Game 3 Live Blog Scheduled to Coincide with Game 3

Because circumstances allow it for just this one time, I'm going to live-blog Game 3 of the World Series Saturday right here on this very website. I've done this once before, and it's kinda fun (for me, anyway. I don't know about you poor suckers who choose to read along instead of actually physically watching the game.).

So set your clocks, boot up your harddrives, and mute Tim McCarver. We're gonna have ourselves a jolly ol' time.

Chillin' like a Machiavellian

Another reason to despise the R. Sox: They fouled up my anniversary plans by forcing a game seven. Done on purpose, I can tell.
Westbrook vs. Matsuzaka. When these two met last week 'Zaka allowed four runs, Westbrook just two, and Cleveland won. Will there be Indians in the World Series, or will it be a Rox and Sox matchup? We'll find out (I will, at least) in a few hours.


The Yankees must make October headlines, even when they're out of World Series contention. I didn't really think that they'd fire Joe Torre, but Joey pulled the ol' switch-a-roo. Did anybody consider the fact that maybe he didn't want to come back? And now that he's made that much known, can anybody blame him? Bickering players, manic corporate management, finnicky media... I'm surprised Torre's lasted this long.

But the Yankees refusal to negotiate on a one-year contract seems to indicate that they didn't really want him back after all. The organization is going through changes (new ownership, new ventures, new stadium), and a new skipper may have been part of the plan. The fans love Torre, and an outright firing wouldn't sit well (which was George Steinbrenner's plan/knee-jerk reaction, and an offered contract is demonstrated proof that he's not really in charge any more). Scheme: Make Joe look like a bad guy for wanting to leave Yankee Nation... offer a crappy contract, DON'T BUDGE ON IT, and naturally he won't take. Intentions are all speculation, but subterfuge doesn't appear to be beyond those who treat their baseball teams like empires.

As far as replacements go, I think I'd like to see Mattingly at the helm. I'm worried about how he'd do, though, seeing as how he's got no management experience at all. But I suppose he's been in the dugout long enough to know what's what. And as mellow as he is, I would pay solid dollars to watch him explode in front of an umpire.
I was initially hopeful that LaRussa might head to New York, but it looks like he's probably going to stay in St. Louis, and that's fine with me too.

(Source and source, because citation is important.)

Days of our Steinbrenner

The media has been making a big thing of this recent "threat" by George Steinbrenner to axe Joe Torre if the Yankees failed to advance. I think this had been blown WAY out of preportion, and everybody is making it sound as if Torre is as good as dead.

Here's the thing -- George Steinbrenner isn't in a very good condition right now. Senility, alzheimers, lobotomy, whatever... he is unsound and not able to make the major Yankee decisions he's been known to make. For goodness sakes, he's rarely at Yankee Stadium anymore, and when he is he looks vacant and unawares up in that kingly box of his. The Yankee organization, much too valuable to be placed in such brittle hands, is now run by businessmen and is no longer subject to the knee-jerk whims of Steinbrenner. George is merely the symbol of Yankeedom and has no more power over the roster than the Queen.

And now there's this quote floating around that Steinbrenner is going to fire Torre if the Yankees don't advance. I don't know if George said what he said in a moment of clarity or while in a dementious haze, but regardless of whether or not he meant it he has no authority to act upon it.

But here's the funny thing: now that the media has latched on to this errant quote, now that they've repeated it in papers and television enough times to convince themselves it's fact, the Yankees organization might just dismiss Torre to save face. The Yankees have taken great care to retain the kingly image of Steinbrenner, and Torre may have to go just to prove that Steinbrenner still pulls some weight around.

A soap opera, for sure, but it's the New York Yankees. All you can do is shrug your shoulders and tune in next week.

Giving a Hoot

Cleveland, Boston

Colorado, Arizona

I don't have any allegiances to any of these teams. I do have an intense dislike for the Boston Red Sox organization (or "nation", or whatever), so from here on out instead of rooting for a team, I'll be rooting against the Sox. That's quite a negative way to participate in the playoffs, but I suppose it's better than just not caring.

What happens, though, is that I've got to suddenly and emphatically pull for the Indians even though I was just cursing their very existence during the Divisional Series. Fan-hood is such a strange thing.

As for the National League contenders, I'm just along for the ride. I think I might be more inclined to favor the Rockies, but if the Backs make a World Series appearance for the second time in their short existence I won't complain.

Ideally, given who's now remaining in the playoffs, I'd like to see a Colorado/Cleveland World Series. Both are due for a World Series appearance (this is only the second playoff appearance for the Rocks and the first time they've advanced to the NLCS, and the Indians haven't won a World Championship since 1949) and I'd be interested in seeing how Cleveland pitching responds to Coors Field.

Champion-wise, and I know this is extremely superficial, I'd rather team named for a mountain range win than the embarrassing Chief Wahoo. It's bad form to choose a victor based on mascots, but that's how uninvested I am.

Wait... the Rockies' mascot is that stupid purple dinosaur? DINGER?! Well then, there will be no winners this year.

NL, Oh-No

Playoffs are underway, and since I only came in 5th place in my fantasy league I don't think I can make World Series predictions with any authority. I'm just hoping for an entertaining post-season.
I'm excited about the American League games. New York and Boston always make things interesting, and it's fun to watch the outstanding young pitchers from the Indians and Angels. These National League games, though...

The entire National League has been pretty abysmal this season. The Cardinals took a mediocre championship team and, even though expectations were already low, still managed to disappoint. The Mets, chosen by many to be World Series champions, didn't even make the playoffs. None of the teams finished with over 90 wins. And I can't bear the thought of either the Cubs or Phillies playing (let alone winning) a World Series.

It was a rough year for the Cardinals, and I looked for positivity wherever I could find it. However it was always marred by something. I was still celebrating April baseball when Josh Hancock tragically died in a car accident. The Birds delivered the Phillies their 10,000th franchise loss in July, but Philadelphia is now in the playoffs and the Cards are not. The Ankiel story was a good one, at least until HGH caught up with him. Now I can't believe in anything good ever again.

And although I'm bummed that the Cardinals didn't make it to the post-season this year, I'm at least glad that their collapse (losing 14 of 16 in September to go from 1 game behind the Cubs to 9.5) was overshadowed by the Mets' freefall (dropping 12 of 17 at the end of the season to lose their division lead).

If I had to choose an NL team to root for right now it'd be the Colorado Rockies, and not just because they have a chance to stop Philly from advancing. They won 14 of their last 15 regular-season games to take the NL West by surprise. I kind of feel they deserve it.

Of course after that playoff-to-make-the-playoffs game between the Rocks and Padres, everything else seems sort of anti-climactic.

First Round Over-Achievers

I was perusing baseball draft picks of the past when I came across a note about John Elway. Elway was selected by the Royals in the 18th round of the 1979 draft and even played a season for Oneonta of the Yankees organization. So what other notable NFLers have been drafted by MLB teams? And more interestingly, which of them actually played minor league ball?

- Tom Brady (18th round) was drafted ahead of Aaron Miles (19th round) in the 1995 amateur baseball draft. The Expos selected Brady out of high school, but he opted instead to play football at Michigan.
- But Ricky Williams beat them both by being selected by the Phillies in the 8th round. He even played four years of low-level pro-ball, but of course he turned out to be a little bit better at football.
- Bronco wide receiver Javon Walker was drafted by the Marlins in the 12th round of the 1997 draft (way ahead of David Eckstein in the 19th round) , but had difficulty putting the bat on the ball in the three years he spent in the Marlins' organization.
- Dan Marino was drafted out of high school by the Royals in the 4th round of the 1979 draft (the same draft as Elway) but played college football at Pittsburgh instead.
- Archie Manning was drafted four times between 1967 and 1971 but never signed.
- Here's some interesting trivia: Bronco defensive back John Lynch threw the very first pitch for the Marlins' organization in 1992. He would play two seasons in the minors before focusing on football full time.

Although several athletes have played in both the NFL and Major Leagues, very few have been successful at both. I can only think of Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.


And for whatever it's worth, Tom Glavine was drafted in the 4th round by the L.A. Kings in the 1984 NHL draft, and longtime Angels/White Sox pitcher Kirk McCaskill was drafted in the 4th round by the Winnipeg Jets in the 1981 NHL draft.

Best New Rookie of the Year Artist

Sometimes I think the Rookie of the Year award is like the Grammy's Best New Artist award; occasionally the recipients will have successful careers, but most of the time they fade into obscurity. So for comparing and contrasting purposes here's a list of rookie winners and how they parallel each other.


2004's BNA winner, Evanescence, is currently struggling to retain fan loyalty and critics' approval.
2004's AL ROY, Bobby Crosby, is currently struggling with getting on base and strikeouts.

1998's BNA winner, Paula Cole, has just released a new album after eight years of studio inactivity.
1998's NL ROY, Kerry Wood, recently returned to the Cubs' bullpen after a full season of Major League inactivity.

1996's BNA winner, Hootie & the Blowfish, still periodically releases albums despite nobody really paying any attention.
1996's NL ROY, Todd Hollandsworth, still periodically makes big league appearances (though he's yet to be seen this season) despite nobody really paying any attention.

1992, Marc "Walking in Memphis" Cohn, one-hit wonder.
1992, Pat "NL ROY" Listach, one-season wonder.

1988, Jody Watley
1988, Walt Weiss (in the AL) and Chris Sabo (in the NL)
It was a slow year for everybody.

1984's BNA winner, Culture Club, was wildly successful, but drug use (including well-publicized heroin addictions by frontman Boy George) tore the band apart and hindered the members' musical ability.
1984's NL ROY winner, Doc Gooden, was wildly successful, but drug use (including well-publicized cocaine addictions by the Doc) hindered his pitching ability.

1981's BNA winner, Christopher Cross, had a hit song ("Ride Like the Wind") about going to Mexico.
1981's NL ROY winner, Fernando Valenzuela, was born in Mexico.

1975's BNA winner, Marvin Hamlisch, became the first person to win three Academy Awards in one night.
1975's AL ROY winner, Fred Lynn, became the first person to win the Rookie of the Year award and the Most Valuable Player award in the same season.

In 1967, despite the six nominees, there was no Best New Artist winner. This had never happened in the category before or since.
In 1967 the ROY recipients were Tom Seaver and Rod Carew, both Hall of Famers. This was the last time the two ROY awards went to eventual HOFs.

The 1966 BNA winner was Tom Jones.
The two 1966 ROY winners were Tommy Helms and Tommie Agee.
It was a great year for Toms.


On the other hand, sometimes there's absolutely no relationship whatsoever between the two awards.

1993, Arrested Development... what ever happened to them?
1993, Derek Jeter... 'nuff said.

The career of 1990 BNA winner Milli Vanilli crashed and burned in a fiery scandelous explosion.
The career of 1990 AL ROY winner Sandy Alomar just keeps on going and going.

On putting sharpies to good use

Shelley Duncan states the obvious.
Naturally I heard thousands of Fenway fans shouting "Yankees Suck" during last night's game, but somehow it's a no-no to write "Red Sox Suck" for a ten-year-old at the same game. Whatever.
But I find myself liking the Duncan brothers more and more. They're like the Yortuk and Georg Festrunk of baseball.

wooo.

Cardinals beat the Pirates 16 - 4.
Can this count as a double victory?
No use splurging all that offense for one measily win.

The Art of Ducking

Again, I take requests. Even morbid ones.

"Juan Encarcion (sp?) getting nailed in the eye. Who are some past baseball players who suffered from running their eye into a ball and how many were career ending injuries?"

Juan Encarnacion, while standing in the on-deck circle, was struck in the eye by a foul ball last Friday. The injury will end his season and potentially his career. This incident comes just a little over a month after a minor league coach was struck and killed by a foul ball. Helmets protect your head, but they don't protect your face.

In 1995 Kirby Puckett was struck in the face by a Dennis Martinez pitch. The blow broke his jaw and ended his season (the incident occurred in late September, and he only missed the final three games of the regular season). Some speculate that this injury led to the glaucoma that soon ended his career, but this hasn't been proven.

Twenty-two year-old Boston sensation Tony Conigliaro, who had led the league in home runs in only his second season and still holds the record for most home runs by a teenager, was hit in the cheekbone by Jack Hamilton in 1967. Tony C returned to baseball in 1969 and hit 20 home runs, then followed that up with a 36 home run season in 1970. But his eyesight grew worse and he soon had to retire from baseball. Due to being such a prolific hitter at so young an age, people often wonder how good he could have been had he not been struck in the face by a baseball.

Herb Score was an outstanding young pitcher for Cleveland who led the league in strikeouts his first two seasons. In his fifth start of the 1957 season he was struck in the face by a ball hit by Gil McDougald. Score had several broken bones in his face and missed the remainder of the season, but his eyesight was unaffected. Unfortunately after his 1958 return he adjusted his pitching motion, consequently making him a less effective pitcher. He only pitched one complete season afterwards and retired at the age of 29.

Cleveland shortstop Ray Chapman became the only Major Leaguer to have ever died as a result of a bean ball. Chapman was batting .303 when he was struck by a Carl Mays pitch on August 16, 1920. The Indians went on to win their first World Series that season and wore black arm bands in Chapman's memory. Though Carl Mays was an excellent pitcher, his reputation was forever tarnished by the incident (apparently he was also a bit of a jerk, which didn't help matters). Chapman's replacement at short, rookie Joe Sewell, went on to have a Hall of Fame career.

Don Zimmer has been hit in the head by pitches at least twice; once in the minors in 1953 in an incident that nearly killed him, and once again in 1956. The 1953 beaning left him unconscious for two weeks and he had to have screws put into his head. The 1956 beaning broke his cheekbone and ended his season.

In a famous incident Joe Medwick was beaned by Bob Bowman in 1940. Both had been teammates just six day before, and it's been disputed whether or not Bowman hit Medwick on purpose. Regardless, Medwick was knocked unconscious and missed a couple games with a concussion, though he was able to continue his Hall of Fame career.

There are a ton of other incidents. Boston pitcher Bryce Florie's was an ugly one in 2000, as was Dodger pitcher Kaz Ishii's in 2002. Although Ishii had to be taken off the field on a stretcher, he would come back to pitch for several more seasons. In fact he still pitches in Japan. Florie would only pitch in seven more big league games in 2001.

Billy Wagner has been hit by a comebacker, as has Andy Pettitte. Mike Piazza's taken one to the head, as has Sammy Sosa. Each were able to continue their careers with little ill effects. Baseball is a game of inches, but sometimes it's a millimeter's difference between a sore noggin and a career-ending injury.