Three Hall of Famers on today's Birthday Team, but it's still not a particularly good collection of talent. That's a brutal defensive left side.

C: Darrin Fletcher
1B: Bob Skinner
2B: Charlie Letchas
3B: Eric Munson
SS: Wil Cordero
LF/Manager: Fred Clarke
CF: Armando Marsans
RF: Dave Winfield

SP: Dennis Eckersley
SP: Johnny Broaca
SP: Jack Lamabe
SP: Bob Bowman
SP: Roger Bailey
RP: Steve Foucault

Umpire: Jim Joyce
NPB Legend: Alex Ramirez
Great Nickname: Dim Dom Dallessandro

I should also mention that the wiped-out game was Cotter's last "game" in the major leagues. As a result of the replay he caused, Cotter's MLB finale is now listed as September 26, 1912.

Scott Sanders is only other player I know of whose final big league appearance was wiped out. He pitched for the Indians on May 18, 2000 and got bombed by the Tigers, but the game was rained out and he was released almost immediately afterwards. That was his only MLB game in 2000, so the stats show that his career ended in 1999.

I'm sure there are other cases of this. These are the only two I know, though.

Baseball historical item at THT notes that today is a half-century since one of the worst pennant-blowing losses of all-time. It isn't just that the Dodgers lost, it's how they lost. Yeesh.

For no rational reason whatsoever, Dennis Eckersley was my favorite starting pitcher on the 84 Cubs. Yeah, I know Sutcliffe was better, but for whatever reason, Eckersley was "my guy."

I can't justify it, but after that I always rooted for the guy.

Up at THT: Putting the wait for a new Triple Crown into perspective.

Scott Sanders is only other player I know of whose final big league appearance was wiped out. He pitched for the Indians on May 18, 2000 and got bombed by the Tigers, but the game was rained out and he was released almost immediately afterwards. That was his only MLB game in 2000, so the stats show that his career ended in 1999.

I don't know how it all works at MLB but that seems like the kind of thing that could really mess up a guy's pension.

Why did Roger Bailey's career end so abruptly? He had a 121 ERA+ in 191 innings in his last season. Granted the K/BB ratio of 162/161 didn't harbinge** a great future but geez.

** I can invent a new form for a word, can't I?

I assume that when they played the replay, Cotter wasn't... welcome back.

YEAHHHHHHHHHHHH

I'd say DA ripped that 4 hour hanging meatball out of the park

Because I like raining on parades, "harbinger" is also the transitive verb form.

Game of the day (yesterday): Yankees 4, Red Sox 3 (12). Boston scored twice in the first against David Phelps, thanks to a Jacoby Ellsbury single, a Dustin Pedroia RBI double, and a pair of productive outs, the second a sac fly by Cody Ross. Jon Lester allowed two hits in the first inning, but escaped when Mark Teixeira hit into a double play. Phelps worked around a two-out hit in the second, while Lester retired the first two Yankees he faced, then allowed an infield hit to Curtis Granderson, who took second when Pedro Ciriaco made an error on the play. Granderson then stole third, and was singled home by the Yankee DH: Eduardo Nunez.

I'm going to pause for a moment to reflect on the fact that, in the second-to-last game of a division race that they led by one game, the New York flippin' Yankees used a player with a career batting line of .272/.318/.384 at DH.

OK, I'm done now. Phelps hit a batter in the third, but didn't allow anything else, while Lester allowed a double to Nick Swisher and a single to Alex Rodriguez before Teixeira hit into his second double play of the game to end the inning. Both teams put a runner on first in the fourth, but neither advanced him. Phelps was perfect in the fifth, while Lester allowed a bunt hit to Ichiro and walked Swisher, but eluded any lasting damage. After starting the sixth with a walk and a strikeout, Phelps was pulled for Boone Logan, who ended the inning quickly. Rich Hill (wow, pitching his 25th game of the year?) allowed a single to Cano and a two-out double to Nunez, but Ichiro lined out to leave both runners in scoring position.

Ciriaco singled and stole second against Joba Chamberlain in the seventh, and Russell Martin singled against Craig Breslow in the eighth; neither of them scored. Facing Rafael Soriano in the top of the ninth, James Loney led off with a home run (and scored), extending the Boston lead to 2-1. Andrew Bailey came on for the save situation; Granderson greeted him with a single, and the Yankees then replaced Nunez with pinch hitter Raul Ibanez.

Ibanez homered. Granderson scored. The game was tied.

Of course, there were still no outs in the inning. After Ichiro grounded out, Derek Jeter doubled, Swisher was intentionally walked, and Rodriguez was passed unintentionally, loading the bases. Mark Melancon replaced Bailey and got Teixeira to fly out and Cano to ground out, sending the game to extras. Soriano worked around a walk in the tenth, while Melancon didn't allow a baserunner in the bottom of the inning. Derek Lowe came on for the eleventh, and Loney started the inning with a single. Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit into a force, then took second on a wild pitch; a strikeout, an intentional walk, and a forceout ended the inning. Vicente Padilla allowed a two-out hit to Swisher, but nothing further, extending the game yet further.

Lowe allowed an infield hit to Pedroia, but erased him on a double play. In the bottom of the twelfth, Teixeira grounded out and Cano fanned. Andrew Miller then walked both Francisco Cervelli and Granderson, putting the winning run in scoring position, and Ibanez scored said run with a single to left.

It's a terrific game between the Red Sox and Yankees with playoff implications. What more could you want?

In case you do want more, here's more: Mark Teixeira had one of the worst hitting performances you'll probably ever see from a player whose team won the game. The list:

First inning, down 2-0, runners on the corners, one out: Inning-ending double play.
Third inning, down 2-1, runners on the corners, one out: Inning-ending double play.
Fifth inning, down 2-1, runners on first and second, two out: Groundout.
Eighth inning, down 2-1, leading off: Foulout.
Ninth inning, tied 3-3, bases loaded, one out: Non run-scoring flyout.
Twelfth inning, tied 3-3, leading off: Groundout.

Tex came up with the tying or go-ahead run on base four times, and led off the inning representing the tying or winning run twice, and made eight outs in six plate appearances. In total, that's -.618 WPA. And the Yankees still won, thanks to their DH combo of Nunez and Ibanez.

alright, joker, you had your fun. Which sounds better "I harbinger, you harbinger, he, she or it harginers, etc." or "I harbinge, you harbinge, he, she or it harbinges, etc."

Time to take advantage of English being a living language and change the verb form to "Harbinge".

The comment function doesn't seem to be working for the Valentine thread. Awfully cruel to deny BBTF a last opportunity to make fun of Bobby V.

my condolences to pat neshek and his wife for the loss of their infant son.

Oh, dear. That's terrible news.

Why did Roger Bailey's career end so abruptly?

Bailey injured his back in a car accident. He bounced around in the minors for a couple of years, trying to make a comeback.