"Hey Batter Batter, Sah WING Batter" Baseball 2012

Congratulations on your foul ball Mr Peff. My highlight is a grand slam home run Ben Ogilvie hit on July 4, 1983  to the right field stands at Cleveland Municipal Stadium that rolled right to me. I t was one of my best moments at a ball game.

Here you go, Mr. Chips:
 
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE198307040.shtml
 
Imagine how big the sports sections would be if the newspapers printed box scores like that every day!

buffetbuster


I have a bit of a dilemma this year.  My second favorite team has long been the Detroit Tigers.  But, over the off season, they signed Prince Fielder, by far my most disliked MLB player.  That is going to make rooting for the Tigers very difficult.  Maybe, I can root for everyone else and just hope to see him strikeout everytime.

It worked the other way for me.  I always liked the Tigers (Pie Diva is from Michigan) and adding Prince was the cherry on the sundae and the whipped cream on the pie, all in one.

So the Tigers now have Prince Fielder at 1B and "Face Fielder" at 3B?
 
I wonder if they're going to see a lot of bunts this year.

The Travelin Man
 

 I have a friend who tried to buy the Dodgers when the O'Malleys sold to Ruppert Murdoch in 1998. When I last spoke with him, he told me that the price that would likely be paid for the Dodgers this time around would likely be a bargain.

 
Heard on the news that the second highest bid was $1.4 B.  And even that would have set the record for the highest price ever paid for a U.S. sports franchise.  McCourt, who bought the franchise with borrowed money less than a decade ago "walks" with $800M + development rights to some of the Dodger real estate.  Talk about your Mega-Lottery winners - McCourt made them look impoverished.  And he only has to pay capital gains taxes!  Most likely, he'll do some sort of 1031 Exchange (that's what the "development rights" in the deal were for) and avoid paying any tax at all. 
 
I'll bet his ex-wife and her lawyers feel like fools for settling for just $130M. 

 
It doesn't seem like almost 40 years since the tragic loss of Roberto Clemente. I always remember him as playing much younger than his 38 years of age.
 
Clemente's batting helmet is in the Smithsonian.  Story here, short video essay here.

While my eldest son was going to Carnegie-Mellon he asked me what I wanted for my 40th. birthday.  I asked him to go down to the Post Gazette and see if he could get me a negative of The Great One standing on second base after his 3000th. (and last) hit.  He got me a 4x5 which I had cropped and archival printed poster sized.  It hangs over my desk as I write this.  The script-writer on the video was pluperfectly correct that Clemente was more art than science.  Before or since, I have never seen his like.  Yes, it is hard to believe that 12/31/1972 was nearly 40 years ago.  R.I.P., Don Roberto.  And thanks for the many memories. 

ScreamingChicken


Here you go, Mr. Chips:

http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CLE/CLE198307040.shtml

Imagine how big the sports sections would be if the newspapers printed box scores like that every day!

         Thank you , Brad. A wonderful gift. I had forgotten many of the details.

It suddenly occurs to me that there may still be some baseball fans who are not aware of the site whereby Mr. Chips got his boxscore:  http://www.baseball-reference.com/ .  It's amazing for those of us who thought they'd died and gone to Heaven when The Baseball Encyclopedia and Bill James' works were first published.
 
I had just turned 10 when I was taken to my first MLB game.  My lasting memory (aside from first sensing the awesome sights and smells of Forbes Field) of it was that the game was won by the Bucs on a titanic "walk-off" home run that just missed hitting the light standard above the 406' mark by their rookie first baseman, Dick Stuart.  I can still see that ball disappearing into the night surrounding Schenley Park.  Here is the boxscore:  http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/PIT/PIT195809100.shtml

<<adding Prince was the cherry on the sundae and the whipped cream on the pie, all in one.
Looking at the size of him (he just got up to the plate in the game vs. the Mets on local SNY cable here in NJ) that's an apt analogy. Is that what he's been eating all winter? 

As he's a vegetarian I suppose that's quite possible!

Even though the "roly-poly" look isn't exactly prototypical athletic it seems to work every now & then in baseball:  Babe Ruth, Tony Gwinn, Kirby Puckett, and  ... Prince Fielder. 
 
That said, 30/100/.300 first basemen are fairly typical commodities so I believe that both the Angels and Tigers grossly overpaid for their "new toys".
 
One of the most one-sided trades the Rangers ever made was unloading Texiera on the Braves for Neftali Feliz, Elvis Andrus, Matt Harrison, and Jerrod Saltalamacchia (later traded to Boston for prospects). 
 
Does anyone think that the Yankees are happy paying "Tex" $22.5MM/year through 2016 to be an "above-average" first baseman? 
 
After the "glow" has worn off in three years who here thinks the Angels & Tigers will be "happy" with those contracts?  WTFWIT!!! will be more like it.

Jim,
 
I wouldn't put Pujols and (exhale, inhale) Fielder in the same breath.  As much as I like Prince, he never showed the ability to carry a team the way (breathe slowly now) Albert has.
 
Jim

JRPfeff


Jim,

I wouldn't put Pujols and (exhale, inhale) Fielder in the same breath.  As much as I like Prince, he never showed the ability to carry a team the way (breathe slowly now) Albert has.

Jim

As a baseball fan and student of baseball history I can assert that without a single doubt Pujols is the greatest player of the past decade; indeed, Prince Fielder ought not be mentioned in the same breath.  He could quit now, at age 32, with enshrinement in Cooperstown assured.
 
As a businessman and economist, though, I must ask you to please realize the same could have been said about Junior and A-Rod at age 32.  As to who is the "greatest player" among those three - that would be a DiMaggio/ Williams/ Musial or Mays/ Mantle/ Aaron - type discussion we used to have when I was a kid.  There really is no definitive answer to such quandries. 
 
The $230,000,000.00+ question is: what ages 32 - 41 production might rationally be expected from the estimable Sr. Pujols before he begins his additional decade of "personal services" @$10M/yr. at age 42? 
 
Looking at A-Rod's and Junior's age 32+ production I am not sanguine about the Angels "getting their money's worth".
 
I say:  put Pujols' agent in the HOF right now! 
 

Pujols contract is at least as much about him wearing an Angels uniform when he passes Bonds for the most home runs ever hit - and restores such a hallowed record to someone who appears to have played the game clean - as it is anything to do with any kind of offensive production in the 10th year of his contract. The Angels (more specifically, Arte Moreno) is betting that Pujols IS going to break that record - and for the rest of near-term history, will be shown on TV or at his Hall of Fame induction in an Angels uniform. Moreno is buying ad time on ESPN in the form of Albert Pujols.
 
The contract for Fielder was just insane - and I like the guy. The Tigers have to hope that they haven't just purchased Mo Vaughn.

Just for fun re: Pujols being signed through age 41 -
 
Age of player during their final 100 RBI season
 
30:  Ken Griffey, Jr.
32:  Ted Williams, Mickey Mantle (Pujols is now entering his age 32 season) 
33:  Jimmie Foxx, Frank Robinson
34:  Sammy Sosa
35:  Lou Gehrig, Willie Mays, Harmon Killebrew, Joe Dimaggio, Hank Greenberg, Mark McGwire
36:  Stan Musial, Manny Ramirez
37:  Henry Aaron, Mike Schmidt
38:  Babe Ruth, Rafael Palmeiro
39:  Barry Bonds
 
Of course Bonds, Sosa, McGwire, and Palmeiro had a "little help". 
 
In fact, if I had to bet which will produce the most RBI from 2012 - retirement, I'd have to take Fielder as he is four prime years younger than Pujols. 

Tonight I'm going to watch the Cards and the Marlins on tv. Miami's new ballpark looks like something from the future. No retro look there. If I ever get to another Major league game it will probably be to a Marlins game as it's 2 1/2 hours away. Plus I would really like to see that stadium.

Good response MetroplexJim.

The Travelin Man


Pujols contract is at least as much about him wearing an Angels uniform when he passes Bonds for the most home runs ever hit - and restores such a hallowed record to someone who appears to have played the game clean - as it is anything to do with any kind of offensive production in the 10th year of his contract. The Angels (more specifically, Arte Moreno) is betting that Pujols IS going to break that record - and for the rest of near-term history, will be shown on TV or at his Hall of Fame induction in an Angels uniform. Moreno is buying ad time on ESPN in the form of Albert Pujols.

The contract for Fielder was just insane - and I like the guy. The Tigers have to hope that they haven't just purchased Mo Vaughn.

If Arte Moreno (or anyone else) thinks Pujols will, upon his retirement, be holding the record for career HR I have a bridge that crosses the East River for sale.
 
Pujols, four seasons younger than A-Rod, is 184 HR behind him; Albert would have to average 46 HR/season in his age 32, 33, 34, & 35 seasons just to be in the position that A-Rod is presently.  The only person in baseball history to have, at those ages, done that is George Herman Ruth who hit 209 in what was the best four year stretch in his career.  Mays totalled 174 at those ages; Bonds 160; Aaron 158, A-Rod 111.
 
BTW:  all this yammering about "the all time HR champ" is a load of crap at least as big as Pete Rose with his lifetime .303 average being the 'all time hit leader' "over" Cobb (.366).  In breaking Cobb's record Rose hit .264 and .218 in his last two seasons.  Cobb "bowed out" with his pride and professionalism intact hitting .323 in his final season. 
 
Ruth slugged .690 for his career and homered in 7% of his at bats.  Bonds, Aaron, Mays, Junior, A-Rod, and Pujols aren't even close.  Besides, Ruth began his career as a full-time hitter at age 25; all the others started at ages 19 - 21.  So, KMA and close the book.  Ruth was and most likely always will be BY FAR the greatest HR hitter of all time.

Looks like the 2012 version of the New Era "feud" will feature Nick Offerman and Craig Robinson:
 
http://www.funnyordie.com/videos/fdcae34e76/chicago-vs-chicago-round-1
 

MetroplexJim


Ruth was and most likely always will be BY FAR the greatest HR hitter of all time.

One of the surprising stats about Ruth is that of his 705 regular season HRs as a non-pitcher, he hit 360 on the road in 1167 games and 'only' 345 at home in 1170 games.  Even though the vast majority of his home games were played in Yankee Stadium there's not the huge home-away discrepancy that might be expected.

And Ruth's last homer, #714 for the Boston Braves, was the first ever hit clean over the roof of Forbes Field's double-decked right field stands.

My father took my grandfather (who was a HUGE Pirates fan) to the last game of the 1960 World Series so they both got to see Bill Mazeroski's famous homerun.  My parents often took me to Three Rivers Stadium where I watched Roberto Clemente play.  Even though the Pirates now suck, I would like to go to PNC Park to see one game. 

lleechef


My father took my grandfather (who was a HUGE Pirates fan) to the last game of the 1960 World Series so they both got to see Bill Mazeroski's famous homerun.  My parents often took me to Three Rivers Stadium where I watched Roberto Clemente play.  Even though the Pirates now suck, I would like to go to PNC Park to see one game. 

Even though the team sucks, you can eat pretty good:
Food & Concessions
Come hungry! PNC Park offers a wide variety of local favorites alongside more traditional ballpark fare. Yes, you can still find peanuts, hotdogs & Cracker Jacks. But you can also enjoy pierogies, kielbasa and local pizza from Vincent's in Greentree. At Manny's barbeque, you'll often find former Pirates catcher Manny Sanguillen signing autographs while you wait in line for one of the barbeque specials. At Quaker Steak & Lube -- a restaurant with roots here in Western PA -- you'll find great wings in a variety of sauces (dare you to try the ATOMIC wings). There are also good fish sandwiches at Benkovitz Seafood and greek food at Pop-A-Dukes Gyros. If you're hungry, the best, however, is the Pittsburgh famous Primanti Brothers sandwich which piles huge servings of meat, cheese, cole slaw and french fries all between two buns. 

As most of my recent visits to Pittsburgh have been in the off-season, I have seen but have never yet been to a game in PNC Park.  Regardless of the team's fortunes going to a game there is on my list as PNC Park is usually ranked just below Fenway & Wrigley and is said to be "the best of the new parks".
 
Two decades ago (can it be that long?) when I first walked into Camden Yards I almost wept in awe: the warehouse, Eutaw St., the sunken field so the structure doesn't dwarf the neighborhood... OMG, was beautiful and still is. 
 
And PNC is said to be "bettter".  WOW!  I can't wait.
 
Mark Cuban:  please buy your hometown Pirates!
 
 

MetroplexJim

Mark Cuban:  please buy your hometown Pirates!

While Cuban's money would help speed things up, the current major stockholder, Robert Nutting is doing some good things to rebuild the infrastructure of a minor league system to support the development of the major league franchise. The best thing Cuban could do is buyout Kevin McClatchy's interest in the team. He's the guy who singlehandedly destroyed one of the greatest franchises in baseballc history.
If you look at all the successful teams in MLB, they all have a strong foundation of minor league developmental teams. Even our DBacks have the beginnings of a good minor league system. Just look where they are today. Many of tomorrows starting lineup came from the farm system.
An influx of Cuban's money into the business plan of Nutting might get the Bucco's back into the thick of it!
While everyone calls the Cubs "The Lovable Losers", The Buc's have 19 consecutive losing seasons to date, the longest in North American professional sports (Not just Baseball) history!

OK, OK! We'll go to PNC Park. How 'bout when the Giants are in town to play the Pirates?

Ah.......Fenway.  Having lived in Boston for 14 years I was fortunate to go to many, many games at Fenway. (The Sysco sales guys always had tickets to give out to their favorite chefs.)  The other day MSN ranked the best ballparks in America, #1 was Fenway and PNC ranked #4. 

The Giants will play in PNC Park July 6,7,8.

Call for tickets.