’t really a fluke. There were offensive highlights, to be sure, but that wasn’t what got the Cardinals to October.</p> <p>It was seeing pitchers throwing incredible games–and then seeing the next starter top them. It was about not one but two Cy Young candidates going back to back. It was about having a 15 game winner with a mid-3.00 ERA be an afterthought.</p> <p>I think that is what makes this sweep so tough to swallow. If you lose because the offense doesn’t show, it was expected. To lose, at least in part, because Carpenter and Joel Pineiro didn’t get it done and because Franklin continued his post-extension collapse, that just wasn’t what people foresaw.</p> <p>So the Cardinals pack up for the winter. So many questions for this off-season, players to be kept or replacements to be found, perhaps new leadership to be put in place. There will be plenty at this blog, as the United Cardinal Bloggers roundtables will be coming, a review of the past season to be written, questions raised and solutions proposed.</p> <p>For now, though, there is just the quiet of no baseball, of a season cut prematurely short. A sound that never is easy to hear and one that can last for weeks to come.</p> <p><em>Daniel Shoptaw is the founder of “C70 At The Bat,” where he regularly writes about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals. You can find more of his work<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/" target="_blank"> here</a>.</em></p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=h5m6wTbIpoc:7Qy3o_SdzVI:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=h5m6wTbIpoc:7Qy3o_SdzVI:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Hating the Yankees is Such Hard Work</h1> <p>Ted Leavengood — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 16:27:25 +0000</p> <p><em>Once again the Yankees look inevitable as champions. Yet there will be those who will yearn with every fiber of their being for anyone to beat them. Hating the New York Yankees is not for the faint of heart. The hours are long; the pay is slavish; and the returns are niggling. What is there to show for it at the end of the day? Nada, nein, zip zeroaster (little known religion that worships nothing). So why do it? </em></p> <p>It is hard to explain. If you look at the New York Yankees as individuals, it is impossible. I treasure Derek Jeter as a great athlete and pretty decent human being. He is a throw back to all of the great Yankees, most notably Lou Gehrig. Only the consummate Yankees have been captains of the team, Mattingly, Munson, even Clark Griffith (1903-1907). Jeter belongs in their company without a scant argument.</p> <p>C.C. Sabathia is a great pitcher and in this season has made that case convincingly. And he is as lovable as Captain Kangaroo in pinstripes. </p> <p>Mark Teixeira is another sweetheard of a guy. He is hard-working and nothing about him is second rate. His credentials are impeccable. He does it all: hits for power, average, has a great batting eye and fields his position like no other Yankee first baseman since…Mattingly and Gehrig. Of course there is A-Rod who is finally making a statement in the post-season.</p> <p>It is a rich collection of names, these 2009 Yankees. They are worthy of all those other names that keep popping up. There is all of that amazing history: the Yankees of yore and not so yore. One cannot begin to denigrate that tradition. The inter-twining of baseball history and Yankee legend is so complete that one could not remove the latter without destroying the former.</p> <p>They are like the Hapsburgs of baseball, playing in Windsor palace and wearing uniforms as distinctive as those who guard the Tower of London. How can one dare to disdain such a legacy of greatness. What low life, Dickensian slumdog could fail to appreciate the high-mindedness of the Yankees?</p> <p>In the American judicial system, even the lowest of the low are provided a credible defense. This task deserves a Perry Mason or Melvin Beli, but I chose to defend myself your honor. </p> <p>I present in evidence exhibit A: George Stienbrenner. And as exhibit B: George Weiss. For all of the greatness of the Yankees there has been a soft underbelly, a constant and unforgivable, scurrilous greed that has made a mockery of the game.</p> <p>It is after all a game, and as such it demands an equal chance for all–or at least a reasonable chance for someone other than last year’s man. And yet the owners of the Yankees have sought since time immemorial to stack the deck, to create their own holding pen for talent in Kansas City and then pluck from it as needed in one of the great collusions of all time.</p> <p>More than anything, they have taken a “class act” and made it into a different kind of class act. The Yankees are the best, but the greed of those who have owned them over the years has made them into something distinctly less. </p> <p>George Weiss was characterized by many–Halberstam and Povich come to mind–as one of the last great racists in the game, the one who fought longest and hardest to keep the American League a bastion of white dominance and more than anyone soured African-American athletes on the game.</p> <p>George Steinbrenner came close on his heals and is no more lovable. In 1973 he bought the team for $10 million during one of its worst runs in history. He has used his vast wealth to parlay that purchase into one of the great economic deals of our lifetimes. Over the same period of time he has used the same wealth to make an afternoon at the ballpark unaffordable to many American families.</p> <p>Steibrenner’s clashes with Reggie Jackson and Dave Winfield won him few fans and he may have found his match in temperment in Billy Martin. But it is not those very public hostilities that make him what he is within the game. Steinbrenner–more than any single human being–is responsible for driving the price of the game beyond affordability. </p> <p>It is not circumstantial that during his tenure as owner 1973-2006, the salary of baseball players eclipsed that of every other economic indicator. The average baseball salary in 1973 was roughly $36,000. An average dwelling for an American family cost slightly less.</p> <p>In 2009 the average baseball salary was $3.24 million, and while the average dwelling was more than anyone in 1973 might have imagined, it was considerably less than the lofty sum of $3 million.</p> <p>But salaries are just an indicator. Players may seem over-compensated, but one owner stands above the rest in helping to drive the costs of the game through the roof: Steinbrenner. Some will point to the MLBPA, the union. But the owners through their stupidity and greed have been the engine of driving prices up and no one has been there as long, nor worked as steadily at the task as Steinbrenner.</p> <p>And in today’s world, when stock analysts can manipulate arcane mathmatical formulas into nine-figure compensation packages, Steinbrenner’s genius may seem relatively worthy. Yet we are back to the inter-twining of things. Steinbrenner’s ability to parlay television revenues for the Yankees into the best baseball team money can buy is inextricably linked to the exorbitant wealth fueled by Wall Street.</p> <p>And the senseless greed that is so much in vogue today is the reason your honor that I hate the Yankees. It is why I was hoping against hope that one of the most workman like players in the game today: Albert Pujols, could pull off one of the great upsets of the modern era. Alas it is not to be. </p> <p>I have not lost faith. I will root for the Dodgers, because I love the game. But it is like hoping that the Carnegies or Mellons can overthrow Standard Oil. Yet such poor contests are all that we have. It is a tough season for Yankee haters. But there is always next year.</p><div class="feedflare"> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=DwB-0qShNd8:2wgXjRTBGVM:yIl2AUoC8zA"></img></a> <a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/seamheads?a=DwB-0qShNd8:2wgXjRTBGVM:gIN9vFwOqvQ"></img></a> </div> </article> </main></body></html>