yeah, all 10 runs in one inning, nine before getting an out ... LOL
guess I'll stay up for bonds
it does seem MLB needed a boost, and they may have overlooked the steroid stuff ... thinking of when sosa, mcgwire, bonds were all blasting past maris and the babe
... not sure about "juiced" baseballs or overlooking mechanical devices
A lot of folks use the padding and plates... I'm not gonna go too crazy about what some illustrator says is his theory... has he had the thing broken down and analyzed by an engineer? ...it's the 'roids and his natural ability...
Yeah well---good for him I guess, its an individual achievement in a team sport.
Honestly im much more impressed with Tom Glavine getting his 300th win-- especially in this day and age.
5 man rotations, 100 pitch-pitch counts, relief specialists, all work against piling up 20 win seasons--plus WINS are accomplishments that actually matter.
Its likely that we could see Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, Gary Sheffield and maybe even Carlos Delgado all pass 500HR's relatively soon. What used to be rare and special is now commonplace--but It may be a very very long time before anyone else gets to 300 Wins again. IMO Glavine and his accomplishment has been something that has been overlooked and passed by too quickly with all the Bonds hysteria going on.
Yes Bonds is historic to watch-but last I checked the Giants were in last place.
Yeah well---good for him I guess, its an individual achievement in a team sport.
Honestly im much more impressed with Tom Glavine getting his 300th win-- especially in this day and age.
5 man rotations, 100 pitch-pitch counts, relief specialists, all work against piling up 20 win seasons--plus WINS are accomplishments that actually matter.
Its likely that we could see Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, Gary Sheffield and maybe even Carlos Delgado all pass 500HR's relatively soon. What used to be rare and special is now commonplace--but It may be a very very long time before anyone else gets to 300 Wins again. IMO Glavine and his accomplishment has been something that has been overlooked and passed by too quickly with all the Bonds hysteria going on.
Yes Bonds is historic to watch-but last I checked the Giants were in last place.
Whats the point in that?
That's easy... "chicks dig the long ball!"
Of course, so do guys.
I do agree on your point regarding Glavine. It's hard to believe he's been pitching for 20 years... as well as his buddy Maddux. No doubt Glavine had his ticket to Cooperstown validated Sunday.
I like how Maddux has done it... mainly because Maddux can't even buy a win against the Dbacks... the ONLY team that gives (or has given) him such trouble.
And let's not forget Randy Johnson. One of only two possible reasons he hasn't retired yet is that he feels the need to get his 300 wins. I personally think he's done, but heck, let him try to do it... (oh, the other reason... to squirrel away even more acorns than he already has... the guy's got more money than God (but not as much as Bill Gates I suppose)).
yea-- chicks dig the long ball--I do too, Ive seen my share of monster shots, but Id just as soon see the tying run thrown out at the plate, a reliever come in and induce a clutch douple play, a well executed hit and run, a great catch, or a pitcher who really works a great game
HR's are a part of the game, but just a part, I dont see them as a be all end all. Mays in his day was as exciting in the field and on the basepaths as any of his HR's and was a complete player.
Jeter is a great player but he will be remembered because he won championships as part of a team effort moreso than for his individual achievements. Players like that imho deserve to be honored and recognized more than the individual numbers that really dont necessarily do much but provide personal glory.
Yea ARod will probably have 800HR's when he is done. Im not slighting it. It is very impressive.
How many teams will he have lead to the World Series Title?
Didnt Seattle and Texas actually improve after he left?
Some very talented and highly favoured Yankee teams havent won anything while he has been there either...
Individual achievements are OK, but they should be subjugated to the good of the team.
Give me a Bill Russell over a Wilt Chamberlain anyday.
Yea Chamberlain scored 100 in a game, averaged 50/game and got all the accolades, meanwhile Russell won 11 championships. He had a greater game than Chamberlain because he knew the secret to make his team click.
Unfortunately there is not yet a statistic for that
To me the reverable number, and the one that I still think of is 714,
When Ruth surpassed the existing record in 1921 the record for career HR's was 138, which total he eventually more than quintupled.
Which in any sport is incomprehensibly staggering.
HE is the one who completely changed and almost singlehandedly saved the game,
Players have been chasing him for 70 years, some get close and two have now surpassed him by a few, but nobody has come close to impacting or changing the nature of the game like he did. Nobody has dominated like he has and until someone someday comes along and hits 3500 nobody will
I agree with you on the Glavine deal... imagine that rotation for "your" team: Glavine, Maddux and Smoltz.
...and they say the Atlanta fans don't really appreciate all of the good baseball they've been seeing all of these years ...we'd give anything for just a taste of what they have.
To me the reverable number, and the one that I still think of is 714,
When Ruth surpassed the existing record in 1921 the record for career HR's was 138, which total he eventually more than quintupled.
Which in any sport is incomprehensibly staggering.
HE is the one who completely changed and almost singlehandedly saved the game,
Players have been chasing him for 70 years, some get close and two have now surpassed him by a few, but nobody has come close to impacting or changing the nature of the game like he did. Nobody has dominated like he has and until someone someday comes along and hits 3500 nobody will
And leave us not forget that the Babe was a superb pitcher for the first several years of his career. Who knows how many home runs were not hit because he was sitting games out between starts.
The image that many have of Babe Ruth is the older fat model, big belly and skinny legs. In his prime he was not bloated, though he always struggled with weight. Eating 15 hot dogs at a time was not unusual for him. That's as close to steroids as he ever got.
Im still sort of baffled why the Sox traded for Gagne, they already had the best bullpen in baseball and now the whole order is screwed up. The bullpen which was once great is now back to 'tenuous' to shixxy'
Hideki Okajima who had been the setup guy before Gagne got here had an 0.95 ERA-and was a candidate for Rookie Of The Year-why,why,why on earth does that need to be replaced?
Gagne gave up 4 runs in the eighth last night raising his RedSox ERA to 16.40, after the Sox had broken open a pitchers duel by scoring 5 in the top of the inning to go ahead 5-1.
What looked like a nice come from behind win, fell back into the loss column when he fell apart and looked very bad doing it. His pitches have no movement at all.
They looked anything but championship caliber last night.
I hope that Kason Gabbard is doing better for the Rangers--him I liked.
Maybe Gagne will come around and get used to being a setup guy, if not when he walks this winter at least he'll be good for 2 first round draft picks.
One must remember that Gagne hasn't been Gagne for a few years now. His comeback with Texas was coming along fine, but I don't think there was enough time to really evaluate him before they traded him to the Sox.
What was once a sure thing is now a question mark. I can't imagine Gagne being comfortable as a set up man after the heights he reached with the Dodgers.
I thought it a bad move on Boston's part, and so far it's worse than I imagined.
In the meantime-hokey smokes, Bullwinkle, the Yankees are back in it !!!!
Baseball is a looooooong season. But I wouldn't want it any other way.
pffft--do you know how many world series the Red Sox would have been in if the season ended in August?
more than I can count....
They're in first but honestly I dont give them a chance, at least right now, the way theyve been playing to move past the first round if they even make it in...
They had the huge lead by the end of May and have been playing at roughly .500 for the last 2 and a half months. Its a shame this team is extremely talented but whatever that mysterious thing is that makes a team jell, it up and left a few months ago.
Happy Birthday! If I had my way Id wrap up JD Drew his 240 average and 6 HR's for you and send him back your way.
I still think the Sox are the team to beat. Just as the Yankees should have been dead and gone, based on the first half, you can never discount the Red Sox, and they ARE still in first by 5 games.
Yea first--only by what they did in May though, if you had been watching the mediocre play for the last two months and some of the downright stupid mental errors that have been happening with regularity I doubt that you would be favoring them now...
If I were putting my money down today it would be on the Angels, that could change of course, but unless this team sparks up a notch...and thats a big notch, first place or no, they arent going very far
I still think the Sox are the team to beat. Just as the Yankees should have been dead and gone, based on the first half, you can never discount the Red Sox, and they ARE still in first by 5 games.
The Dbacks continue to play well. And JD's little brother is in the middle of it. But if the Dbacks had to count on Stephen Drew to be the big bat in the line up, they'd be in a world of hurt. The young Drew plays a mean SS and occasionally gets some key hits. But his avg. still is less than .250.
Also, the young Mr. Drew, personality wise, is just as low-key as JD. He won't provide team leadership anytime soon. But, again, he plays SS very well.
As you guys may have heard by now, the Dbacks appear to be overachieving these days.
I'd have to attribute it mainly to smart moves (last winter) to strengthen the bullpen as well as some key coaching that's doing a great job getting these kids to play very well.
Bob Melvin's pretty low key, but his bench coach is Kirk Gibson. That, by itself, almost says it all.
Melvin's learned from mistakes regarding in game pitching moves and his pitching coach (Brian Price) has obviously done a fine job. Gibson provides intensity and his player experience commands respect without him having to flaunt it. The team KNOWS he knows how to win. They listen and he holds them accountable.
During last night's game against the Nationals, the play by play and color guys (Daron Sutton and Joe Garagiola Sr.) were talking about how Gibson keeps a stop watch in his hands at all times during the game. And how Gibby times just about everything. He'll get on players if they're not playing all out. Of course, Eric Byrnes is a tremendous example of someone who plays all out... and leaves it all on the field every night.
And this new "phenom" Justin Upton (age 19) seems to be ready to live up to the hype that has preceeded him. He's played less than 10 major league games and teams are already (Pirates AND Nationals) intentionally walking him to get at the next guy (usually Mark Reynolds, another rookie, who hits well but strikes out a lot). In Upton's first home game with the Dbacks, he came up only a single shy of hitting for the cycle.
However, because the Dbacks are so young overall, the sports pundits seem to think they'll not really contend this year... but to me, it looks like they have an excellent chance of making the playoffs. But getting past the Mets will be pretty tough.
------------
On another baseball topic... I just read the following article in the NY Times about Bonds and Aaron.
By MIKE TOLLINHenry Louis Aaron is a man of few words. But on the edge of his wooded tennis court in suburban Atlanta, he gave me two that would raise some eyebrows.
“No asterisk,” said Aaron, who reigned as baseball’s home run king for 33 years and 121 days.
“I’m not interested in the controversy. Let’s just congratulate Barry and give him his due.”
For months, people wondered how Aaron was really feeling about Barry Bonds’s relentless assault on No. 755.
“Fine, just fine,” he said. “I’m happy for him.”
He was clearly leaving something out, but it was not ambivalence about whether the record was tainted, nor was it sadness at losing his claim to fame. (continued)
--------
The writer is a filmmaker and a co-founder of Aaron's Chasing the Dream Foundation
He made a documentary about Aaron's chase to overtake the Babe. Besides the fact that Aaron is happy for Bonds, the article has some interesting and poignant insight on what it all meant back in the 1970s when Aaron was on the verge of taking the HR crown.
His principal concern was insuring that our focus would be more on civil rights and social history than on home runs and pennant chases. He seemed less interested in how much he would be paid for his troubles than in how much the film might raise to launch a dream of his, a foundation to offer scholarships and benefit inner-city children.
Ive honestly had enough of the Bonds story I hope that someday in someway he can do something similar thats beneficial to society as a whole...
Regarding the DBacks --I wish I got to see them more out my way, they sound exciting--maybe come October
but the real Arizona news I like is that the kids from Chandler are in the LLWS again..What the heck are they feeding those kids down there???
I saw the Massachusetts kids from Walpole who are going a few weeks ago in the tournament and they are an amazing team, it should be a fun next few weeks in Williamsport
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kimberly
I missed the LLWS. The boy had baseball practice 4-7. Playing in a USSSA tournament this coming weekend. The new season has just started. Can ya'll believe we are in September of the ML baseball s
mstar1
Dont scare me like that Bolsh--the way you posted I wasnt sure if it was a done deal--I had to go check....Im on the fence whether to go for Halliday or not---I'd love to have him but I'd hate to give
hiway29
I love those fan trades where players you don't care about, plus a 'prospect', are offered up for a major player. Yeah, the Jays will jump at that deal.
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Rocky
ESPN2 will be broadcasting the Bonds game tonight, (coverage) starting at 10pm eastern (Giants games... first pitch... usually at :15 after the hour)
And the Cards are whippin up on the Padres, 10-3 last I checked... of course, I'm rooting for the Cards in that game.
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rhino
yeah, all 10 runs in one inning, nine before getting an out ... LOL
guess I'll stay up for bonds
it does seem MLB needed a boost, and they may have overlooked the steroid stuff ... thinking of when sosa, mcgwire, bonds were all blasting past maris and the babe
... not sure about "juiced" baseballs or overlooking mechanical devices
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Tom Strange
A lot of folks use the padding and plates... I'm not gonna go too crazy about what some illustrator says is his theory... has he had the thing broken down and analyzed by an engineer? ...it's the 'roids and his natural ability...
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mstar1
Yeah well---good for him I guess, its an individual achievement in a team sport.
Honestly im much more impressed with Tom Glavine getting his 300th win-- especially in this day and age.
5 man rotations, 100 pitch-pitch counts, relief specialists, all work against piling up 20 win seasons--plus WINS are accomplishments that actually matter.
Its likely that we could see Manny Ramirez, Jim Thome, Gary Sheffield and maybe even Carlos Delgado all pass 500HR's relatively soon. What used to be rare and special is now commonplace--but It may be a very very long time before anyone else gets to 300 Wins again. IMO Glavine and his accomplishment has been something that has been overlooked and passed by too quickly with all the Bonds hysteria going on.
Yes Bonds is historic to watch-but last I checked the Giants were in last place.
Whats the point in that?
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Rocky
That's easy... "chicks dig the long ball!"
Of course, so do guys.
I do agree on your point regarding Glavine. It's hard to believe he's been pitching for 20 years... as well as his buddy Maddux. No doubt Glavine had his ticket to Cooperstown validated Sunday.
I like how Maddux has done it... mainly because Maddux can't even buy a win against the Dbacks... the ONLY team that gives (or has given) him such trouble.
And let's not forget Randy Johnson. One of only two possible reasons he hasn't retired yet is that he feels the need to get his 300 wins. I personally think he's done, but heck, let him try to do it... (oh, the other reason... to squirrel away even more acorns than he already has... the guy's got more money than God (but not as much as Bill Gates I suppose)).
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mstar1
yea-- chicks dig the long ball--I do too, Ive seen my share of monster shots, but Id just as soon see the tying run thrown out at the plate, a reliever come in and induce a clutch douple play, a well executed hit and run, a great catch, or a pitcher who really works a great game
HR's are a part of the game, but just a part, I dont see them as a be all end all. Mays in his day was as exciting in the field and on the basepaths as any of his HR's and was a complete player.
Jeter is a great player but he will be remembered because he won championships as part of a team effort moreso than for his individual achievements. Players like that imho deserve to be honored and recognized more than the individual numbers that really dont necessarily do much but provide personal glory.
Yea ARod will probably have 800HR's when he is done. Im not slighting it. It is very impressive.
How many teams will he have lead to the World Series Title?
Didnt Seattle and Texas actually improve after he left?
Some very talented and highly favoured Yankee teams havent won anything while he has been there either...
Individual achievements are OK, but they should be subjugated to the good of the team.
Give me a Bill Russell over a Wilt Chamberlain anyday.
Yea Chamberlain scored 100 in a game, averaged 50/game and got all the accolades, meanwhile Russell won 11 championships. He had a greater game than Chamberlain because he knew the secret to make his team click.
Unfortunately there is not yet a statistic for that
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excathedra
great perspective, mstar !!!!
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mstar1
For Whatever Its Worth
To me the reverable number, and the one that I still think of is 714,
When Ruth surpassed the existing record in 1921 the record for career HR's was 138, which total he eventually more than quintupled.
Which in any sport is incomprehensibly staggering.
HE is the one who completely changed and almost singlehandedly saved the game,
Players have been chasing him for 70 years, some get close and two have now surpassed him by a few, but nobody has come close to impacting or changing the nature of the game like he did. Nobody has dominated like he has and until someone someday comes along and hits 3500 nobody will
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mstar1
Error ----threw it in the dugout off the pivot for the DP
(Double Post)
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Rocky
But the runner was left on base, so no harm done ... ;)
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Tom Strange
I agree with you on the Glavine deal... imagine that rotation for "your" team: Glavine, Maddux and Smoltz.
...and they say the Atlanta fans don't really appreciate all of the good baseball they've been seeing all of these years ...we'd give anything for just a taste of what they have.
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Rocky
Love him, hate him, or not be so sure, but Barry just hit number 756.
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mstar1
Has anyone mentioned the Giants LOST the game, cementing their hold on last place?
I havent heard it yet, I had to look it up
Id like to see the headline
GIANTS LOSE AGAIN
Loser Druggie hits yet another meaningless HR
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GeorgeStGeorge
My reaction is the same to his hitting 70 HRs a couple of years ago: Eh.
George
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excathedra
that was a truly worthwhile post. i had no idea
that should humble any player
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hiway29
And leave us not forget that the Babe was a superb pitcher for the first several years of his career. Who knows how many home runs were not hit because he was sitting games out between starts.
The image that many have of Babe Ruth is the older fat model, big belly and skinny legs. In his prime he was not bloated, though he always struggled with weight. Eating 15 hot dogs at a time was not unusual for him. That's as close to steroids as he ever got.
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excathedra
wow
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mstar1
Indeed
*********************
Im still sort of baffled why the Sox traded for Gagne, they already had the best bullpen in baseball and now the whole order is screwed up. The bullpen which was once great is now back to 'tenuous' to shixxy'
Hideki Okajima who had been the setup guy before Gagne got here had an 0.95 ERA-and was a candidate for Rookie Of The Year-why,why,why on earth does that need to be replaced?
Gagne gave up 4 runs in the eighth last night raising his RedSox ERA to 16.40, after the Sox had broken open a pitchers duel by scoring 5 in the top of the inning to go ahead 5-1.
What looked like a nice come from behind win, fell back into the loss column when he fell apart and looked very bad doing it. His pitches have no movement at all.
They looked anything but championship caliber last night.
I hope that Kason Gabbard is doing better for the Rangers--him I liked.
Maybe Gagne will come around and get used to being a setup guy, if not when he walks this winter at least he'll be good for 2 first round draft picks.
That game was maddening....
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hiway29
One must remember that Gagne hasn't been Gagne for a few years now. His comeback with Texas was coming along fine, but I don't think there was enough time to really evaluate him before they traded him to the Sox.
What was once a sure thing is now a question mark. I can't imagine Gagne being comfortable as a set up man after the heights he reached with the Dodgers.
I thought it a bad move on Boston's part, and so far it's worse than I imagined.
In the meantime-hokey smokes, Bullwinkle, the Yankees are back in it !!!!
Baseball is a looooooong season. But I wouldn't want it any other way.
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mstar1
pffft--do you know how many world series the Red Sox would have been in if the season ended in August?
more than I can count....
They're in first but honestly I dont give them a chance, at least right now, the way theyve been playing to move past the first round if they even make it in...
They had the huge lead by the end of May and have been playing at roughly .500 for the last 2 and a half months. Its a shame this team is extremely talented but whatever that mysterious thing is that makes a team jell, it up and left a few months ago.
Happy Birthday! If I had my way Id wrap up JD Drew his 240 average and 6 HR's for you and send him back your way.
Hokey Smokes is right
what the heck is that in my rear view mirror?
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hiway29
I hate to say "I told you so" about JD Drew.....
I still think the Sox are the team to beat. Just as the Yankees should have been dead and gone, based on the first half, you can never discount the Red Sox, and they ARE still in first by 5 games.
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mstar1
Yea first--only by what they did in May though, if you had been watching the mediocre play for the last two months and some of the downright stupid mental errors that have been happening with regularity I doubt that you would be favoring them now...
If I were putting my money down today it would be on the Angels, that could change of course, but unless this team sparks up a notch...and thats a big notch, first place or no, they arent going very far
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Rocky
The Dbacks continue to play well. And JD's little brother is in the middle of it. But if the Dbacks had to count on Stephen Drew to be the big bat in the line up, they'd be in a world of hurt. The young Drew plays a mean SS and occasionally gets some key hits. But his avg. still is less than .250.
Also, the young Mr. Drew, personality wise, is just as low-key as JD. He won't provide team leadership anytime soon. But, again, he plays SS very well.
As you guys may have heard by now, the Dbacks appear to be overachieving these days.
I'd have to attribute it mainly to smart moves (last winter) to strengthen the bullpen as well as some key coaching that's doing a great job getting these kids to play very well.
Bob Melvin's pretty low key, but his bench coach is Kirk Gibson. That, by itself, almost says it all.
Melvin's learned from mistakes regarding in game pitching moves and his pitching coach (Brian Price) has obviously done a fine job. Gibson provides intensity and his player experience commands respect without him having to flaunt it. The team KNOWS he knows how to win. They listen and he holds them accountable.
During last night's game against the Nationals, the play by play and color guys (Daron Sutton and Joe Garagiola Sr.) were talking about how Gibson keeps a stop watch in his hands at all times during the game. And how Gibby times just about everything. He'll get on players if they're not playing all out. Of course, Eric Byrnes is a tremendous example of someone who plays all out... and leaves it all on the field every night.
And this new "phenom" Justin Upton (age 19) seems to be ready to live up to the hype that has preceeded him. He's played less than 10 major league games and teams are already (Pirates AND Nationals) intentionally walking him to get at the next guy (usually Mark Reynolds, another rookie, who hits well but strikes out a lot). In Upton's first home game with the Dbacks, he came up only a single shy of hitting for the cycle.
However, because the Dbacks are so young overall, the sports pundits seem to think they'll not really contend this year... but to me, it looks like they have an excellent chance of making the playoffs. But getting past the Mets will be pretty tough.
------------
On another baseball topic... I just read the following article in the NY Times about Bonds and Aaron.
Bonds/Aaron story in the NYTimes
August 12, 2007An Appreciation
Bonds Chased a Record, but Aaron Chased Justice
By MIKE TOLLINHenry Louis Aaron is a man of few words. But on the edge of his wooded tennis court in suburban Atlanta, he gave me two that would raise some eyebrows.
“No asterisk,” said Aaron, who reigned as baseball’s home run king for 33 years and 121 days.
“I’m not interested in the controversy. Let’s just congratulate Barry and give him his due.”
For months, people wondered how Aaron was really feeling about Barry Bonds’s relentless assault on No. 755.
“Fine, just fine,” he said. “I’m happy for him.”
He was clearly leaving something out, but it was not ambivalence about whether the record was tainted, nor was it sadness at losing his claim to fame. (continued)
--------
The writer is a filmmaker and a co-founder of Aaron's Chasing the Dream Foundation
He made a documentary about Aaron's chase to overtake the Babe. Besides the fact that Aaron is happy for Bonds, the article has some interesting and poignant insight on what it all meant back in the 1970s when Aaron was on the verge of taking the HR crown.
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mstar1
Good article on Hammerin Hank
It says a lot about the man
Ive honestly had enough of the Bonds story I hope that someday in someway he can do something similar thats beneficial to society as a whole...
Regarding the DBacks --I wish I got to see them more out my way, they sound exciting--maybe come October
but the real Arizona news I like is that the kids from Chandler are in the LLWS again..What the heck are they feeding those kids down there???
I saw the Massachusetts kids from Walpole who are going a few weeks ago in the tournament and they are an amazing team, it should be a fun next few weeks in Williamsport
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