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Guess what famous Chicago landmark it will be played at? From AP-
CHICAGO - Wrigley Field is going to be the frozen confines on New Year’s Day 2009 when the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings meet the Chicago Blackhawks outdoors in the home park of the Chicago Cubs.
It will be the NHL’s second Winter Classic. Jan. 1 in Buffalo, the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 before a crowd of 71,217. Snow fell during the game.
“We expect interest to be on an international level for this once-in-a-lifetime event,” Blackhawks chairman Rocky Wirtz said.
The game will be televised nationally on NBC.
The matchup will be the 701st meeting between the Red Wings and Blackhawks — no two NHL opponents have played more regular-season games against one another than the two fierce rivals.
It will mark the third regular-season outdoor game in NHL history. The Edmonton Oilers hosted the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 22, 2003.
If you make a rare event a yearly occurence, well its no longer rare or novel. Now if the Florida Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightning hosted an outdoor ice hockey game in Florida, that would be newsworthy….err I mean impossible.
He won 11 of his career 30 wins as a rookie with the 1997 Chicago Cubs. After that arm injuries hampered Gonzalez’ career. RIP.
*****
CARACAS, Venezuela — Former major league pitcher Geremi Gonzalez, who won 11 games for the Chicago Cubs in 1997, was killed by a lightning strike in his native Venezuela on Sunday. He was 33.
Geremi Gonzalez pitched for five major league teams and compiled a 30-35 career record.
Emergency management official Herman Bracho said Monday that Gonzalez was struck by lightning at a beach.
Gonzalez pitched for five major league teams from 1997-2006. The right-hander appeared in 131 games with 83 starts, compiling a 30-35 record.
Gonzalez also played for the Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and Milwaukee Brewers. He made a combined 24 appearances for the Mets and Brewers in his final major league season in 2006.
The Toronto Blue Jays released him during spring training last year. Gonzalez then moved to Japan and pitched in five games for the Yomiuri Giants.
I seem to recall Alou was hopping mad back in 2003. From the Chicago Tribune-
Any holdovers still blaming Steve Bartman should let the infamous Cubs fan off the hook, Moises Alou says.
The former Cubs left fielder, now with the Mets, said he wouldn’t have caught the now-infamous foul ball in the 2003 National League Championship Series that hit the heel of Bartman’s hand in the eighth inning of Game 6, prolonging an inning in which the Marlins later rallied for the lead.
“Everywhere I play, even now, people still yell, ‘Bartman! Bartman!’ I feel really bad,” Alou told the Associated Press. “You know what the funny thing is?” he added. “I wouldn’t have caught it anyway.”
The article went on to say Bartman is still in hiding today. If emotions are that high in Chicago, a great many people had a life.
Chicago blew the game, while Dusty sat on his hands while his starting pitcher that night got tired. Anyone remember the error by the Cub shortstop on a easy groundball? Blaming the loss on Bartman is as irrational as the Cardinals in 1985 blaming the first base umpire’s bad call for their loss.(Like with the Cubs, a fielding miscue happened soon afterwards. Jack Clark missing a pop up) Same sequence of events and an out made, both teams end up losing or at least getting tied. No scapegoats, the teams are to blame.
Baseball’s hot stove season keeps crackling along with a firesale beginning in Baltimore, a strange signing in San Francisco and the effective release of a phenomenal talent with an arm that was abused.
Dead Team, Dead Team Swapping
Let’s start with the Orioles.
Andy MacPhail is the new head honcho in Baltimore and his primary job is turning around a moribund franchise. It is about time. The Orioles recently woes have resulted in poor showings, fan protests and the dreadful overreach that typifies teams just beyond terrible, but nowhere near good.
Move number one in the now ongoing firesale:
| Orioles Give |
Astros Give |
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- OF Luke Scott
- P Matt Albers
- P Troy Patton
- P Dennis Sarfate
- 3B Michael Costanzo
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It’s an okay haul. Scott compares rather favorably with Trot Nixon at the same ages, giving the Orioles a competent outfielder, who will inexpensively complement and Nick Markakis. Costanzo may end up in the big leagues. He is on his third team this offseason, and is blocked by Melvin Mora. However if Mora is shopped, the Orioles could do worse than the 24 year old with good pop in his bat. Albers and Patton were the top pitchers in Houston’s farm system entering 2007. Neither pitched well with Houston, and both have iffy K rates. But both get groundballs and with a good infield defense have the potential to be respectable at the back of the rotation.
Houston meanwhile adds a slugging shortstop whose defense is declining and who, as an added bonus, has been linked to steroid allegations. For Baltimore, moving him prior to this afternoon’s release of the Mitchell report was an obvious priority. Even if not named, Tejada is tainted by association, possibly unfair.
Other Orioles likely to get moved before the end of this offseason: P Erik Bedard, 3B Melvin Mora, 2B Brian Roberts, OF Jay Payton, and Ramon Hernandez.
Currently, the Orioles need help at shortstop, centerfield and on the mound. Making more moves will yield more potential solutions, while opening more holes. This is the beginning of an about to be gutted franchise.
The Old and the Rested
The San Francisco Giants don’t seem too interested in younger talent. Their starting position players wheezed in with an average age of 36.25 last year. They will be around 34 years old on average next season, unless Giants GM Brian Sabean can find some geezer to play at either the hot or cool corner and thus spare fans the disgrace of having a 26 year old regular (Kevin Frandse) in the starting lineup.
To that mix, the Giants made a big splash yesterday inking centerfielder Aaron Rowand to a five year, $60 Million contract. Rowand will be thirty next year, which makes him the young whippersnapper of the Giant lineup. He also has the job of replacing Barry Bonds in the lineup. But Rowand is not a slugging outfielder like Bonds. Nor is he a prolific on base machine. Aaron Rowand is an outfielder who enjoyed an outstanding season in his walk year.
Let’s go to the numbers
| Name |
AB |
BA |
OBP |
SLG |
BABIP |
| Aaron Rowand ‘07 |
612 |
.309 |
.374 |
.515 |
.348 |
| Aaron Rowand car |
2664 |
.286 |
.343 |
.462 |
.323 |
Not familiar with BABIP? Some folks aren’t. It is a very useful statistic to get a gauge on luck. The statistic measures Batting Average on Balls in Play. As a formula:
BABIP = Hits - Home Runs /At Bats - (Homeruns + Strikeouts)
Your league-wide BABIP is typically around .300. Rowand’s career is an exercise in better than average BABIP. It’s less than 10% over league average, but when he is closer to lerague average, as he was in 2005 with the ChiSox and 2006 with the Phillies, almost all of his offensive value vanishes.
| Name |
AB |
BA |
OBP |
SLG |
BABIP |
| Aaron Rowand ‘05 |
578 |
.270 |
.329 |
.407 |
.318 |
| Aaron Rowand ‘06 |
405 |
.262 |
.321 |
.425 |
.297 |
See what I mean? Further, Rowand has always benefited from playing in Homerun helping Parks. Moving to San Francisco may cause his power surge to vanish, as well. But hey, it’s only five years and $12 Million per year. That’s nothing. Which unfortunately for Giants fans will describe what the Giants have for the better part of the next decade. Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum are nice young pitchers. Noah Lowry is a healthier version of better than league average Aaron Cook, and Barry Zito, is an overrated league average innings muncher. They will have the pitching, but they still will struggle to win seventy games likely for the next five or six years.
Prior Descent
Mark Prior will be 27 next season. He put up remarkable numbers as a 22 year old in 2003. His 18-6 record in 211.1 innings pitched was worthy of acclaim, and we now know a dead canary in a coal mine.
Indians Executive Keith Woolner in his previous line of work at Baseball Prospectus developed a metric for measuring the abuse a starting pitcher takes from being overpitched. This was an expansion of the original Pitcher Abuse Points system introduced by Rany Jazayerli in 1998. Keith’s expansion focused more on egregious abuse of pitchers, instead of the minor tweaking of a young arm by exceeding 100 pitches.
For perspective, Daisuke Matsuzaka led the majors in PAP^3 last season with 116,740 followed by Carlos Zambrano (114,011) and AJ Burnett (97,899).
| Mark Prior’s PAP^3 scores |
| 2002 |
89,046 |
Age 21 |
Including a 54,872 PAP^3 138 pitch outing |
| 2003 |
230,844 |
Age 22 |
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| 2004 |
36,847 |
Age 23 |
Started the season on the DL and did not pitch until June. |
| 2005 |
102,159 |
Age 24 |
with a 25 day stint on the DL mid season |
| 2006 |
1,000 |
Age 25 |
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But PAP^3 is not the only measure of risk to a young arm. The rule of thirty is a way of measuring the damage done to a young arm year by year rather than start by start.
Beginning with his Age 19 season at USC Prior pitched the following innings.
2000 129
2001 138
2002 167.2
2003 211.1
2004 118.2
2005 172.2
2006 62.2
Prior’s buildup with the Cubs went from a reasonable 140 or so college innings to an equally reasonable 170 professional innings from one season to the next. At the young age of 21, that is a little excessive, but, it was also consistent with advancing by 30 innings or less from year to year. The Cubs exceeded that rule of thirty by 15 or so innings in 2003, the year where as a 22 year old, he took almost twice as much abuse as any pitcher in 2007 did. In 2003, however, he
was fourth on in the majors behind Javier Vasquez, teammate Kerry Wood and Livan Hernandez. Another Cub starter (Carlos Zambrano) checked in at 11 on that list. The manager of that team got a new job recently to manage the Cincinnati Reds. Homer Bailey, Bronson Arroyo, Aaron Harang, consider yourselves warned!
I am of the mindset that pitcher abuse disproportionately impacts arms outside of the 26-34 age range. Keeping young arms on a strict pitch and inning count is an investment in the future, by giving a young arm time to develop properly. As pitcher’s age, they are less reliable because they push themselves to the extremes that their bodies no longer are capable of achieving. The job of a good manager is to recognize when his older pitchers need a month’s vacation and sending
them off to rest and keep their arm fresh for the stretch drive. This essentially is what the Red Sox did with Curt Schilling this past season.
In addition to maximizing the effectiveness of an older arm, it also creates an opportunity for game level mentoring of young arms, removed from the stretch drive. Would giving a younger pitcher with some upside a showcase against major league teams, again strictly monitoring his pitch and inning counts, both groom him for an eventual job and give him the exposure that could potentially lead to a trade for a spare part? Certainly. It also provides an opportunity for
reclamation projects to get a full speed test int he fires of major league competition.
Speaking of salvage jobs, all this is prologue for the question out there, how many clubs will be pursuing Prior? The answer is all fo them. Prior represents the wonderful confluence of high upside and minimal risk. It’s a long shot, on par with the reclamation project called Kerry Wood but with longer odds and more upside. But it is worth investigating, offering and developing a program to ensure the soundness of his arm and the realization of his tremendous potential.
Now the more fact based (will it work) question has no answer. Probably not is the most I will venture. But nothing ventured, nothing gained.
As I’ve said before, umpires need help. And I refer you to a piece I wrote over a year ago on this very same subject. Baseball (and sports in general) is far behind the times in utilizing modern technology where it can, specifically to improve officiating.
I’ve thought about this topic for a long time. I think Questec is a good thing. (For those who dont know, it’s a computerized system that measures ball & strikes, and compares it to what the umpire actually called.)
One of the biggest and most frustrating problems in pro sports are bad calls by umps/refs. What I’d like to see is the steady removal of the so-called ‘human error’ from sports; I’ll talk specifically about baseball:
When umps are unsure when a ball is fair or foul down the line, why can’t a system be installed like they use in tennis? They could use technology to determine whether balls are just that, fair or foul.
Also, on disputed HRs, they must use instant replay. There’s no other fair way. An ump should be stationed in the park somewhere near a TV, like in the NHL. He should have the final word, since he’ll have access to the replay.
On balls and strikes, why not use Questec or ESPN’s ‘K-Zone’ (for example) to actually call the strikes? The only problem is that strike zone height is different for every hitter, but width is exactly the same, 17 inches (the width of homeplate). Rickey Henderson had a smaller up/down zone because he was short and crouched, and Richie Sexson’s up/down zone is bigger because he’s 6′8″. But their side-to-side zone is exactly the same. Therefore, computers/technology should be used to tell an umpire when a ball hits the plate or just misses. For the time being, umps will still need to call the up/down pitches (because every hitter is different), but will know for sure when a pitch crosses the corner or not. Or an ump could be assigned to determine the upper limit of each hitter’s strike zone dependent on his stance.
It also sucks when a pitcher throws a strike, but it’s not where he meant to throw it, the catcher has to reach for it, so the ump automatically calls it a ball. It doesn’t matter where the pitcher MEANT to throw the ball, it only matters whether it’s a strike or a ball.
For out/safe calls, when the closest ump feels the play is too close to call, he could send it to the ‘booth ump.’ TV technology is such today that it could be done in 30-60 seconds. Or (ala the NFL) managers should have two replays to use per game.
These steps would help legitimize the officiating and would make for fewer arguments from players and managers. You can’t argue with Questec strikes - it’s 100% consistent and 0% prejudiced (for veterans, or against rookies). Instant replay would also ensure the right call, and isn’t that worth waiting (at most) 60 seconds for - especially in close and/or playoff games?
From Sports Illustrated-
LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — Bill Henry, who pitched in the majors for more than 15 seasons, has died. He was 83.
Henry died Aug. 27 at Lakeland Regional Medical Center, two days after he suffered a heart attack, his stepdaughter Debbie Lee said.
Born William Rodman Henry in Alice, Texas, the left-hander made his major-league debut in 1952 with the Boston Red Sox. Henry later pitched for the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates and San Francisco Giants before ending his career in 1969 with the Houston Astros.
Henry had a career record of 46-50 and pitched in two 1961 World Series games with the Reds.
Since I was born in 1961, my memories of Henry come from playing past seasons with the baseball games made by Strat-O-Matic. Bill Henry, a left-handed relief pitcher, wasn’t really one of those one out lefty relief specialists we see today. In Henry’s most productive years, from 59-62 he averaged over an inning per relief appearance. Even two innings per game in 1959. For 1961, he was the Reds number two man coming out of the bullpen when they went to the World Series. Henry and Jim Brosnan saving the same amount of games(16), but with Brosnan having the heavier inning work load of the two.
What did Mark Twain once say, the reports of my death are greatly exaggerated. That applies to Bill Henry. From today’s Miami Herald.
They lived 961 miles apart and never met.
One was a retired salesman living in Central Florida. The other, a big-league ballplayer who pitched in the 1961 World Series before settling down outside Houston.
All they shared was a common name, a square jawline and an affection for baseball.
But for 20 years, Bill C. Henry the salesman purported to be Bill R. Henry the baseball player. His wife and friends believed him — they had no reason not to — and the guy he pretended to be was none the wiser.
Until last week, when the 83-year-old former salesman died of a heart attack in Lakeland. Newspapers across the country ran obituaries announcing the death of the left-handed pitcher, recounting highlights of his 16-season career.
But that Bill Henry is still very much alive.
”I’ve been right here this whole time,” Henry, 79, said Thursday night from his home in Deer Park, Texas. “It was kind of a shock to hear people say they thought I was dead.”
A baseball historian read an obituary for the Lakeland man and noticed the birth dates and hometowns listed were different than what was on his Bill Henry memorabilia. The historian called Henry in Texas, who confirmed he was still living.
I’m glad you’re still alive Bill. People impersonating former major league relief pitchers. Welcome to Florida! The rules are certainly different here.
On Wednesday, I was very down on the Orioles. It looked as if the Orioles were going to end the day without signing their #1 draft pick, catcher Matt Weiters. If that had happened, the Orioles would have forfeited their rights to Weiters.
But then word got out at the last minute that the Orioles had reached an agreement with Weither’s at a price less than what his “advisor” Scott Boras said he was insisting on. So not only did the Orioles enjoy a thrilling victory on Wednesday, they possibly landed the future of their franchise.
One element of the signing that I found interesting was a comment by the Orioles’ director of scouting, Joe Jordan.
“They got the deal done,” said an elated Orioles scouting director Joe Jordan. “You can tell the city of Baltimore that the old evil owner stepped up and took care of things tonight. We had to fight to the end.”
I read the comment that Jordan was speaking with his tongue in cheek. It was, I thought, a healthy acknowledgment that Orioles management understood how poorly it was perceived by the fan base and that it was now going to work to repair that relationship.
Some of my fellow bloggers were not so pleased with the statement.
Oriole Post:
I’m proud that the Baltimore Orioles signed Matt Wieters, beat Boras, and scored a major coup, and I commend the team on doing so, but it is to be expected — isn’t it?
We all want to beat our chests and cry out to the sky when we do something good, but in the manner that Mr. Jordan did it in?
Absolutely not. He sounds so ornery and cock full of himself, it’s not funny and very insulting to the people left who come out and support the team.
Inside Charm City :
Jordan is obviously taking a dig at Angelos detractors and it comes across as petty and vindictive on a night when you’d think mature members of the front office staff would have the sense to talk up the good news that occurred instead of taking pot-shots at people who pay their salaries through ticket sales.
According to this account in the Sun it appears that Boras’s original contract demands were higher than he expected to get for Weiters.
MacPhail, in Toronto, and owner Peter Angelos spoke by phone with Boras. Meanwhile, Jordan and his administrative assistant, Marcy Zerhusen, worked and worried from the third floor of the B&O warehouse, maintaining dialogue with one of Boras’ representatives while staying in contact with MacPhail.
“There were a lot of things going on, just trying to gather information and see where we were,” Jordan said. “In the end, it came together quickly. Marcy and I high-fived each other.
“From about 7 o’clock on, it seemed like every 15 or 20 minutes we were getting updates from Major League Baseball, as far as signings. As close as it was getting to the deadline, you could just see there was a pecking order. And as much as we’re trying to push this thing along, it’s not going to happen.”
Not until other first-rounders reached agreements, including Kansas City’s Mike Moustakis at No. 2 and the Chicago Cubs’ Josh Vitters at No. 3 - leaving Wieters as the last domino to fall.
“I don’t think, in these kinds of situations, that you really know if it’s going to happen,” Boras said. “The way these contracts work, it’s a fair deal for everyone. Skill-wise, this is an important signing for the Baltimore Orioles.”
Boras said he told the Orioles that Wieters would consider signing if they agreed to pay him the net present value of the contract for high school pitcher Rick Porcello, another Boras client who received a four-year major league deal from the Detroit Tigers, as the 27th pick, worth $7 million, including a $3.58 million bonus.
Baseball musings links to Sports Agent Blog arguing (I think) that the earlier deadline keeps salaries in line, but that those who sign the latest still end up maximizing the salary and bonuses they’ll earn.
Different Rules same outcome Rany Jazayerli explains why the new rules don’t change the likelihood that a “tough sign” will still drop to one of the better teams later in the draft.
Ken Rosenthal argues that drafting well (and even overpaying for a high draft pick) can change around a team’s fortunes and is, surprisingly, a cost effective way of improving. Jayson Stark, though, argued that more often than not high draft picks are busts.
Crossposted at Soccer Dad.
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Soccer Dad linked with How it got done...
The AJC has a feature on Al Downing, the former big league pitcher and baseball announcer best known for giving up Hank Aaron’s 715th home run.
[I]n an instant on April 8, 1974, Downing became forever linked with Hank Aaron. The Atlanta slugger hit his historic 715th home run off Downing, who was on the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Although 310 pitchers gave up home runs to Aaron, Downing is the Jeopardy question, the clue in the crossword puzzle, the answer in a Trivial Pursuit game.
 “I think people have a tendency to look at me as if that moment defines my career,” said Downing, 66, who retired in 1977 after winning 123 games in 17 years in the major leagues. “I always tell them, ‘That moment was Henry’s moment. It wasn’t my moment. It could have been anybody on that mound giving up that home run. Henry was the common denominator.’ ”
Now the numbers are adding up for Barry Bonds. Very soon an unwitting pitcher — who will it be? — will serve up No. 756 and find his name inextricably tied to Bonds. Downing will empathize with the man on the mound, but he won’t feel sorry for him. “Why should you feel sorry for a guy who’s doing what he loves?” he said. “He’s playing baseball. Very few people get an opportunity to pitch in the major leagues.”
[...]
After Tom Glavine gave up Bonds’ 11th homer of the season on May 8, the former Braves pitcher said that if the Mets had to face Bonds again before he got the record, “I can assure you I wouldn’t want to be the guy who gave up the home run.” Downing didn’t have that attitude when he was playing. “You can say, ‘I hope it’s not me,’ but that’s like saying, ‘I hope I don’t have to pitch in a big game,’ ” said Downing, who pitched in three World Series, was the first black starting pitcher in Yankees history and once was compared favorably with Sandy Koufax. “You live for a big game; you live for moments like that.”
[...]
Dodgers manager Walter Alston chose Downing to pitch after Aaron had hit No. 714 two games earlier. “He didn’t know I’d give up a home run,” Downing said. “But he said, ‘You’ve pitched in World Series, All-Star Games. … You’re a veteran.’ I was almost 33. He said, ‘I know that you can handle the pressure of that moment.’ ”
[...]
Downing is offended by people who say, “You must have grooved the pitch.”
“They’re the people who don’t know much about the sport,” he said. “I say that’s an insult to Hank Aaron. … It’s like saying somebody let Wilt Chamberlain score 100 points on him. He did it because he could; they didn’t let him.”
[...]
Downing, who lives in Valencia, Calif., and has retired as a broadcaster, said Aaron has always been gracious about their shared history. When they saw each other at the 25th anniversary celebration in 1999, Aaron asked, “How many home runs did I hit off of you?” Downing answered, “Three,” which, by the way, was 14 fewer than Aaron hit off Don Drysdale. “He [Aaron] said, ‘I wasn’t sure if it was two or three.’ People always act as if I hit 30 home runs off you. I say, ‘No, Al Downing was a good pitcher.’ “
And seemingly a decent, well-adjusted man. He’s absolutely right about one thing: Whoever gives up Bonds’ 756th home run will be some guy doing what he loves. It could be a kid up for his one cup of coffee in the Bigs or a future Hall of Famer. Bonds is a superstar; he can hit number 756 off of anyone. And, certainly, it’s no disgrace to be the victim of one of the best to ever play the game.
PITCHES OF INFAMY
Selected list of pitchers surrendering momentous hits or home runs:
1927: Tom Zachary, Washington Senators — Babe Ruth’s 60th homer of the season
1951: Ralph Branca, Brooklyn Dodgers — Bobby Thomson’s pennant-winning homer
1961: Tracy Stallard, Boston Red Sox — Roger Maris’ 61st homer of the season
1974: Al Downing, L.A. Dodgers — Hank Aaron’s 715th homer of his career
1985: Eric Show, San Diego Padres — Pete Rose’s 4,192nd hit of his career
1998: Steve Trachsel, Chicago Cubs — Mark McGwire’s 62nd homer of the season
2001: Chan Ho Park, L.A. Dodgers — Barry Bonds’ 71st homer of the season
No Hall of Famers in that bunch but several very good pitchers, certainly including Al Downing.
The Philadelphia Phillies have reached a dubious milestone, becoming the first professional team in any sport to lose 10,000 games.
 Through the last-place finishes, September collapses and every agonizing failure over the past 125 years, no team has lost quite like the Philadelphia Phillies. Futility has followed them since the day they were born, and Sunday night was no different for the losingest team in sports history. Loss No. 10,000 came when Albert Pujols hit two of the St. Louis Cardinals’ six homers in a 10-2 rout.
Not surprisingly, this defeat resembled the thousands that came before. Bad starting pitching, brutal relief and hardly any hitting. And, of course, lots of booing. By the ninth inning, with the outcome inevitable, the boos turned to cheers. Fans in the sellout crowd of 44,872 thumbed their noses at the dubious mark, standing and applauding. One held up a sign that read: “10,000 N Proud” as NL MVP Ryan Howard struck out to end the game.
“I don’t know too much about 10,000 losses,” Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. “I try and concentrate on the wins.”
From Connie Mack Stadium to the Vet and Citizens Bank Park, the Phillies have had few moments to celebrate. The franchise, born in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and briefly called the Blue Jays in the mid-1940s, fell to 8,810-10,000.
Next on the losing list: the Braves, with 9,681 defeats. It took them stints in three cities (Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta) to reach that total. Not even those lovable losers, the Chicago Cubs, come close at 9,425. And for those counting, it was the 58th time the Phillies have lost by that exact 10-2 score, the Elias Sports Bureau said.
While it’s a somewhat embarrassing record, it’s a bit misleading. For one thing, baseball teams play radically more games than in any other professional sport. Moreover, even the best teams will lose 35-40 percent of their games, amassing 60 loses even in great seasons. And the Phillies have been around longer than virtually all other teams.
Still, not a record to cheer.
He died this morning in Arizona.
Rod Beck, a relief pitcher who wore a bushy mustache while earning 286 career saves, was found dead Saturday. He was 38. Beck was found by police officers responding to a call to his home in suburban Phoenix, according to police department spokesman Andy Hill. Foul play is not suspected, though the cause of death might not be known for several days.
With long hair framing a menacing stare and an aggressive arm swing before delivering a pitch, the outgoing right-hander was a memorable baseball personality and a three-time All-Star who twice led the NL in saves. He spent the first seven of his 13 major league season with the San Francisco Giants.
Beck was popular with his teammates, reporters and fans, but battled personal demons late in his life. He abruptly left the San Diego Padres for a two-month stint in drug rehabilitation during his final season in 2004.
“He was having some problems, and I just knew he went into rehab and joined us later that year,” said Giants manager Bruce Bochy, the Padres’ manager at the time. “It’s so sad when you see healthy players go at such a young age. This is a bad day in baseball to lose a guy who did so much for the game.”
Nicknamed “Shooter,” Beck played for the Giants (1991-97), the Chicago Cubs (1998-99) and the Boston Red Sox (1999-2001) before finishing his career with the Padres (2003-04). Beck reportedly was living in a camper behind the Iowa Cubs’ center-field fence when San Diego called.
Beck led the majors in saves in 1993, when he set the Giants’ single-season record with 48. He was San Francisco’s career saves leader with 199 until Robb Nen passed him in 2002.
Beck led the majors again in 1998 with 51 saves for Chicago, helping the Cubs win the NL wild card. He had a career record of 38-45 in 704 games, with a 3.30 ERA.
Beck was a solid relief pitcher. RIP.
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