For the first time in months, it appears Crane will end up owning the Astros. Major League Baseball officials seem to be reaching a comfort level that Crane has either learned from his past mistakes or was a victim of disgruntled or rogue employees in many of the cases involving allegations of sexism, racism or war profiteering.
I asked an MLB official this week, “Are you past the character issues with Crane?”
But Torre said he was more disturbed that a pool reporter asked Kulpa after the game if being from St. Louis had influenced the call.
“That question hinted of questioning somebody’s integrity and that was so far over the line,” Torre said. “I just want to say right now, these guys were so excited about being chosen for the World Series, and it’s all about showing how good they are. To have that question be asked, I thought was over the line.
“Everyone is out there trying to do the best job ...
While it is difficult to picture Betancourt as a $6 million player, Melvin did not sound like he was ready to send him packing. The shortstop market, assuming Jose Reyes and Jimmy Rollins are too expensive, certainly is unexciting.
“I thought Yuni Betancourt was a better player than what the critics said,” said Melvin.
Well, if you can stomach a .271 on-base percentage, 21 errors and a general lack of range in the field and a frustratingly high ...
Baseball Commissioner Allan H. “Bud” Selig announced Sunday that Griffey will be awarded the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award prior to Game 4 of the World Series on Sunday night in Arlington, Texas.
Griffey will become just the 12th recipient of the award, which was created in 1998 to recognize achievements and contributions of historical significance to the game.
“Gentlemen, let’s give Griffey the Commissioner’s Achievement Award!”
“Why?”
“Why not!” ...Read More...
“He was spectacular at nothing…” (Cool! This goes directly into my personal headstone epitaph rolodeath)
What was it like to play next to your childhood hero Mantle during your first major league season?: I got called up in 1967 after the Triple-A season. My first start was in Yankee Stadium, the old Yankee Stadium. I was playing left field and Mantle was playing center. At that point in time Mantle came over to me when we were in the outfield when the game was just starting. He yelled at me ...
TRACER ALERT! (I looked for a spell but started to get weirdass Necco candy button dots in my eyes from all the zeros)
One bat, however, that Bench believes will be silenced in this series is Albert Pujols’. Not because he expects Pujols to falter, but because he doesn’t expect to see Pujols get a pitch to hit. As a catcher who’s called a few “four-finger salutes” in his day, Bench was adamant about how to approach Pujols.
“You never pitch right at him,” he said. “I don’t ...
3 Godfathers ~ Futterman, Barbarisi and Costa, on the run discover a dying game.
During the first two games of the World Series, the Journal’s baseball staff reached out to players, managers, broadcasters, executives and a pair of economists to ask them what sorts of reforms they’d suggest.
NBC broadcaster Bob Costas contributed three ideas. Former baseball commissioner Fay Vincent had a strong recommendation, as did incoming Florida Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen. New York Mets starting ...
Tough gig, Boswell…trying to sell burial insurance home runs.
Yet though his performance was statistically unique, it also came with a pure bizarre Rangers Ballpark touch: all of his homers and RBI came after the Cards already lead 8-6 and, technically, constituted insurance runs.
Of course, nowhere on earth are insurance runs more valuable.
...In the Ballpark, hope never dies. No matter how far ahead, or behind you are, no lead — and no record — is safe.
Another Peter missing? As if Peter Bishop’s floating face of disturbo shapeshiftyness wasn’t enough!
In the nearly six years leading up to a civic celebration for Brooks Robinson, namely the unveiling of the statue of No. 5 that took place Saturday, Oct. 22, Orioles owner Peter Angelos has had many a chance to do the right thing. His last real chance was at the actual ceremony – and all he had to do was simply show up. What could the owner of the Orioles have been so busy with on the day ...
Uhh…because it was a great way for Bob Lemon to showcase that intriguing ventiduct cylinder stove-shaped ass of his?
At baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, I was told that the best person to ask about the managers-in-uniform tradition was a fellow named Paul Lukas, who runs a website dedicated to the aesthetics of sports, and who writes about the subject for ESPN.com.
“I don’t want to say that it’s just one of those things,” Lukas told me. “But it’s just one of those things. ...
Meh. Tack-on homers don’t thrill me (ducks Reggie barbarrage)
Albert Pujols joined Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson as the only players to hit three home runs in a World Series game, tying records with five hits and six RBIs that led the Cardinals to a 16-7 rout of the Texas Rangers on Saturday night that gave St. Louis a 2-1 Series lead.
In Game 4 on Sunday night, Derek Holland pitches for the Rangers and Edwin Jackson starts for the Cardinals. Thirty-six of 54 teams that won Game 3 to take a ...
The ’73 Reds lie in contrast with the 2001 Seattle Mariners, whose 116 wins tied for the most ever in a season. The Mariners lost to the Yankees in the ALCS that year, assuring them of a high spot on the list of top non-champions. But they still didn’t impress quite as much as the Reds did. The unbalanced American League produced four teams (29 percent of the league) with 96 or more losses that year (there was only one such NL team in 1973), giving the ...
Since 1986, the DH World Series rule has been tied to home park. When the game is in an American League park, they use the DH. When it is in a National League park, pitchers hit for themselves.
Brilliant Tweeter CashMoneyMark asked an interesting question: From what we can see in the limited number of games which league has had the advantage?... There is no definitive answer to this, I think, because of the small sample size mentioned above. But it seems to me—and this is surprising to me—that ...
Add Omar Minaya’s name to the growing list of candidates who will interview for the Angels’ vacant general manager post.
Minaya, the former GM of the Montreal Expos, held the same post with the New York Mets from 2005 to 2010. The Dominican-born Minaya was baseball’s first Latino general manager, and Angels owner Arte Moreno was baseball’s first Latino owner.
An Angels spokesman would neither confirm nor deny the team’s interest in Minaya.
Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle has been elected vice president of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, putting her in line to become the first woman to head the organization in its century-plus history.
Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times was elected president at the BBWAA’s World Series meeting on Saturday, succeeding Ken Davidoff of Newsday, and Slusser was voted vice president. The vice president traditionally serves one year before becoming ...
ESPN’s Jim Bowden knows the expectations are sky high and warns that Epstein and Co. face significant challenges that may take some time to overcome. Here are Bowden’s main points:
-Advertising inventory is maxed out - The Cubs don’t have the luxury of reaping in revenue by plastering ads all over their ballpark the way most other teams do. Many parts of Wrigley Field have been designated as historical landmarks which prevents them from ...
But even [former Texas Rangers owner Tom] Hicks eventually, if belatedly, recognized the errors of his ways, and in February 2008 he hired Nolan Ryan as the Rangers’ president.
The unanswered question, now that the Rangers are in the World Series for the second successive season, is to what extent is Ryan responsible for the dramatic change in the Rangers’ fortunes.
I am prepared to give him all of the credit; it can’t be coincidence that Ryan arrives and suddenly the Rangers are ...
Determined to get more from their hitters in 2012, the Braves didn’t just hire Greg Walker as their new hitting coach but also got him an assistant.
Ex-White Sox hitting coach Walker was hired to replace fired Braves hitting coach Larry Parrish, and Scott Fletcher was hired for a hybrid role as assistant hitting coach — a new position for the Braves — and advance scout.
Braves general manager Wren said he and manager Fredi Gonzalez agreed the Walker-Fletcher partnership would give the ...
Break out the dreaded astefrick*s!...Or why I don’t give a slingin’ schatzeder about postseason stats.
Fox, the other day, was showing a list of the most “postseason” hits by a catcher. The answer is Jorge Posada with 97, and behind him is Yogi Berra with 60 (not far behind, with 46, is Yadier Molina, which is why the list was being shown). To Fox’s credit, both Tim McCarver and Joe Buck made reference to the fact that Yogi Berra’s 60 hits were all in the World Series (only 21 of Posada’s ...
Another “prickly enough/La Russa” same sentence alert!
A lack of availability by veterans Albert Pujols, Lance Berkman, Matt Holliday and Yadier Molina following Thursday’s 2-1 loss generated criticism from media who perceived the team was willing to make spokesmen of its younger players while its veterans made a run for the parking lot.
The matter was significant enough for Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak to discuss it with Berkman during Friday’s workout at Rangers Park and prickly ...
The BA Minor League Player of the Year in 2010 turned major league Rookie of the Year this season, Hellickson led all rookies in innings (189) and ERA (2.95) and even ranked second among AL starters with a .210 opponent average.
...Hellickson’s 2011 performance was certainly a good indicator of the future—especially a .210 opponents average that was better than all but Cy Young favorites Justin ...
So what’s the deal, La Russa is the dummy now? Knock off this nonsense. Just as in Game 1, when Washington’s moves didn’t work, it’s part of the deal. Nobody screwed up and missed a spot in the batting order. Nobody called for a sacrifice bunt with two outs. These guys know more about their players than we do, every time, so it’s best to just appreciate the thought process.
...I’d love to see La Russa completely ignore the DH tonight as the ...
Theo Epstein has resigned from the Red Sox in order to become the new President of Baseball Operations for the Cubs. The clubs also have reached an agreement regarding a process by which appropriate compensation will be determined for the Red Sox and that issue will be resolved in the near term.
Signed,
Epstein’s Mom (and a joint press release from the Sox and Cubs)
“We’re not looking for an advantage with respect to home runs versus visitors’ home runs,” Alderson said last month. “At the same time, I think there is some sense that the park is a little more overwhelming to a team that spends half its time there as opposed to a team that comes in for three games and doesn’t really have to alter an approach or think about it too much and leaves.”
The 16-foot wall in left field will remain because it is structural, but a new 8-foot wall will be erected in ...
Who would you rather party with—the 1969 Mets or the 1986 Mets?
Oh, the ‘86 Mets. They’re closer in age to me. ... My idea of partying is sitting at a bar and nursing a beer for two hours and talking baseball. I did that in Pittsburgh once. I was with Ed Lynch and Keith Hernandez, and for about three hours we went through two beers and 50 years of baseball. That’s my idea of partying.
Keith Hernandez is great to talk to. He’s my favorite announcer. He’s ...
Adam Everett, a young player with very little time in the big leagues, happened to walk over to this locker. And the media pounced. Bagwell soon walked into the locker room and saw Everett, cameras and lights in his face, attempting to speak on a subject he was not particularly equipped to handle.
When the media had cleared, Bagwell went over to Everett and said, “I promise you that will never happen again.” And it didn’t. There was never a time, at any point, where the veteran players ...
