14 posts tagged “baseball”
And the details about the alleged drunk driver make my stomach churn.
MLB 2009: gotta move forward...
It's weird to say this as someone who was skeptical that Ichiro would become a S*T*A*R in the major leagues. But I think last night's game just stamped Ichiro's ticket to Cooperstown, even though the last two weeks don't contribute dick to his MLB counting stats.
I don't know if Ichiro has a great track record in clutch situations but nothing creates a legend more than coming through in these high-profile, high-pressure games when you have a damn PLANET on your ass.
What a game, and what a SPORT!
Post-season awards in MLB are still the most important in any pro sport in America. You can look it up.
I think most of them were "correct" this year. The Borda count point system offers flexibililty and a better consencus choice. That is, if people take their second and third and fourth, etc. place votes seriously. Most of the time, they don't.
Some of the wackier selections:
Edinson Volquez of the Reds got three 2nd place votes for NL Rookie of the Year. Nice, except HE'S NOT A ROOKIE. Joba Chamberlain might have got jobbed for getting only one 3rd vote.
Brad Lidge got more votes for NL MVP (2) than NL Cy Young (0). Huh? Same for Francisco Rodriguez in the AL: Cy Young zero first, 7 2nd; MVP 1 first, 2 2nd (!), 3 3rd. Does anyone here really think K-Rod was more valuable in 2008 than, say, A-Rod? Or even Cliff Lee, who got only 24 points for MVP to K-Rod's 143.
Newpaper writers have been voting on this "official" award since... jeez, before World War I?! And they REALLY haven't changed all THAT much. Thank goodness we can get alternative viewpoints from the net.
p.s. I woulda voted for Joe Mauer as AL MVP.
Ichiro got his 200th hit in Kansas City yesterday -- the eighth straight season he's accomplished this, tying a major league record.
Ichiro and Kansas City always bring to mind this great interview with Bob Costas:
Cliff Corcoran at Bronx Banter wrote a brutally frank piece about the new Yankee Stadium that will open for business next season. And reading the details, it looks like ALL business in The Bronx.
Will zillionaires in New York spend the ca$h to see a third-place team? Yeah, probably...
So I clocked out from work at 5:00 PM. It was the eighth inning of the baseball All-Star Game in The Bronx, New York. I was thinking of hanging out at one of the local bars in Waikiki to catch the end but figured I might spend a little too much during "happy hour."
Instead I went down to Shirokiya and decided to watch the remainder of the contest there. By this time (about 5:40 PM) it was the ninth inning, and the American League had already tied the game! A 50-ish lady was also hanging out at the HDTV setup but instead listening to the radio broadcast (probably ESPN). Understandable since Joe Buck and Tim McCarver can get on your nerves after a while.
Unfortunately there's usually a lag between the radio broadcast and the TV, at least two or three seconds. And EVERY time something of consequence happened she'd blurt out the result: STRIKE-OUT! or HE CAUGHT THE BALL! Umm, yeah thanks for spoiling things!
I didn't get that upset because the 9th inning turned to the 10th and then 11th... Past 7:00 PM in Hawaii meant 1:00 AM in the Big Apple. I noticed from her reactions that she had a rooting interest for the American League. Turned out she's a Kansas native and a lifelong Royals fan who followed the misadventures of the KC Athletics in the fifties and sixties. She still has a soft spot for Lou Pinella since he debuted with the Royals in '69, winning the A.L. Rookie of the Year.
Back to the game... Inning after inning the A.L. had the winning run in scoring position but just couldn't get the job done. My bones were aching from standing for damn near two hours. Finally, a "sacrifice" fly in the 15th frame brought in the winning run and my National Leaguers lost AGAIN!
In my teens I followed more N.L. teams, thus cementing my preference for the "Senior Circuit" in the All-Star Game. But after nearly two hours at Shirokiya, I was kinda just rooting for an actual RESULT (please, baseball has no TIES!) before the store closed at 9:00 PM! All the extra innings sure looked great in Hi-Def, dat's for sure!
My mom is a Yankee fan so I will not dwell too much on yet another early exit for the Bronx Bombers.
Always let it be said: losing always hurts worse than winning feels good. Even for a cheating choker with a $252 million contract with an opt-out clause.
Bummer that there's no more first-round games but at least we'll (presumably) get the best possible matchups for the LCS in both leagues. Boston looks super-powerful but who knows? And the Rockies are on such a roll, why wouldn't you pick them in a seven-game series?
Rockies-Indians, BABY! Bring on the bugs!
Good weekend for baseball, although all these series sweeps kinda deflate my enthusiasm. I don't have a specific rooting interest in any one team so I want to see more baseball action, not less.
I don't do fantasy but the Fantasy 411 podcast on MLB.com is pretty good cause they talk with the best in the business, Will Carroll and Joe Sheehan from Baseball Prospectus. There's nothing like listening to articulate fans shooting the breeze.
Caught Manny's game-ending shot over the Green Monster on Sportscenter late Friday night... is there anyone else in the history of baseball who could showboat at the plate like that and not get nailed with a flurry of beanballs thereafter? Reggie, maybe? Also noteworthy is that it was hit off of K-Rod, who gets pretty animated himself on the mound (people on Yankee-related message boards pointed this out).
I've seen it a dozen times and I STILL think Matt Holliday missed the plate. But nobody on the Padres said anything and the game ended in pandemonium.
MLB's post-season begins on Wednesday. I. Can't. Wait.
