Just when you thought it was safe to go back on the web….I’m BACK!!!
So in a year full of new experiences, this is my first crack at Fall Ball. To top it off I’m captaining a team along with Mark Doyle. I think it’ll be a good combination because he’s all about hitting and I’m all about….well, not hitting.
If that’s not enough, the two captains that harassed and tormented (errr…I mean coached and mentored) me this year are on our team!!! Yes Mutt & Jeff aka Tom & Jerry aka Felix & Oscar aka Hawkeye & Honeycutt aka Doris and Rob are Master Batters.
Oh, yeah…the team name is “The Master Batters”. The name was chosen to highlight our offensive prowess, but apparently some wise crackers are thinking there are other connotations. Those people need to step up to the curb because the gutter is getting full. This is just a little kick off BLOG to let you know we’re here and I’ll have a game report after Thursday’s match up against the Capers.
Proposed but unoffical logo (See how the M & B make up the glove? Very clever....my idea...just saying)
This will be the 1st meeting of the 1 & 2 place hitters in the old-timers league (Doyle & McCarron) since the semi-finals of the playoffs. Both played well that game but its still a pretty painful memory for me. The weather forecast for tomorrow is a balmy 7 degrees with variable clouds. Sunset is scheduled for 7pm tomorrow after which there will be strong chance of darkness.
Master Batters Roster
Rob Farah Scott Bullen Doris Casullo Rocco Casullo Kyle Saunders Dave Caldwell Chris LeBlanc Francis Walsh Mark Doyle Doug Dwyer
(We had another person that we drafted that we had to cut because he failed his medical…we’re currently seeking a replacement)
Master Batters Schedule
Thursday October 1st Capers Vs Master Batters 7pm Coventry 7 degrees, 7pm sunset
Monday October 5th Master Batters Vs Hard At It 7pm Keogh 8 degrees, 6:53 sunset
Wednesday October 7th MT Cases Vs Master Batters 7pm Keogh 9 degrees, 6:49 sunset
Wednesday October 14th Master Batters Vs Cold Stix 8:30 Keogh 4 degrees, 6:37 sunset
Wednesday October 21st Get’er Done Vs Master Batters 7pm Keogh 4 degrees, 6:26 sunset
Wednesday October 28th Master Batters Vs Capers 7pm Coventry 3 degrees, 6:15 sunset
Getting to Know You!!!
Mark Doyle, trooper that he is, agreed to play 5 questions to help give everyone a little insight into what makes him tick. Hopefully this helps give you a little understanding in how to approach him and strike up a conversation.
Me: Okay Mark, thanks for agreeing to play 5 questions, lets get started with number one. What languages do you speak?
Mark: Officially I’m only bilingual. I’m well versed in English and French, but I know enough Russian to get by. In fact I’m good with most Slavic languages. You know, Bulgarian, Serbian, Ukrainian, Polish. You know what they say in Russian, “Имейте хорошую игру”
Me: Wow, that was unexpected…lets move on to something a little more mainstream, what’s your favourite hockey team?
Mark: Obviously the Leafs. It probably started when I was about 10 years old. I was a HUGE Miroslav Frycer fan! I know, you’re probably thinking, “Duh, who wasn’t”; but I had posters of that guy all over my room. I even bought a visor just like his. Don’t let being a minus 23 fool you, he was a great two way player. Definitely an all time Leaf great.
Me: You’ve got this Slavic thing going on, huh? How about music? Favourite artist?
Mark: Dude. That is SOOO impossible. That’s like asking a woman, “what are your favourite shoes”? There are a million possible answers. It depends on the mood, the company, the time of day. There are just way too many variables. I suppose if you had to pin me down to an answer I’d have to go with Celine Dion.
Me: I’m learning so much here. Way more than I expected.
Mark: Dude, I’m like an onion.
Me: You make my eyes water?
Mark: No, I have layers.
Me: Oh. Sorry. Question #4, Harper or Ignatieff?
Mark: I know you think that I’m going to say “Harper” because of Harper’s Tavern in Clementon New Jersey where they brew their own beer. But; did you know that “Ignatieff” is a Russian patronymic surname whose literal meaning is ‘son of or descendant of Ignatius.’ As a given name, Ignatius or Slavic versions of it, prospered even in the face of the fact that the Russian Orthodox Church disapproved of the first Jesuit, Saint Ignatius of Loyola (1491–1556), founder of the Society of Jesus.
Me: Wow. Mark, I’m kinda reeling here. This is supposed to be comical more than historical with a Slavic bent. I think this whole ‘onion’ thing is getting to you. Lets try and make the last one a quickie, #5 – You’re on a desert island and you have an infinite supply of one food, what would you pick and don’t say onions.
Mark: Shrimp.
Me: Okay, that was fast! Any particular reason you’d pick shrimp?
Mark: Yeah, think of all the things you can make with it, barbecued shrimp, boiled shrimp, broiled shrimp, baked shrimp, sautéed shrimp, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp Creole, shrimp gumbo, pan fried shrimp, deep fried shrimp, stir-fried shrimp, pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich.
Me: And that’s 5 question with Mark Doyle. Whether he’s an onion or a cake or a B52; Mark has layers.
puts his bat on his shoulder, and tosses up his ball.
And the ball goes up, and the ball comes down,
he swings his bat all the way around,
and the worlds so still you can hear the sound
as the baseball falls, to the ground.
Now the little boy, doesn't say a word,
picks up his ball, he is undeterred,
Says "I am the greatest, there has ever been,"
and he grits his teeth, and tries it again.
And the ball goes up, and the ball comes down,
he swings his bat all the way around,
and the worlds so still you can hear the sound
as the baseball falls, to the ground.
He makes no excuses, He shows no fear,
He just closes his eyes, and listens to the cheers.
Little boy, he adjusts his hat
picks up his ball, stares at his bat,
says "I am the greatest, the game is on the line,"
and he gives his all, one last time.
And the ball goes up, like the moon so bright,
Swings his bat, with all his might,
and the worlds as still, as still as can be,
and the baseball falls, and that's strike three.
Now its supper time, and his Mama calls,
little boy starts home, with his bat and ball,
says "I am the greatest, that is a fact,
but even I didn't know, I could pitch like that."
The Wild headed into this game as the visitors and riding a 5 game winning streak. They had beaten teams that had finished the regular season 12th, 6th, 9th, 11th and 8th.
The Dislocated Joints were also on a 5 game winning streak. They had beaten teams ranked 5th, 11th, 10th, 5th and 6th to earn their trip to the final.
Many of the games through the elimination round had been played tentatively.There were a couple of blow outs, but games were pretty much tight and played close to the vest.This game, in my very humble opinion, would be the best game of the weekend.Both teams gave it their all and seemed determined from the beginning to leave it all on the field.
The Wild batted 1st and quickly tallied 4 runs and set the tone early that their bats were rolling.The Joints did not turtle.They picked up their bats and mercy’d The Wild in 1st inning.I don’t have inning by inning stats over the course of the year, but getting a mercy inning on The Wild is no small accomplishment.
The game was 7-4 for the Dislocated after the 1st inning and the crowd, which was ample, was loving every minute of it.There were at least 6 guys from each of the Grisslie and Dodge City teams in attendance, but considering that those two teams had been freshly eliminated, that shouldn’t be too much of a surprise. What was GREAT to see was that every team was represented. Even some of the folks that were eliminated on Saturday came back in their team colours on Sunday. That could be because they slept in their clothes, but I prefer to think to was honouring the league and their teams.
The game was a slugfest and a seesaw affair.The lead changed hands several time over the next few innings and was tied at 13 after four innings. There were three innings of ball left for the year and tie game.What more could you ask for?Neither team had any quit in them.
The Joints would score 7 more runs over the next three innings giving them 20. You would think that would be enough, but the Wild managed to score 14 and ultimately won 27-20.
Some highlights for the victors
Steve BrooksHe left his Whitney Houston collection in the car and came to play. The defense at 3rd base was great but most importantly he fooled everyone by driving in a couple of key runs by hitting the ball on the ground!
Peiro Del GrecoLet me say that there was a lot of cheering for a lot of people in this game. There were plenty of offensive and defensive highlights to go around. However, the three loudest moments were a) Ed Vonda’s home run b) the final out c) When The Wild were battling back in the middle innings and Peiro delivered a critical line drive passed second base that scored 2 runs and was major component in the game. Peiro has been a trooper all year and is one of those guys that everyone likes to see do well!
Mark DoyleThe Wild won in spite of Mark’s play. Probably the only disappointment on the team. Not much of an arm, a suspect bat and a glove with holes. He tries though.
Andy GeeHow do you give up 20 run and pitch a good game? Well you start with being Andy Gee. Andy just doesn’t rattle.I’m sure he was as disappointed as anyone else giving up 7 in the 1st inning but he just never shows it. And he doesn’t take a bad inning to the plate or bad at bat to the field. He keeps the 8 guys behind him in a groove.
Mark KolsenI don’t know how Mark hit throughout the tournament, only that he didn’t have a great game against the Grisslies. Whatever may have been ailing him was shaken off for this game. He hit the ball hard consistently & fielded great as well.
Jens LepaHmmmm, which highlight is more impressive?Is it the home run in the soccer shoes or the Willie Mayes catch in the outfield?I’m gonna go with the catch.Anyone that can do two pirouettes, into a triple axle, go into a death spin and round off into a catch on the warning track should be inducted into some kind of hall of fame.
Brett MabeeBack from missing a significant portion of the season with a wrist injury and played a fair bit of the game at 1st.The infield was great and Brett was big part of that.Having a middle infielder playing 1st makes it really tough on the other team.Great job with the bat too!
Kevin MoonMooner….Maybe it’s the laid back approach or easy smile that makes you surprised when he crushes the ball or robs a sure hit.While there were a number of position changes throughout the game, the Wild looked great with Mabee at 1st and Moon at 2nd.As usual his bat was killer.
Anthony MrasekTony & Ed were back to back in the lineup.Both hit well but not at the same time.I think when one made an out the other picked up the team with a key hit to drive in runs.The thing I remember about Tony most in the game was a couple of balls hit to him in right-center field that I thought FOR SURE he lost in the sun and it turned out that he either had them all the way and was decoying runners or he found them again at the last second. You can ask Rick Cudnik what its like to play right center at that time of day and he’ll tell you how tough it is….job well done.
Clifford TuckerCliff too was fighting the tough sky for much of the game in left field.Still, he did a good job keeping the ball in front of him, playing great team ball by hitting the cutoff and not trying to overplay.Like everyone on The Wild, his bat was there too and he ran the bases great.
Ed VondaIn many respects….Eddy had a day to remember.His catch in left field on a sinking liner was a great one and in a 27-20 game, those defensive gems really stand out.However, Ed had a home run and a triple and drove in 5 runs (if my memory is right).Rumor has it that Ed will be back to help the Wild defend.Lets hope!
James (Bear) WyattBear is high on the list of guys that are easy to cheer for.There was one point in the game with runners on 2nd & 3rd (or maybe the bases were loaded) and I turned to Doris and said, “they NEED to get Bear here or could be over”.Bear drilled a pitch for a single over third base scoring two.
Mark DoyleYeah, I was (obviously) kidding earlier.Mark didn’t have a particularly great game in the semi’s where he gave Billy Clouthier a lot of practice playing third. But I don’t know that Mark has had consecutive ho-hum games at all this year. Mark hit both lines offensively with authority.He was driving the ball everywhere and was pretty much impossible to defend.He was a rock at short and he was stinging Mabee’s hand at 1st all day.The one inning I saw him in the outfield he contributed there too.
In a day full of heroes – pick one, you won’t be wrong.
See you all next month at the banquet and then at the general meeting!
Well, beat the drum and hold the phone - the sun came out today!
We're born again, there's new grass on the field.
A-roundin' third, and headed for home, it's a brown-eyed handsome man;
Anyone can understand the way I feel.
And then there were four.
If you went by the end of the regular season standings, the 1st, 2nd, 6th, and 8th place teams were left with The Wild, The Dislocated Joints, The Dodge City Rounders and Grisslies respectively.
If you were to go by the seeding of the round robin, you would have the 1st, 2nd 3rd and the 12th seeded teams remaining in The Dislocated Joints, The Grisslies, The Wild and The Dodge City Rounders.
So, a little analysis of the final four.
Dodge City had 12-11-1 regular season. They had a very balanced season, never winning or losing more than 3 games in a row. They were the only team (apologies if I’m wrong) not to have a hitter in the top 30 in the league, but their attack was balanced and their overall +/- was fourth best in the league at a +34. In the round robin, Dodge City had defeated the Dog Catchers (17-10), lost to the Lucky Stiffs (22-16), The Wild (14-7), The Grisslies (19-11).In elimination games they had knocked out Recycled (23-20) and The Dog Catchers (13-11).
The Grisslies on paper look a lot like Dodge City in that they had 12-12 record and looked pretty balanced as well. The truth is that they were nothing like the each other.The Grisslies had about as bad a 1st half as you could want starting 2-8.But when the Grisslies turned the corner they ended up having the best second half of any team in the league.They were a team of streaks having lost 6 in a row at one point and following that up with a 7 game winning streak.There is no doubt that Rob McCarren leading the league in hitting was a huge factor, but even with that they were 7th ranked team overall in hitting.In the round robin, the Grisslies had defeated the Dusty Cleats (14-12), The Red Dogs (18-6), and Dodge City (19-11) while losing to the Dog Catchers (10-8).In their only elimination game they had narrowly taken out the Rusty Rebels (8-5).
The Dislocated Joints finished second in the regular season and first in the round robin. They looked good.The consensus was that the Joints were a team that hit smart & not necessarily hard. They had 3 player finish in the top 30 in hitting and it would have been 4 players but for one player being 5 at bats short of qualifying. They scored the second most runs in the league and had the 3rd best +/-. In the round robin they opened by losing to Recycled (16-11) then beating Torn Ligaments (17-7), Dusty Cleats (16-9) and the Banshees (16-9). In their one elimination game they send The Torn Ligaments Packing with a 19-3 thrashing.
And The Wild.Earlier this year I think I referred to The Wild has having “million dollar arm & 5 cent heads”. OF COURSE, I was joking!The Wild were like the Bronx Bombers. So many guys on the team have the ability to pound the ball. They were the leagues dominant team in the first half and were steady in the second half & finished 1st overall. They had 3 guys in the top 10 and were the most aggressive base running team in the league. In the round robin they had a slow start losing to the Red Dogs (16-11) before straightening things out with wins over The Rusty Rebels (15-8), Dodge City (14-7) and the Hot Tub Woody’s (10-9). Then in their first elimination game they ousted the Dusty Cleats in a close 7-3 game.
Dodge City Rounders Vs. Dislocated Joints. Dodge City was a tough match up for The Dislocated Joints. During the regular season Dodge swept them impressively by scores of 18-10 and 20-15. Dodge City had every reason to believe that they were the miracle team for the 2009 playoffs. They weren’t. They were game, good sports and played hard, but sun was shining brightly on the Joints who won a lopsided affair by 25-7 count.
The Wild Vs. Grisslies. These teams had split their season series and the game pitted the best team of the 1st half against the best team in the second half.The Grisslies staggered out of the gate and after an inning and a half were down 10-0.The Grisslies had made a habit out of being down early and clawing their way back into games.Despite only giving up 3 more runs the rest of the way, the bats just never came alive with any consistency.Make the final Wild 13 Grisslies 6.
Semi - finals concluded with a total of 11 teams gone (and STILL not forgotten) in the Hot Tub Woody’s, Banshees, Lucky Stiffs,Recycled, Red Dogs, Dog Catchers, Dusty Cleats, Rusty Rebels and Torn Ligaments, Grisslies, and the Dodge City Rounders.
Every day is like Saturday night, but I can’t wait for Sunday Morning!!!
Here we go….show time. Scores are sketchy, but wins and loses are accurate.The quarter final games matched up:
Torn Ligaments Vs. Dislocated Joints
Rusty Rebels Vs. Grisslies
Dusty Cleats Vs. The Wild
Dodge City Rounders Vs. Dog Catchers.
Torn Ligaments Vs. Dislocated Joints. Torn Ligaments had faced the Joints 3 times already.The Joints held a significant edge with a win and a tie in the regular season (the win being only by 3 runs), but they had also won by 10 in the round robin. This gave the Joints a 2-0-1 edge and lots of confidence heading into this game. Unfortunately for the Ligaments, the trend continued and the Joints dominated from beginning to end winning by a score of 19-3.
Rusty Rebels Vs. Grisslies. The Rusty Rebels had beaten the Grisslies twice this season by scores of 19-1 and 9-6. Outscoring the Grisslies by total of 28-7 gave the Rebels every legitimate reason to be confident. However, the Grisslies offence was just enough in this game plating 8 runs and the defense and pitching was stellar giving up only 5. This was one game where the season trend was not a factor. Grisslies move on 8-5.
Dusty Cleats Vs. The Wild. The Wild finished 1st overall in the regular season, but the Dusty Cleats were no pushover for them. The Cleats had lost once to them by a run (20-19) and had beaten them by 6 (10-4). The Wild’s big bats were slow to wake up on Sunday morning and the Cleats played with the confidence of a team that had played tough against their competition. The Wild prevailed on good pitching and solid defense to win a tight 7-3 game.
Dodge City Rounders Vs. Dog Catchers.According to one Dodge City player, “I didn’t think we had a chance to make Sunday, we’re playing for free now!” True enough. Dodge City eked into the playoffs through the proverbial backdoor and knocked off the heavily favoured Recycled to see Sunday. The Dog Catchers on the other hand got the bye to Sunday by finishing with a 3-1 record with wins over the Dusty Cleats, Red Dogs and Grisslies. The only team they lost to in the Round Robin? You guessed it, Dodge City Rounders. Go figure. Add that to the fact that Dodge had beaten the Dog Catchers twice in the regular season, it really didn’t matter that the Dog Catchers had the bye or finished with a better record in the season. This was the best possible matchup for Dodge City and they rode that to 13-11 and provided the only upset of the quarter final round.
Quarter finals concluded with a total of 9 teams gone (and still not forgotten) in the Hot Tub Woody’s, Banshees, Lucky Stiffs,Recycled, Red Dogs, Dog Catchers, Dusty Cleats, Rusty Rebels and Torn Ligaments.
Match ups for the afternoon’s semi-finals, FINAL FOUR elimination games were:
So some of my recollections of the finer details from the last two days may be a little off, but there was so much worth remembering that I’m a little bit on overload.
Coming into the last games of the round robin on Saturday afternoon, there were no less than 3 teams that could be the unlucky eliminated team and 6 teams eligible to earn the bye through to Sunday. The Rusty Rebels recovered from some heart breaking losses to beat the Lucky Stiffs and stay alive. Dodge City Rounders who lost twice on Saturday by more than 7 runs still made the playoffs on +/- due to the Red Dogs loss to the Dog Catchers. Honestly....who saw that coming?
The 1st team to be eliminated was the Red Dogs & the teams with the byes to Sunday based on the round robin order of finish were
1. The Dislocated Joints. 2. The Grisslies. 3. The Wild. 4. The Dog Catchers.
So that left the following Saturday Elimination games….
Dodge City Rounders Vs. Recycled. This was a strange one. Strange in that recycled headed into Saturday at 3-0 and lost a (seemingly) meaningless game 8-3 to torn ligaments. That one lost & +/- knocked them out of the top four and forced an elimination game. Meanwhile, you have Dodge City with that “just happy to be there” attitude. There were a number of guys on that team that thought they’d be going home earlier and were legitimately thrilled to still be played. Both teams ended up playing pretty well, although the sun was HUGE issue for both teams. Dodge won 23-20 and moved on.
Dusty Cleats Vs. Lucky Stiffs. Elimination games are funny, huh? So, the Stiffs started the round robin with a bit of surprise tie against torn ligaments, then a very surprising win over the Red Dogs and then kinda beat up on Dodge City. They were 2-0-1 before losing a hard fought game to the Rusty Rebels. Consensus was thought that the Stiffs were a hot and a team that you “didn’t want to face”. And who had to face them, the Cleats. The Dusty Cleats had a very tough ride through the playoffs starting with a really tough 2 run loss to the Grisslies. They had enough in +/- to finish 11th. As hot as The Stiffs were, this was a great match up for the Dusty Cleats having beaten them twice and easily in the regular season. Trends don’t ALWAYS mean something, but they did in this game with the Cleats prevailing 18-13 and eliminating the Stiffs.
Rusty Rebels Vs. Banshees. The Rusty Rebels were in the same boat as Dodge City, thinking that they were going home until they earned their way into elimination by winning their last round robin games. The Banshees, like Recycled, were a 3-1 team that was forced to play an elimination game because of =/-. The Rebels and Banshees played what was probably the best of the 1st round of elimination games with the Banshees on the losing end of 13-12 decision.
Hot Tub Woody’s Vs. Torn Ligaments. Torn Ligaments had the 1st of the great comebacks in the playoffs when they rolled a six in the 7th inning of their 1st game to tie the Stiffs. They then had 2 losses and a win and seem to be hitting their stride. The Woody’s on the other hand, had a pretty tough draw losing to the Recycled, Banshees and Wild and winning against Rusty Rebels. Tougher still, the Torn Ligaments were a team that handled them twice and easily in the regular season, and while the game was close at 15-10, the Woody’s were the last of the Saturday eliminations.
Saturday concluded with 5 teams gone (but not forgotten) in the Hot Tub Woody’s, Banshees, Lucky Stiffs, Recycled and Red Dogs.
Match ups for Sunday morning’s ELITE EIGHT elimination games were:
Torn Ligaments Vs. Dislocated Joints Rusty Rebels Vs. Grisslies Dusty Cleats Vs. The Wild Dodge City Rounders Vs. Dog Catchers.
More to come…..
(bonus points if you know what song the title of this post comes from) ((double if you know the artist))
Alas, 156 league games later and the season is over. I'll get to how much fun it was shortly, but let me give you a little update on the BLOG itself.
First of all, since I started keeping stats on it on August 21st, we've had 198 first time visitors to the site. I actually understand how this stuff is tracked, but it so boring that I'd probably fall asleep half way through the explanation; so I'll save all of us the grief. This doesn't necessarily mean that 198 individuals are looking at it. Some people look from work & home or from a blackberry for example. Those would all be considered unique and it skews (love that word) the numbers a bit.
Anyway, enough of that, I just thought it interesting. Today's edition of the BLOG is my own little book of lists. Some sincere, some funny, others....well you can judge.
10 things I wish I knew as rookie and mistakes I won't make next year!
1. The rookie doesn't have to buy lobster dinners for the captains after the team's 10th win. (and to think I had poor Cliffy bring that back from Newfoundland)
2. The rookie doesn't have to arrange limo service for the team for games at coventry. (It cost so much I actually thought of getting my own stretch)
3. A hit does not equal a jug. (55 hits. It was getting to the point that I was trying to make outs. may explain a few things).
4. Everyone doesn't put their 1st and last name on their jersey. (Like Bob Marley said, "Don't let them fool ya, or even try to school ya!)
5. The rookie doesn't have to sweep the infield between odd number innings. (Explains some of the laughter)
6. Neither does the rookie have to vacuum the outfield between even number innings. (Honestly the cord was becoming a bit of an issue).
7. Not all rookies are required to call their captains "sir". (I'm not sure about the saluting).
8. Most teams only attend their own games. While I enjoyed going to 6-8 games a week, its apparently not a "requirement" as I was told.
9. The penalty for wearing a hat in the Legion is buying a round NOT standing on the pool table in your jockeys reciting nursery rhymes. (There had better not be video)
10. Apparently there is not a trade deadline, an affiliate in Bond Head that you can be send down to, nor are players typically released due to poor performance. (That threat really hurt!)
The top 10 all time offensive seasons in major league baseball history
So anyone who's read this from time to time knows that I make the ocassional reference to old time baseball. I'm a bit of nut with old school ball so indulge me with a little list. (this is of course totally subjective)
Babe Ruth (1921 New York Yankees). 59 homeruns, 177 runs scored, 171 RBIs, .378 batting average, 44 doubles, 17 triples and 16 stolen bases.
Lou Gehrig (1927 New York Yankees). 47 homeruns, 149 runs scored, 175 RBIs, .373 batting average, 52 doubles, 18 triples, 218 hits and 447 total bases.
Jimmy Fox (1932 Philadelphia Athletics). 58 homeruns, 151 runs scored, 169 RBIs, .356 batting average.
Hack Wilson (1930 Chicago Cubs). 56 homeruns, 146 runs scored, 191 RBIs, .356 batting average.
Ty Cobb (1911 Detroit Tigers). 248 total hits, .420 batting average, 147 runs scored, 127 RBIs, 83 stolen bases, 47 doubles, 24 triples.
Rogers Hornsby (1922 St. Louis Cardinals). 40 homeruns, .401 batting average, 152 runs scored, 151 RBIs, 46 doubles, and 250 total hits.
Chuck Klein (1930 Philadelphia Phillies). 40 homeruns, .386 batting average, 59 doubles, 158 runs scored, 250 total hits.
Stan Musial (1948 St. Louis Cardinals). 39 homeruns, .376 batting average, 50 doubles, 18 triples, 131 RBIs, .450 on base percentage.
Joe DiMaggio (1937 New York Yankees). 46 homeruns, .346 batting average, 167 RBIs, 151 runs scored.
Albert Pujols (2003 St. Louis Cardinals). 43 homeruns, .359 batting average, 124 RBIs, 51 doubles, 137 runs scored.
My thank-you's
Thanks to the following people who allowed me to poke fun at or with them and didn't swing back.
1. To Rob Farah & Doris Casullo who encouraged me to run with this BLOG despite its tendency to make them the object of my back-handed humour (what can I say, this thing pretty much writes itself).
2. To Mark Doyle and Jim Rouleau who (along with Rob & Doris) were instrumental in spreading the word word of this whacked out BLOG and building a growing audience.
3. To Rob McCarron and Doyle for letting me play with the OBA race when I'm sure they would have preferred to fly under the radar. (not THAT radar)
4. To the Grisslies team, John Harrett (who's name I inexplicably spelled wrong), Steve Wynnyk (who I stole an out from), Doris (who I stole a hit from), Billy Cloutier (who had heart failure watching me trip around bases), Diamond Jim Rouleau (who went hoarse trying to get me to stop at third), Cliff Stacey (who's probably still peeved about the hand held phone picture), Ingo Bartens (who actually came through fairly unscathed), Dan McCallum (who's still trying to figure out why everyone yells "big Mac" when he hits), Rob McCarron (who spent half the season moving me in and the other half moving me back in the outfield), Dave McGovern (who thankfully doesn't read the BLOG and hasn't had cause to be upset - yet) and Rob Farah (who allowed himself to be the brunt of all the jokes). Thanks guys.
5. To other players throughout the league who either purposely or accidentally became targets of the BLOG's sick and distorted sense of humour. Some that come to mind are Rob Hayward, Dan Chaisson, David Polny, Chris Ross, Chuck Cragg, John Stiff, and Bob Candy. Thanks for letting me carry on like an idiot.
BEST SINGLES HITTERS OF ALL TIME
Yeah, yeah, everyone "digs the longball". ===> CLICK ME
But home runs are only worth one unless you have guys on. While I appreciate the brute strength of the homer, I dig the precision and finesse of the single. Here are the top 10 singles hitters that I have ever seen play.
Pete Rose - Yes he did a comercial in leopard skin jockeys, yes he got thrown of baseball for gambling, yes his hair looked like Jim Carey's in Dumb & Dumber; but the man could hit!
Rod Carew - #6 all time in career singles. There was only one other player I enjoyed watching as much as him (we'll get to that, he's next), Carew was magic with the bat.
Tony Fernandez - He's number 114 all time in career singles. Watching slap bunts over the third baseman's head or hitting ball after ball to the opposite field with total grace.
Ichiro Suzuki - Much like Carew and Fernandez he is all about balance at the plate. He has no real weaknesses, he can single a bad pitch as well as a strike.
Tony Gwynn - #8 all time in singles. He like all other singles hitters had very little plate discipline and didn't walk much. Didn't matter though because he was seemingly always on base.
Wade Boggs - #15. I hated Wade Boggs. Watching him loft ball after ball of that green monster in Fenway and consistently turning doubles into singles drove me nuts. But, he was money getting those singles.
Rickey Henderson - For a guy who is the all time leader in stolen bases, he wasn't actually all that fast. I don't remember Rickey getting a lot of infield singles. I DO remember him getting little texas leaguers, skipping out of the batters box and trotting down to first base for a brief rest before making the catcher look stupid when he'd swipe second.
George Brett - I know, George had buckets of power, but he also had over 2000 singles in his career. He wasn't just a masher, he had a knack for getting the key hit when KC needed it.
Derek Jeter - Yes Jeter is easy to dislike. But, he passed Mickey Mantel for 1st place in career at bats for the Yankees earlier this year and he's 8 hits away from passing Lou Gehrig for all time hits. Jeter doesn't need me to say it, he's great.
Roberto Alomar - Sort of like Jeter and Brett in that he was more than just a singles hitter. While his glove was probably the best part of his game, he was a great slap hitter with power when he needed it.
An EXTRA Special note of Thanks.
There is nothing to "read between the lines" here. No hidden meanings in the words. No trickery.
I would like to give an extra special thank you to Tito (the Fonz). Tito, a veteran in the league, a good player and a good guy allowed himself to play the part of the foil for the BLOG. So whether he was Lex Luthor or whether he was Superman, he let me write the script without ever really getting close to giving me the round house kick to the head that I thought was coming. Let's face it, I probably deserved a couple.
After my first "Tito rant" a lot of people assumed that he and I had a history of this kind of banter. That's not the case. We actually only met this year through baseball and they fact that he let me have fun at his expense is a testament to his sense of humour.
So Tito, thanks.
URBAN LEGENDS or HOAXES
Oh, we've all gotten those emails. The abducted child without a last name in Alabama that we need to circulate the picture of? The email that's been around the world 7 times? The free whatever you'll get from whomever if you forward to 10 fiends? Yeah, those. I hate them. There is a website (www.snopes.com) that debunks urban legends OR sometimes identifies the odd one as true. That's the 1st place you should go when you get one of those. Here are 10 annoying ones.
You get 100% if your roomate dies in university / college. NOT TRUE. I know you heard from a guy who knows a guy that this happened to, but trust me. It didn't.
Mr. Rogers was a Navy Seal. NOT TRUE. I've heard this about John Denver too. Seriously, Mr Rogers, trained to kill?
The tourist that wakes up in a hotel bathtub packed in ice missing a harvested kidney. NOT TRUE. For the love of god, if Ted Rogers could die needing a heart transplant, don't you think he'd have had enough money to pay one of these rogue kidney theives to do a little work on the side?
The Mikey kid from the LIFE ceral commercials died from mixing pop rocks candies and coca cola. NOT TRUE. That doesn't mean we didn't want it to be true, but it never happened.
Poinsettia (christmas flower plants) are poinsonous to humans. NOT TRUE. Not only are they not poisonous, but they taste awful. You couldn't choke down a leaf if you wanted to.
The baby ruth chocolate bar is named after the baseball player Babe Ruth. NOT TRUE. The baby ruth was named after the daughter of US president Grover Cleveland in 1916.
Phil Collins wrote "in the air tonight" after witnessing a man refuse to come to the help of another man drowning. NOT TRUE. Plus its just stupid. If Phil Collins actually saw that wouldn't he have ALSO been not helping the drowning guy?
Charles Manson once auditioned for the Monkees. NOT TRUE. Although this one isn't quite as crazy because he did write a song for the Beach Boys. TRUE.
TEN THINGS THE TOTTENHAM OLDTIMERS DID FOR ME
10 things that I wouldn't have done this year if it weren't for baseball OR memorable events that occurred because of baseball. Listed in no particular order.
1. Played in the Help the Kids tournament. I wanted to play, selfishly, just to play. However, it quickly became apparent that everyone there, while totally interested in playing ball; were also sincerely participating to help the cause. At the next executive meeting there was a full report of the tournament as well as how the money raised goes to help local kids. This was such a cool thing to be part of and something that I will do in the future as well as encourage others to do.
2. From real to self centered. I got to "field for the cycle" this year. I pitched parts of 4 games. 3 of them well, one I'd like a do-over. Other than that I played a lot of outfield and all over the infield. In the last game of the season Doris gave me an inning at shortstop completing my fielding cycle, giving me at least one inning at every position on the field.
3. The oldtimers golf tournament. There are three things that stand out for me with this tournament. The first is the constant harassment on every tee that I took from Chris Ross. I get it. Its payback and I probably have more coming. Then there is the video evidence of my pathetic play that Murray Saunders has probably already loaded on youtube by now. The third is that I was able bring a friend from out of town to golf with me and 120 people that he had never met and he had a great time. Fabulous day and a great group of guys.
4. The showdown with The Wild. Both the Grisslies and The Wild were white hot at the time and as is usual, everyone had a great time and hung out in the clubhouse afterward.
5. The Strikeout. All I'll say (because I STILL get asked), is that I did not strike out on purpose. I wish I had. That was great fun and Tito and I will be signing memorabilia next August on the first anniversary of the event.
6. The team. Whether on the diamond or in the clubhouse, the camaraderie, the laughs, and the jabs were all great.
7. The help. As much as I joke around about being left to wander aimlessly as rookie; nothing could be farther from the truth. I actually used to play a lot of ball (I know - its hard to tell) but it had been 15 years or so. That plus the fact that I didn't know anyone on the team kind of had me behind the 8-ball. Rob Farah was always quick to remind me of some finer subtleties in the rules that differ from league to league. Doris was always watching out for positioning. Big Mac was constantly barking out the outs, the count and bases in play. Two quieter "helpers" for me were McCarron who would always discuss hitters tendencies (during play or between innings) and Billy Clouthier who is a wealth of baseball experience and information.
8. Friday Nights. Ahhh, Friday nights. Rob's backyard where we once again recount every play, every coulda, shoulda and woulda. It is amazing that we could have the same conversation for 16 or so consecutive Fridays and it hasn't gotten old.
9. Friendships. I won't get too sappy here & you know who you are. This year wouldn't have been a 10th of the fun without the players and wives joining in the banter and good honest interest and concern for each other. Be it Friday nights or any other time.
10. The BLOG. Definitely wouldn't have happened without baseball. Last summers BLOG about doing nothing went nowhere, so I'm sure of this!
That is it for lists, mercifully.
THE SONG
I wasn't going to do one....then I went out this evening to watch the Recycled and Joints play their final games of the year. Anyway, this song popped into my head.
Proposed but unoffical logo
