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Man goes for foul ball.
Man misses foul ball.
Man spills beer.
Man gets hit by pizza.
PIZZA?! Yes a pizza.
Drew lofted a foul toward Box 82, which juts into left field foul territory. Sole stretched for the ball as the Angels’ Garret Anderson reached the stands. They collided, spilling beer everywhere, and the ball bounced away.
As if the slo-mo spill and requisite grimacing weren’t enough, a large slice of cheese pizza then arced perfectly through the crowd, hitting Sole’s shoulder and face. Once he realized what hit him, he went ballistic while girlfriend Anya Ho, 29, tried to wipe off his face.
A few rows away, Madore and buddy Danny Kelly beamed. It turns out Sole had given them grief about having a large pizza in the stands just moments before the at-bat. He wanted to know where they got it.
“He turned around and said something like, ‘Your mother,’ †Sole said.
“No,†interjected Ho. “He said, ‘The pizzeria.’ â€
Either way, all parties were annoyed.
“They had been giving us (expletive) about it,†Madore said. “Next thing I know, there’s a fly ball to left field and it goes foul and my buddy says, ‘You want some pizza now?’ And he hits him right in the face. Hey, the guy wasn’t paying attention. When you’re in the stands you’ve got to be ready for anything – a foul ball, a flying slice of pizza, everything.â€
Kelly, sporting a Patriots [team stats] jacket, was tossed.
“It was just a stupid thing,†he said. “It’s not something to be proud of. It was just stupidity all around.â€
Madore and Sole began jawing – “He has a little bit of a temper,†Ho said – and Madore got the boot, as well.
By the time the eighth inning rolled around, however, most involved couldn’t stop laughing. Sole fielded nonstop calls from friends telling him he was on NESN, which named him “Fan of the Game.†He wondered if he could meet NESN’s Tina Cervasio.
Of course you can watch the NESN broadcast here and catch the play-by-play commentary, which is pretty hilarious.
After the Indians-Mariners was snowed out for four games, MLB decided the best solution was to have the Indians host the Angels in Milwaukee.
After snow wiped out Cleveland’s series against Seattle for the fourth day in a row Monday, the Indians moved their next series against the Los Angeles Angels to Milwaukee’s Miller Park.
The teams will play a three-game series beginning Tuesday in the ballpark, which unlike Jacobs Field, has a retractable roof. The opener and Wednesday’s game will be played at 7:05 p.m. ET, with Thursday’s scheduled for 1:05 p.m.
…
On Sunday, baseball officials considering moving the Angels’ series to Anaheim., Calif., but then decided on the switch to Milwaukee. Indians players packed for the trip at midday.
The biggest hurdle to moving the game to Anaheim was the Angels are scheduled to be in Boston the day after the 3-game series wrsp up versus Cleveland, so Milwaukee was the best location availble with the ability to handle the bad weather.
Should we blame this on Global warming?
Major League Baseball may be forced to tinker with its schedule after a weekend series in Cleveland was wiped out by a snowstorm and a cold snap forced the postponement of six games during the first week of the season.
Worried that more unseasonable weather could hit Cleveland again this week, baseball may send the Indians to warm up in Anaheim instead of making the Angels head east.
And temperatures aren’t the only thing that’s way down: Home runs plunged during the season’s frigid first week to their lowest level since 1993, with average dropping from 2.4 in last season’s opening week to 1.8 this year. It hadn’t been that low since a 1.6 average 14 years ago, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
*****
Baseball tried to work around the cold a decade ago, without great success. After enduring a snowout at Boston’s Fenway Park, a snowy afternoon at Yankee Stadium and cold in Detroit and Chicago in 1996, baseball remade the schedule for 1997, using all five covered fields then in the majors and every West Coast site.
No brainer, right?
After teams in the East and Midwest got home, eight games were wiped out by weather on the season’s second Saturday, raising that year’s total to 17.
MLB has been having to cope with inclement April weather since the sport began. The only difference I see, is that the season has begun earlier than in years past. Baseball used to start play as late as April 15-20 but now its the first week of April. This isn’t totally the fault of the conversion from a 154 to 162 game schedule(In 1964, the season opener was April 13th, where as in 2007 it was April 1st.) What has happened is the elimination of the doubleheader from baseball. This has caused the stretching of the baseball season.
Moving the games to California is unfair to Indian fans. MLB has to just get used to the fact no one can control the weather.
Good news for the Angels bullpen as they lock up rubber-armed setup man Scot Shields through 2010.
Los Angeles Angels reliever Scot Shields agreed Thursday to a $14.6 million, three-year contract extension through 2010.
Shields, the Angels’ setup man, had agreed last month to a $3.4 million, one-year contract. The new deal adds salaries of $4.25 million in 2008, $5 million in 2009 and $5.35 million in 2010.
This isn’t so much about “all out” busts but more about players that may be getting drafted too high and too early. Again, when you see the name Joe Mauer, don’t freak out. I’m not saying I wouldn’t draft him, I’m just saying that he is going too early and that way too many people are overrating him. Here is a list of some of the “overvalued” players in fantasy right now along with some that you should just stay away from. Again, this is not a list of people I wouldn’t draft, I actually own a couple in some leagues, this is a list of people that I wouldn’t reach too early for.
Catcher – Joe Mauer, Jorge Posada: You heard a little about why I believe Mauer is overrated above. Sure the guy won a batting title, but 12 other catchers hit 16 or more homers to Mauer’s 13. Four other catchers had more RBI, and 2 others had more stolen bases. This is not to say that he won’t top his power numbers from last year, I just believe he is beong overvalued and that I wouldn’t take him any earlier than the mid-late 3rd round. Jorge Posada is kinda in the same boat. He gets drafted for three reason: his homers, the fact he plays for the Yankees, and his lineup protection. Not bad reasons. But he gets drafted before guys like Ramon Hernandez, Mike Piazza, and Russ Martin. Posada is turning 36 this year and his career .270 AVG is probably in decline and is gonna be a killer and walks don’t help in most fantasy leagues. He’s good but I have him ranked around 8-12 for catchers.
First Base – Sean Casey: I love Casey. Nice guy, everybody on his team and the opposing team, loves him. But on fantasy teams… Yes he has topped .300 5 times in his career and hit 20 or more homers 3 times. But those days seem long gone. He should never be drafted above guys like Overbay, Conor Jackson, or even Ty Wigginton. Stay away from him at all costs.
Second Base – Rickie Weeks, Ray Durham: I’m not gonna mention Dan Uggla here. He is actually being avoided by everyone and he seems to be getting drafted in a perfect spot. But Weeks is an intiguing player. He has 20-30 potential every year. But he seems to get injured every year. He currently is fighting wrist problem, and his wrists are what generate his bat speed, and he could kill your team AVG (he is a career .257 hitter). You can look like a genius if you get him and he performs, but I wouldn’t draft him any sooner than the 10th round. And if anyone thinks Durham is going to repeat his numbers, let’s please make a bet!
Shortstop – Carlos Guillen: Guillen is a guy I could be dead wrong about. He has .300-20-90-20-100 potential but I’ve seen him go in round 3 before. He isn’t getting younger and he is also getting slower (both at SS and in actual speed). I would love to have him on my team but I wouldn’t take his 2006 stats to the bank. I would rest on .300-15-80-10-90.
Third Base – Joe Crede: Two sets of two words for you: Back Problems, and Josh Fields. Crede continues to have back problems and the young Josh Fields is waiting to snag the 3B job. The White Sox need to trade Crede while his value is at it’s highest. If traded, his stats should diminish because he’s most likely headed to a ballpark that is not Chicago’s.
Outfield – Willy Taveras, Dave Roberts, Moises Alou, Gary Matthews Jr.: I’ll start with the speedsters. Taveras is not going to hit for power because he’s in Colorado. He is going to put up numbers around the same as last year’s. Don’t draft him expecting Coors Field to magically bring him power, it didn’t do it for Juan Pierre. Roberts is on a team with aging vets and he himself fits perfectly on that platform. He could easily swipe 40 bags but that’s all you should draft him for. I hear from people that Alou is going to perform miracles because he’s in the Mets lineup. Don’t buy it. He hits lefties like no one else but he probably won’t see more than 400 at-bats. Draft him as your 4th or 5th OF, not one of your starting 3. Lastly we come to Matthews Jr. Do I have to explain here? I’ll keep it simple: No Way he duplicates last year’s stats which were overrated in themselves!
Starting Pitchers – Jered Weaver, Chien Ming-Wang, Orlando Hernandez: Weaver is having some problems with nagging injuries and his season last year was a season in which hitters never saw him before and he took advantage of it. Hitters are wise and they will catch on. Weaver should still have a good year but he’s going earlier than Kazmir, Hamels, and Cain and I think that’s ridiculous. Wang will give you 15+ wins, no doubt. But can he win 19 again? I wouldn’t bet on it. 76 strikeouts in 218 innings is not a sign for good things to happen. Some of those balls in play will drop for hits this year and his ERA won’t be duplicated from last year. Wang, in my opinion, is a one-dimensional fantasy starter. He’s a good #3, maybe #2, but don’t make him your #1. And Orlando Hernandez is just not going to have a stikeout per inning again. His ERA will kill you and you will regret taking him ahead of young guys like Garza, Sowers, and even James Shields of the Rays.
Relief Pitchers – Bob Wickman, Takashi Saito, Armando Benitez: All three of these guys are on this list because they all have a history of injuries. They all also have people behind them (Wickman has Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano, Saito has Jonathan Broxton, and Benitez has Brian Wilson) that will step in and may not give the job back if given the opportunity. Don’t be scared to take Wickman though, but monitor the other two closely. Closers are one-dimensional players (saves) and saves can be had in the waiver wire every year (2006: Putz, Saito, Francisco Cordero anyone?!)
AL West Predictions
1. Oakland A’s
2. Los Angeles Angels
3. Texas Rangers
4. Seattle Mariners
Athletics
Projected Stats
Projected Lineup AVG HR RBI SB R
1. Jason Kendall C .298 – 2 – 54 – 10 – 79
2. Shannon Stewart LF .288 – 7 – 55 – 8 – 62
3. Milton Bradley CF .302 – 18 – 73 – 14 – 81
4. Eric Chavez 3B .278 – 30 – 98 – 5 – 89
5. Mike Piazza DH .286 – 25 – 81 – 0 – 67
6. Nick Swisher RF .277 – 36 – 109 – 3 – 113
7. Bobby Crosby SS .273 – 21 – 78 – 9 – 76
8. Dan Johnson 1B .281 – 19 – 72 – 0 – 67
9. Mark Ellis 2B .285 – 13 – 60 – 6 – 76
Bench
Bobby Kielty OF .268 – 9 – 42 – 3 – 40
Marco Scutaro INF .259 – 5 – 30 – 5 – 36
Mark Kotsay CF .279 – 5 – 40 – 4 – 48
Rotation W- L ERA SO
1. Danny Haren 16-11 3.53 182
2. Rich Harden 12- 9 3.16 159
3. Esteban Loaiza 12-12 4.37 132
4. Joe Blanton 14-12 4.21 112
5. Joe Kennedy 10-13 4.26 106
Bullpen W- L ERA SO SV-SVO
CL Huston Street 4-2 2.72 74 38-43
RP Justin Duchscherer 3-2 2.94 66 4-
RP Kiko Calero 4-2 2.96 63 2-
RP Alan Embree 2-3 3.42 41 -
RP Chad Gaudin 3-3 3.82 39 -
Prospect who can impact the 2007 season
1. Daric Barton 1B/DH
2. Travis Buck COF
3. Jason Windsor P
Angels
Projected Stats
Projected Lineup AVG HR RBI SB R
1. Gary Matthews Jr.CF .274 – 14 – 62 – 8 – 81
2. Orlando Cabrera SS .279 – 11 – 68 – 26 – 93
3. Vlad Guerrero RF .336 – 34 – 121 – 12 – 103
4. Garret Anderson LF .276 – 18 – 80 – 0 – 59
5. Shea Hillenbrand DH .282 – 21 – 83 – 0 – 76
6. Howie Kendrick 2B .311 – 14 – 82 – 18 – 80
7. Mike Napoli C .246 – 22 – 60 – 2 – 58
8. Casey Kotchman 1B .275 – 9 – 36 – 2 – 24
9. Chone Figgins 3B .284 – 9 – 36 – 57 – 104
Bench
Macier Izturis 3B/SS/2B .278 – 5 – 40 – 12 – 53
Juan Rivera DH/COF .288 – 15 – 62 – 1 – 57 (DL)
Kendry Morales 1B/DH .278 – 10 – 43 – 0 – 35
Rotation W- L ERA SO
1. John Lackey 15- 9 3.46 192
2. Kelvim Escobar 12-11 3.87 160
3. Ervin Santana 13-11 4.32 151
4. Jared Weaver 12- 9 3.68 158
5. Bartolo Colon 10- 9 4.36 127
Bullpen W- L ERA SO SV-SVO
CL Fran Rodriguez 3-3 2.16 96 46-51
RP Scott Shields 5-4 2.74 92 5-
LP Darren Oliver 3-5 4.46 55 -
LR Hector Carrasco 5-4 4.02 68 -
RP Justin Speir 3-4 3.92 5 -
Prospect who can impact the 2007 season
1. Brandon Wood SS/3B
2. Eric Aybar SS
3. Joe Saunders SP
4. Jeff Mathis C
Rangers
Projected Stats
Projected Lineup AVG HR RBI SB R
1. Kenny Lofton CF .305 – 5 – 51 – 26 – 97
2. F. Catalanotto LF/DH .302 – 8 – 57 – 1 – 68
3. Michael Young SS .312 – 19 – 96 – 8 – 112
4. Mark Teixeira 1B .289 – 38 – 120 – 2 – 109
5. Hank Blalock 3B .274 – 23 – 93 – 1 – 85
6. B. Wilkerson DH/LF .256 – 17 – 60 – 5 – 70
7. Nelson Cruz RF .246 – 16 – 58 – 7 – 54
8. Gerald Laird C .279 – 13 – 48 – 4 – 56
9. Ian Kinsler 2B .287 – 18 – 71 – 16 – 86
Bench
Sammy Sosa OF/DH .256 – 12 – 38 – 0 – 30
J. Hairston Jr. 2B/3B/OF .249 – 2 – 22 – 8 – 34
Jason Botts 1B/COF .276 – 9 – 36 – 0 – 34
Joaquin Arias INF .275 – 2 – 19 – 6 – 27
Rotation W- L ERA SO
1. Kevin Millwood 16-13 3.92 155
2. Vicente Padilla 13-12 4.46 142
3. Brandon McCarthy 11-13 4.26 131
4. Robinson Tejada 10-12 4.39 119
5. Jon Koronka 8-11 4.96 91
Bullpen W- L ERA SO SV-SVO
CL Eric Gagne 3-3 2.67 60 23-26
RP Akinori Otsuka 4-3 3.11 64 9-
RR Kameron Loe 5-6 4.62 56 -
RP Rick Bauer 3-4 4.12 38 -
Prospect who can impact the 2007 season
1. Nelson Cruz COF
2. Jason Botts 1B/DH/COF
3. Joaquin Arias INF
Mariners
Projected Stats
Projected Lineup AVG HR RBI SB R
1. Ichiro Suzuki CF .341 – 13 – 60 – 42 – 115
2. Adrian Beltre 3B .274 – 26 – 92 – 10 – 88
3. Jose Vidro DH .283 – 6 – 53 – 2 – 58
4. Richie Sexson 1B .268 – 37 – 111 – 1 – 86
5. Raul Ibanez LF .282 – 25 – 93 – 2 – 91
6. Kenji Johjima C .287 – 19 – 78 – 3 – 61
7. Jose Guillen RF .269 – 17 – 68 – 2 – 60
8. Jose Lopez 2B .276 – 12 – 76 – 6 – 74
9. Y. Betancourt SS .274 – 7 – 45 – 13 – 66
Bench
Ben Broussard 1B/DH .271 – 15 – 54 – 1 – 48
Willie Bloomquist Util .264 – 3 – 29 – 18 – 41
Jeremy Reed OF .282 – 7 – 39 – 9 – 46
Rotation W- L ERA SO
1. Felix Hernandez 13-11 3.83 185
2. Jarrod Washburn 12-10 4.09 110
3. Miguel Batista 10-12 4.35 118
4. Jeff Weaver 10-13 4.46 128
5. Horacio Ramirez 10-11 4.20 76
Bullpen W- L ERA SO SV-SVO
CL J.J. Putz 3-2 2.89 92 34-39
RP Julio Mateo 5-4 3.57 46 -
RP Chris Reitsma 3-5 4.40 37 3-
RP George Sherrill 2-3 3.81 48 –
RP Arthur Rhodes 1-2 4.57 31 1-
Prospect who can impact the 2007 season
1. Adam Jones CF
2. Jeff Clement C/1B
ESPN Radio has been reporting rumors that speculation of a deal between the Angels and Yankees involving Alex Rodriguez due to issues surrounding Rodriguez unresolved option to exit his contract after this season and the Angels lack of offensive force to support Vlad. Details are scarce, more to follow.
Update: The LA Times has a brief piece on it.
Hobbled last season by apparent knee problems Guerrero says it’s not an injury per say, but genetics.
Vladimir Guerrero says his knees are fine and he won’t have surgery. “My mom’s side of the family, we have a leg longer than the other, and sometimes it looks like I’m hobbling, but it’s not,” the Los Angeles Angels star said through a translator Saturday.
Guerrero had an aching right knee last season. He said doctors recommended an operation, but the knee felt good before spring training and he opted not to have surgery.
I hope Vald is okay and that skipping surgery won’t hurt the Angels’ season. However, given Vlads run resembles something Magic may do running onto the court during the NBA Finals Introductions, I think he may of made the wrong choice.
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| Thursday, March 1, 2007 |
Gary Matthews Jr. may be feeling the intense scrutiny of the American Sports Media’s obsession with steroids in baseball. Because this doesn’t sound too good.
The Times Union has learned that investigators in the year-old case, which has been kept quiet until now, uncovered evidence that testosterone and other performance-enhancing drugs may have been fraudulently prescribed over the Internet to current and former Major League Baseball players, National Football League players, college athletes, high school coaches, a former Mr. Olympia champion and another leading contender in the bodybuilding competition.
The customers include Los Angeles Angels center fielder Gary Matthews Jr., according to sources with knowledge of the investigation.
Sources also said investigators from the New York Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, which is part of the state Department of Health, recently interviewed a top physician for the Pittsburgh Steelers about his alleged purchase last year of roughly $150,000 of testosterone and human growth hormone.
The revelations about the Pittsburgh Steelers is very troubling. But Matthews is the biggest name, and having just signed a five-year $55 million contract, he is subject to a lot of scrutiny. A sabermetrician friend of mine who goes by the nickname of Valentine was curious enough about Matthews career performance that he looked into the numbers.
Matthews ISO [Isolated Slugging or Slugging Percentage-Batting Average] over the past three years has been remarkably steady at .186, .181, .182. His secondary average (includes BBs) has been in decline at .318, .295, .281. His OPS jumped last year PURELY because he hit more singles, and that is more likely a random fluke than the result of strength training. I would expect his BA to return to the .260-.275 range this year (even without taking park effects into account), which should return his OPS to the .750-.800 range. Steroids or no, he’s not going to be able to keep up last year’s pace.
The real surprise in looking at Matthews career is the jump in power between 2003 and 2004. His BA was steady, but his SLG jumped 80 points! Yes, he moved to Texas (and a good HR park), but that alone doesn’t explain such a large change. Especially not for a player whose early-career power was so thoroughly mediocre.
It is completely reasonable to assume that Matthews used something. Whether it was the then legal HGH or a banned substance is in question. Matthews himself was non-committal when talking to reporters yesterday.
Matthews, speaking to reporters at the Angels’ spring training camp in Mesa, Ariz., said he wasn’t “in a position to answer any specific questions.”
“I do expect it to resolve itself here in the near future. … Until we get more information, I just can’t comment on it,” he said Wednesday.
Matthews clearly can comment on it. In fact, he can clear up this whole mess by saying simply, yes, I used them. Alternately, he can vehemently deny that he did. But he can and should address the issue. Chances are he’ll keep himself clean, keep his mouth shut and let his numbers say what he is unwilling to.
Writers in the blogosphere are not generally as excitable about the steroid nonsense as the more enlightened scribes in the professional ranks of print journalism. And frankly I am not too vexed if Gary Matthews Jr. used HGH or other performance enhancing drugs. What irks me is that Matthews and the other accused dopers are unwilling to acknowledge or even speak forthrightly about what is going on. Two of the prominent athletes who have failed drug tests have accused their teammates of wrongdoing. Some have blamed confusion about supplements. Others have thankfully acknowledged their guilt and gone about their careers or in some cases concluded their careers. Admitting guilt, like Matt Lawton did, effectively ended his career.
Athletes are not obligated to confess to any indiscretion that appears in print about them. However, when athletes play the game of deny what is deniable for as long as it is deniable, it damages the credibility of the clean players. The responsibility to root out the miscreants lies with the Union. The players are demonstrably affected by the misbehavior of a few in their midst. They have the most motivation to police the clubhouse from within.
Until athletes are frank about what they have done, and until MLB management is forthright about what they knew, the sports credibility will remain damaged irreparably. That such stories cannot gain traction against the NFL is mind-boggling. But MLB seems to have a special place as the press’ steroid whipping boy.
Closing on a note of levity, the indispensable Deadspin contributes this comment:
More names are expected to come out in the coming weeks. The investigation focuses on an Internet copy, which means somehow, Jay Mariotti’s gonna figure out a way to blame this on the blogs.
Indeed.
On Valentine’s Day, the love comes out for the greatest game in the world -
Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter: “I think because everybody can relate. You don’t have to be seven feet tall; you don’t have to be a certain size to play. Baseball is up and down. I think life’s like that sometimes, you know. Back and forth, up and down, you’re going through this grind. I think people like watching it. Baseball’s like a soap opera every day.”
Ernie Banks, Cubs legend and Hall of Famer: “It’s just life. When I think about baseball, it’s just life. It’s really the way life is. It requires a lot of mental capacity to be involved in it. It creates a lot of joy for people and memories for people who follow it. It’s a family. You like it because it’s a family. You started with it and know all these people — it’s family, it’s friends, it’s fun, it’s a beautiful game. All in all, baseball is amazing.
Joel Kweskin, 56, White Sox fan based in Charlotte, N.C.: “It’s unique unto itself. Football, basketball and hockey are variations of the same concept — back and forth in a linear progression to score a goal. Baseball, however, is mapped out on the field unlike any other sport. A running back or return specialist can run 100 yards, tops; a baserunner legging out an inside-the-park homer runs 20 yards farther. Baseball is the most democratic of sports — any size can play, and because the ball is not controlled by the offense but rather the defense, every player at any given time is involved in a play. Along with the anecdotally accepted premise that hitting a pitched baseball is the single most difficult thing to do in sports, so might be fielding a 175-mph line drive or grounder down the line. I love baseball because it is the greatest game ever invented.”
Former Royals star Willie Wilson: “The first thing is, I don’t think there’s any criteria for size, so anybody can play. I think people can relate. A lot of people never played football; basketball, you’ve gotta be tall and be able to jump. But baseball is a game where you pick up a bat and a ball, and you catch it, you swing the bat and you hit the ball. Most people have played softball or some kind of baseball, so they can relate to the sport. For me, that’s why I think America just embraces baseball, man.”
Baseball Blogger Travis G.: Where to start? I think better when I make a list.
1. Players. The requirements to be a good baseball player are very undefined. You can be short, tall, thin, chunky, anything really. You name the greats and you get tall and chunky (Ruth, Ortiz), short and chunky (Yogi, Gwynn), tall and thin (Sizemore, Jeter), short and thin (Reyes, Ichiro). They may not be the best athletes (e.g. David Wells), but when they’re playing the best game in the world, who cares?
2. The Mentality. Baseball requires more intelligence than any other sport (save for NFL QB). Simply put, every hitter that steps to the plate is trying to out-think the pitcher, and vice versa. 4-5 times a game, focus has to be completely on the man in front of him. Will he throw a fastball, curve, change? If you take an at-bat (or even a pitch) off, you’re toast. Same thing with the pitcher. The only other sport that comes close is football, but mainly just for the QB. Baseball requires every single player to have good mental capacity.
3. The Field. Football, hockey, basketball and soccer all use essentially the same type of field/playing surface: a rectangle. Baseball uses a diamond. It’s not only unique in that aspect, but every single ballpark is unique amongst the sport. Each park has its own quirks and intricacies that make it special. Not a single other sport can say that. Yankee Stadium has Death Valley, the short RF porch, and the facade. Fenway has the Monster. Shea has the apple. Wrigley has the ivy-covered brick. Pac Bell (or whatever it’s called now) has the bay in RF. Houston has the hill in center. Imagine if the RCA Dome’s field was only 95 yards; that’s the equivalent of Death Valley or the Green Monster.
4. One on One. Basically the speech DeNiro makes in The Untouchables. Baseball is a team game: 25 men. But each of them takes one turn – by themself – to help the whole team. Then the next batter gets a chance. Because of the batting order, a team can’t simply send its best hitter up every at-bat. You can’t just give the ball to Jordan or Shaq (Pujols or Ortiz) every time. A team’s best hitter will get 4-5 chances a game to help his team. That’s it. You need a complete team to win.
5. Substitutions. Once a player is removed, he’s done. You can’t just sub in the best defenders when you have a lead. You can’t take out Santana for an inning because he’s tired, then re-insert him. Could you imagine the way baseball would be played if there were no substitution restrictions? It would be bedlam. Players don’t get any breaks (outside of the DH) during the game. Even late inning defensive replacements are a gamble if the trailing team comes back. And substitutions play an ever bigger role in the NL.
6. No Clock. No running out the clock. It doesn’t matter what inning and what score it is, you still need 27 outs to complete the game. There’s no easy way to ‘seal’ a win. You still have to face every batter, and record every out.
7. History. When Japanese kamikaze pilots flew their planes into American ships, they would often yell ‘Fuck Babe Ruth!’ No other American sport has the history baseball does. Some of the most iconic figures in our culture are Ruth, Gehrig, Dimaggio, Mantle, Ripken, McGwire, Bonds, Aaron, Clemens, Jeter. It’s goes all the way back to the 1830′s. The ‘Junior Circuit’ (AL) had been going strong for over 45 years before the NBA ever started. The Yankees had already won 20 World Series before the first Super Bowl was ever played. I just love that feeling of history when I watch a game.
8. Summer. What better sport to exemplify the feeling of summer than baseball. The only summer sport we have. Warm weather, kids are out of school; remember the day games with your dad, drinking a soda, eating a hot dog? No other sport lets you enjoy the weather. Hockey and basketball are indoors. And the football season lasts from September to February, nuff said.
9. Connection. This ain’t football where the most ardent fans get to see a maximum of just 24 games (including the pre and post-season). Baseball is 3 hours a day, 6 days a week for 6 months. You get a minimum of 162 games. That’s double basketball and hockey, and 10 times that of football. Not only do you get to see your ‘guys’ 162 times a season, but you actually feel close to them. They’re not wearing masks to cover their faces (football, hockey), so you see (and often share) their reactions and emotions. You don’t get that feeling of ‘closeness’ from other sports. And then when you add the fact that baseball plays 162 games, it’s easy to understand where the connection comes from. When the season is over, it’s like you not seeing your family for 5 months.
10. Home-field Advantage. Having the home team hit in the bottom of each inning assures that every team, every season (even Kansas City) will have its share of thrilling, bottom of the whatever, walk-off wins. It’s nothing like football where you squib kick it or have the QB kneel down, or in basketball where you dribble out the clock or foul the opponent 10 times.
Your thoughts?
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