Golden Knights Parachuter Hung Up At Rangers Ballpark
Blame The Midges In Cleveland For This
A member of the U.S. Army Golden Knights parachute team got hung up on a flagpole during a jump into the ballpark before the baseball game between the Minnesota Twins and the Texas Rangers in Arlington last night. No one was injured and the team did an on-air television interview with the Rangers telecast.
Minnesota Twins Justin Morneau Pumps Iron With Bears
Damn 32 ounce drinks at McDonalds are just a $1.08, thank you Justin Morneau, now if the Minnesota Twins could just reclaim the American League Central Division first place spot from the Detriot Tigers I would be even happier.
Yankees Fan Eats Kim Jones Pork Chop
Watch as this drunk New York Yankees fan in Minnesota tries not only get his 5 minutes of TV face time but eat YES reporter Kimberly Jones pork chop. Michael Kay was not impressed.
The fan really didn’t want her pork chop, he wanted her life.
Buffalo Wild Wings Blazin Player: Dallas Braden
Dallas Braden
Every Tuesday Sports Grind Entertainment presents you with the Buffalo Wild Wings Blazin Player of the Week. This week the recipient of this prestigious honor goes to Oakland Athletics pitcher Dallas Braden for throwing a perfect game which simply is BLAZIN.
Major League Baseball has been played since 1869 and there has only been 19 games to have a perfect game. Braden is the newest member of the short selected club when he went gave up no hits and no walks against the Tampa Bay Rays on Mothers Day.
On a day when everything in baseball goes pink to bring awareness the support against breast cancer, Braden took to the mound and was perfect in pink. He shut down the MLB’s hottest team and lead the Athletics to a 4-0 victory. He struck out six in the 109-pitch performance, throwing 77 strikes in his 53rd career start and first complete game.
Braden pitched the A’s first perfect game since Hall of Famer Catfish Hunter’s gem on May 8, 1968, against the Minnesota Twins.
Congratulations Dallas Braden you are this weeks Buffalo Wild Wings Blazin Player.
Minnesota Twins Orlando Hudson Thinks Racism Why Jermaine Dye Doesn’t Have Job
Is It As Easy As Black & White?
Minnesota Twins second baseman Orlando Hudson hints at that that some African-American Major League Baseball players are getting the blackballed treatment not for declining skills but because of their skin color.
“You see guys like Jermaine Dye without a job. Guy with [27 home runs and 81 RBIs] and can’t get a job. Pretty much sums it up right there, no? You’ve got some guys who miss a year who can come back and get $5, $6 million, and a guy like Jermaine Dye can’t get a job. A guy like Gary Sheffield, a first-ballot Hall of Famer, can’t get a job. We both know what it is. You’ll get it right. You’ll figure it out. I’m not gonna say it because then I’ll be in [trouble].”
Between the Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program and Urban Youth Academies, baseball has tried to resolve that gap between the sport and African-Americans. Compared to football and the stranglehold of basketball, baseball finishes a distant third. While the tremendous influx of upcoming African-American talent in the major leagues in recent years from Philadelphia Phillies Ryan Howard, Tampa Bay Rays Carl Crawford to Arizona Diamondbacks Justin Upton and Atlanta Braves Jason Heyward is a positive sign, it doesn’t eliminate the feeling that others have been mistreated.
While some will accuse Hudson of race baiting and paranoia, the reality is quite the opposite, he is taking public a concern that promotes discussion and forces MLB to be honest with itself.
However I don’t think it’s as clean or easy to explain Dye’s unemployment as a racist thing as it is to explain the context of financial realities in baseball. Has racism been a problem in baseball’s history? Of course it has, it’s been a problem throughout American history. It still exists today but figure into the equation that the market for aging sluggers with little defensive value is minimal and with the the free-agent market in the last 5 years shifted drastically away from older players at high cost.
Consider the former World Series MVP’s phone did ring in the offseason with Dye and his agent, Bob Bry, turning down offers from the Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Rangers, and last week rejected an offer from the Washington Nationals.
In comparison aging outfielders with similar skill like Milwaukee Brewers Jim Edmonds and Seattle Mariners Mike Sweeney have jobs but it also has to do with they were willing to take $650K and Dye is not.
MLB.com lists 25 unsigned free agents. Of those 25, two are African-Americans, Dye and Sheffield. Dye is still sitting at home for similar the reason that Jarrod Washburn is and that’s unrealistic salary demands.
WTF: Minnesota Twins
Is Dave Mansell Your Final Answer?
Target Field home of the Minnesota Twins opened yesterday afternoon against the Boston Red Sox and who was the lucky person to throw out the ceremonial first pitch? Non other than Dave Mansell.
Scratching your head thinking of when Mansell played with the Twins? You see Mansell never played for the Twins or with any MLB team, he’s the Mortenson Construction Superintendent of the project. I guess Minnesotans really live by a different beat when they passed on Twins All Stars Jack Morris, Tony Oliva, Kent Hrbek and Frank Viola. Hall of Famers Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew or Dave Winfield didn’t serve any better nor did Kirby Puckett Jr as the honor went to the site manager of people.
When history looks back on yesterday and the trivia question arises who threw out the Twins first pitch at Target Field, I doubt anyone outside of the Mansell family will be able to provide the answer.
Minnesota Twins Denard Span Hits His Momma
What Are The Odds?
Minnesota Twins Denard Span’s mother settled into her box seat, surrounded by 20 family members and friends, to watch her son lead off for the Minnesota Twins in a spring training game. In a split-second, Span hit a foul ball that struck his mom in the upper chest. She was treated by paramedics and back in the stands later.
She was wearing her sons jersey and sitting a few rows off the Twins third-base dugout. In the first inning against the New York Yankees, Span took a late swing on the sixth pitch of the game and sent a line drive that hit his mother near the shoulder.
“As the ball was in the air, I realized that it was going after my mom,” Span said after arriving back at Twins headquarters in Fort Myers. “When I saw her go down, I just couldn’t do nothing but go after her.”
Span ran into the packed stands and stayed with his mother while she got treatment. Shaken, she’d started to tear up.
“That’s what hurt me the most,” Span said, “when she started crying.”
The split-squad game was delayed for a few minutes as she walked to the first aid station. Span returned to the plate and struck out looking on the next pitch from Phil Hughes. Span stayed in the game and at the top of the third inning Yankees Derek Jeter stopped him on the field and told him that it was OK to leave the game to check on his mother. Span left in the bottom of the third, telling a team official he wasn’t mentally into the game.
The odds of this happening is very rare however Hall of Famer Bob Feller once threw a pitch that was fouled off and struck his mother on Mother’s Day at Comiskey Park in Chicago in 1939.
SGE Fantasy Baseball Preview: Shortstops
Sleeper Pick
I can feel it like the the sun burning up your neck on a hot August day, only 16 more days until Opening Day. Today’s rankings is the shortstop position where you will find a bulk of guys that will help in the stolen base and runs scored department. It’s often said that speed kills, this position has an abundance of it and guys that do it well. The best of the best at shortstop is hands down Florida Marlins Hanley Ramirez, Colorado Rockies Troy Tulowitzki and Philadelphia Phillies Jimmy Rollins buts lets go deeper.
Breakout Player: Elvis Andrus, Texas Rangers
- Andrus finished second among American League rookie of the year voting so don’t expect to wait around on him. His overall talents will have him on plenty of peoples radars but since he’s a great source for stolen bases and runs he might be on radars of the least expected. His on-base skills are very advance for a player who is just 21 years old. He had 125 stolen bases in just 407 minor league games, so even if he struggles at the plate, he will always have his speed. If the Rangers continue to have the offensive year they had last year expect Andrus do be crossing home plate sooner and often.
Sleeper Player: J.J. Hardy, Minnesota Twins
- This pick came down to Hardy and the guy who replace him back in Milwaukee, Alcides Escobar. I believe Escobar should have a good year along the baseballs but still a little leery on his chances of getting there, however its Hardy who I’m rolling with. He hit .156 in April with the Brewers and never recovered but Minnesota got a deal on Hardy when they traded for him after his terrible season. Plus he’s only 27 years old compared to last seasons Twins playoff run shortstop, Orlando Cabrera who is 35. Hardy is not your shortstop that will steal the bases instead he will hit for power and I look for him to get back to his track record of hitting 26 home runs in 2007 and 24 in 2008. He’ll come at a big discount because it will still be fresh on peoples minds that the Brewers optioned him to Class AAA at one point. Playing with a new team, in a new state, in a new stadium is all the things Hardy needs for that fresh start.
Risky Player: Jose Reyes, New York Mets
- Do I believe Reyes to be a great player? Yes. Is there more risk attached to him than ever before? Yes. I would rather watch him prove me wrong on someone else roster than ruining mine if things turned for the worse. The health of Reyes right hamstring is to troubling to ignore. He played in only 36 games last season and was set back again in October when he tore the same right hamstring that had him on the DL since May. I’m just siding with caution on this one.
Slipping Player: Marco Scutaro, Boston Red Sox
- I know Scutaro had his best season as a pro last year with the Toronto Blue Jays, setting career highs in every fantasy category but it came at the age of 33 and in Toronto. The pressure of playing in Boston will sure wear on someone who is more likely to revert back to his normal self and his usual run of 7 home runs and 40 RBI’s. His first five years of career are a better indication of his skills and his .260 average. He’s 34 and I don’t see him having a career like Casey Blake in getting a late start to it and staying consistent.
Be sure to come back for the preview of third base position.
Victoria’s Secret Partners With Major League Baseball On Clothing Line
Babes Love Baseball
With Spring Training underway, Major League Baseball Properties and Victoria ’s Secret PINK are introducing a new way for female fans to display their team pride and celebrate the upcoming season in style.
The MLB and VS PINK co-branded collection will fashionably feature names and logos of 11 MLB teams including the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Dodgers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals.
The collection showcases VS PINK’s highly recognizable brand iconography with fun sayings like “I only kiss Yankees fans” or “Love Love Love Twins”, and boasts cute zip-pocket tees, crystallized caps, baseball jerseys, stylish hoodies, tanks, sweats, shorts and more.
The collection will launched yesterday in more than 100 Victoria ’s Secret stores spanning each of these teams markets, as well as on www.victoriassecret.com. Victoria ’s Secret PINK is a fully articulated and internationally recognized lifestyle collection specifically for young women. This new product line is the latest effort by Major League Baseball to provide its extensive female fan base with new and fashionable ways to support their favorite team.
According to ESPN Sports Poll, Major League Baseball has had the largest percentage of female fans (45% of its total fan base in ’09) among the major sports leagues since 2004. This collaboration marks the first professional sports relationship for VS PINK.
7-Foot-1 Minnesota Twins Pitcher Turning Heads In Spring Training
Stretch
Minnesota Twins pitcher Loek Van Mil from the Netherlands who is 7’1″ is making quite an impression in Spring Training and the 25-year-old has quickly moved up in the Twins farm system.
He was found by Twins international scouting director Howard Norsetter in Van Mil homeland that eventually lead the right-hander on the phone every few weeks and worked him out a few times at a baseball clinic in Amsterdam. The scouts where so impressed with what they saw that they asked him if he’d like to sign a contract. A week earlier, the Seattle Mariners had approached Van Mil and offered slightly more money, but the right-hander already had developed a loyalty to the Twins way.
Van Mil orginally started out as a catcher but was forced out from behind the plate due to his height and suddenly found himself on the mound where he has prospered. Last season, he pitched well enough for Class A Fort Myers to earn a promotion to Class AA New Britain where he had an ERA of 2.45. Another good sign came this off-season when the Twins placed him on the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.
His fastball has been clocked at 92 to 93 mph, and the Twins are happy with how his hard slider and changeup have progressed this Spring Training.
The Twins already have the tallest player in the major leagues with right-handed pitcher Jon Rauch at 6′ 11″
Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim Mike Scioscia Wins American League Manager Of The Year
34 Would Be Proud
Mike Scioscia of the Los Angeles Angels of Anhiem had to endure the most emotionally season of his 10 seasons as leader of the Angels and that culminated in him selected as the 2009 American League Manager of the Year by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
It was Scioscia’s second Manager of the Year award. He was named by the BBWAA in 2002, when the Angels claimed their first World Series title under his direction after entering the postseason as a Wild Card. Scioscia, who is the first manager in Major League history to pilot six postseason teams in his first 10 seasons, received 15 of a possible 28 first-place votes for 106 points.
The Twins’ Ron Gardenhire finished second with six first-place votes and 72 points. Joe Girardi of the Yankees (four first-place votes) was third, followed by the Mariners’ Don Wakamatsu (two), the Rangers’ Ron Washington (one) and the Tigers’ Jim Leyland.
Coping with the death of young pitcher Nick Adenhart in a car wreck on April 9, Scioscia and the Angels emerged from early struggles — they were 29-29 on June 11 — to take flight en route to a third consecutive AL West title, their fifth in six seasons.
In the AL Division Series, the Angels swept their October nemesis, Boston, in three games before falling in six games in the AL Championship Series to the Yankees, who went on to subdue the Phillies in the World Series.
With 97 wins, the Angels continued a run of excellence under Scioscia, whose teams have won 900 regular-season games in 10 seasons. His 567 victories over the past six seasons represent a Major League best — one more than Joe Torre has achieved with the Yankees and Dodgers and two more than Terry Francona with the Red Sox.
2009 ALL-SGE-MLB Team
Est. 2009
The 2009 regular season of Major League Baseball has ended and Sports Grind Entertainment is handing out it’s first ever All-SGE-MLB Team. The 2009 All-SGE-MLB Team takes in account not only what a player does with the bat but as well in the field, weak players with the glove are easily removed from consideration.
2009 ALL-SGE-MLB Team:
First Base – Albert Pujols (Allah), St. Louis Cardinals: Pujols probably will walk away with the 2009 National League MVP and his numbers of 47 home runs 135 RBIs and .327 batting average are just a peek into his overall value.
Second Base – Aaron Hill, Toronto Blue Jays: Hill is generally thought of as a great double play combination but the year of 2009 everything happened to fall into place for him with the bat, 36 home runs 108 RBIs and 195 hits for a .286 batting average.
Shortstop – Hanley Rameriz, Florida Marlins: Rameriz is quickly becoming one of of the best players in all of MLB. Rameriz didn’t hit for power in 2009 but instead for a National League high .342 and hit to all parts of the field collecting 195.
Third Base – Ryan Zimmerman, Washington Nationals: Zimmerman might not be know outside of Washington or to drive by fan but he has Gold Glove type of fingers at third and saw his numbers jump to 33 home runs 106 RBIs and a .292 average.
Catcher – Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins: Just as Pujols should walk away with the National League MVP the same could be said of Mauer. The 2009 American League Batting League champion should also see his 2009 awards include a Gold Glove and the AL MVP. It’s outstanding when you consider Mauer is a catcher and hitting .365 average and 28 home runs.
Outfield – Adam Jones, Baltimore Orioles: If the name Ryan Zimmerman is foreign to the drive by MLB fan then Jones name is from outer space. Jones was an excellent outfielder in 2009 and should be in line to win his first Gold Glove award. Despite playing in only a 119 games due to a neck injury he still posted 19 home runs and 70 RBIs with a .277 average.
Outfield – Matt Kemp, Los Angeles Dodgers: Kemp was all over the outfield for the Dodgers and his bat help supply for many of Los Angeles come from behind victories in 2009. Kemp had 26 home runs 101 RBIs and a .297 average to go along with 34 stolen bases.
Outfield – Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle Mariners: Ichiro was once again Ichiro in 2009. As usual another dominate defensive performance to go with yet another 200 season, 225 hits and a .352 average.
Starting Left Handed Pitcher – CC Sabathia, New York Yankees: Sabathia was the best left handed starting pitcher in 2009 with a 19-8 record and 3.37 ERA and struck out 197 batters in 230 innings.
Starting Right Handed Pitcher – Chris Carpenter, St. Louis Cardinals: Carpenter should win the 2009 National League Cy Young Award with his 17-4 record and 2.24 ERA in striking out 144 batters while completing three games.
Closer – Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees: Rivera continues to be the best closer of this generation, it’s not the number that are impressive it’s the times and situations that he continues to be effective. The 2009 saw Rivera save 44 games out of 46 opportunities with a 1.76 ERA in 66.1 innings pitched while striking out 72 batters.
Manager – Jim Tracy, Colorado Rockies: Tracy who took over the last place Rockies on May 29th, 18-28, the Rockies then went 74-42 and won the National League Wild Card. In the end, the Rockies were 92-70, and set a club record for wins in a season while making the playoffs for the second time in three seasons.
TBS & MLB Are What People Are Watching
Est. 1869
Major League Baseball is hitting home runs on TBS with its coverage of the four Division Series.
According to Media Week, the network enjoyed the best ratings of its 33-year history with its coverage of the first-round playoff series, averaging 5.41 million total viewers. So take that Mama’s Family and you to Tyler Perry. The network also set highs by averaging 2.54 million adults age 25 to 54, 2.46 million viewers 18 to 49 and 1.12 million viewers 18 to 34.
TBS also owned 7 of the week’s 10 most-watched cable telecasts, including Game 3 of the Yankees-Twins American League DS on Oct. 11, which drew 6.79 million viewers. That series was the most watched among the four DS matchups, averaging 6.63 million total viewers.
TBS’ coverage of the National League Championship Series between the Dodgers and Phillies kicks off on Thursday. Coverage of the AL Championship Series between the Angels and Yankees shifts to FOX, beginning on Friday.
Twins Say Goodbye To Metrodome
Goodbye Friend
With the New York Yankees sweeping the Minnesota Twins in Game 3, the final MLB game was played at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The game was the highest attended MLB game in Metrodome history at 54,735 which bested the 54,088 figure set on Monday’s AL Central tiebreaker.
The Metrodome was home to many classic and many memories from Kirby Pucket jumping and slamming his body into the Plexiglas, my St. Louis Cardinals never pulling out a win in the 1987 World Series, and the epic 1991 World Series against the Atlanta Braves where all four games where classics.
Not to be forgotten was this years tiebreaker game this year against the Detroit Tigers, the “Baggie” in right field, the shear loudness that the Metrodome was able to carry through your TV, and the roof that caused many outfielders to lose pop ups in.
The Metrodome saw many Twin greats play on its astro turf like Kent Hrbek, Rod Carew, Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer and of course Kirby Puckett. For never being one of the stadiums I personally attended I do still say thank you for the memories.
The Twins will begin play next season at the new open-air Target Field and those critics that are concerned about how the weather the Twins will play in probably don’t live in Minnesota and also forget baseball was once played outside in the state of 10,000 lakes.
Twins Game Means More Than The Tonight Show
Forget about your jobs, it’s postseason baseball
October/November Predictions
Who Doesn't Love October
Yes this postseason will be decided in November because of the World Baseball Classic. The postseason has always ended in October except for the 2001 season due to the tragic events of September 11.
There’s a disclaimer towards a badass team that hails from St. Louis, every series involving the Redbirds is obviously picked from the heart while every other series not involving them is pick with the head.
Now onto the 2009 Major League Baseball Postseason Predictions:
National League Divisional Series:
St.Louis Cardinals over Los Angles Dodgers in 4
Colorado Rockies over Philadelphia Phillies in 5
American League Divisional Series:
Minnesota Twins over New York Yankees in 5
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Boston Red Sox in 3
National League Championship Series:
St. Louis Cardinals over Colorado Rockies in 6
American League Championship Series:
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over Minnesota Twins in 5
World Series:
St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 5
MLB Can Only Draw 73,418,529 Fans In Recession
Est. 1869
The book can now be completely closed on Major League Baseball 2009 regular season attendance. Baseball completed the season with a total attendance of 73,418,529, down 6.58 percent from a total of 78,591,116 in 2008. The total attendance figure will rank as the fifth highest in MLB history. In another measure of attendance, ballparks saw an average of 30,338 down 6.77 percent from the 32,543 in average attendance last season.
Game 163 at the Metrodome between the Detroit Tigers and Minnesota Twins was the largest attended game in the facility’s history with 54,088 in attendance.
The Los Angeles Dodgers led the Major Leagues in attendance with 3,761,669 for an average of 46,440. The reigning World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies and the Boston Red Sox, set all-time club records, drawing 3,600,693 and 3,062,699, respectively. For the first time since 2004 the Yankees will have attendance below 4 million.
Nine clubs drew more than three million fans (Dodgers, Yankees, Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Chicago Cubs, New York Mets, Red Sox and Milwaukee Brewers) and last year, nine clubs drew more than three million, with two (the Yankees and Mets) drawing over 4 million. The two New York franchises accounted for nearly 30 percent of the total decline in attendance this year.
Twins Win Reminds Us All What Is Great About Baseball
Go-Go-Gomez
Did you witness last night’s 12 inning heart attack inducing game 163 between the Twins and the Tigers? If you missed it, are you really a sports fan? After playing through 162 games of July heat, April showers, Seattle to New York, New York to Florida, Florida to Detroit, double headers, day games, night games, it was the ultimate win or go home game.
So if you missed the tiebreaker game, are you really a sports fan or do you false advertise?
If you where a witness, you didn’t see a crime, you saw that Metrodome magic. It took 163 games to finally decided an American League Central Champion. This was the second year in a row that the Twins have had to force the tiebreaker 163 game to decide the division, playing and losing to the Chicago White Sox 1-0 in 2008, and they weren’t going down without a fight this time. The Minnesota Twins, who were seven games back in early September, battled until the very end, going 17-4 down the stretch to take down the Tigers 6-5 in the tie-breaker game.
The game was filled with back and forth drama, until finally in the 12th, Alexi Casilla got a base hit that allowed Carlos “Go-Go” Gomez to slide across home with the game winning run. This ensures that the Metrodome will still be hosting baseball past the ‘Final Game’.
“That is as good a baseball game as I’ve ever been involved as far as courage from both teams,” Twins manager Ron Gardenhire. “We came through at the end. But after 10 innings I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I’ve never seen anything like this.’ It was just back and forth, neither team giving up.”
“This game is going to live forever,” Gardenhire said. “People are going to talk about it forever. I know it was just Game 163, but people are going to talk about this game. There was a lot of stuff that happened in it.”
Joe Mauer finished last night as the American League batting champion, this marks the 3rd time in his career to achieve the accomplishment (unheard of from the catcher position), first in on base percentage, slugging. As previously stated Mauer is your AL MVP.
Well played champs. Well played.
162 Games Was Just Not Enough, Tigers To Get Metro Doomed
Twins Win
One year after losing a 1-0 heart-breaker to the Chicago White Sox in a one-game playoff, the Minnesota Twins will host the Detroit Tigers Tuesday in a tiebreaker for the American League Central title. The winner will head to the playoffs.
This marks the second year in a row that the Twins have needed a 163rd game to end their season, a first for baseball.
Just a month ago, the Twins were seven games behind the Tigers in the division race. A week ago, they were three down with four to play. And after winning 16 of their last 20, over 50,000 Metrodome seats sold out within minutes of going on sale Sunday for the tiebreaker.
Meanwhile, the Tigers, who will look to rookie Rick Porcello (14-9, 3.50 ERA), lost 15 of their last 26 games to let Minnesota’s foot back in the door.
The Twins will put righty Scott Baker (15-9, 3.32 ERA) on the hill, two days after using almost their entire rotation to complete the sweep of the Kansas City Royals.
The game is being played in Minnesota because the Twins won the season series 11-7, including seven wins in nine games at the Metrodome.
Between Sunday evening and Monday after noon there was 320,000 ticket request for this tiebreaker game. If it’s anything like the 1987 World Series the Tigers will be making doctor appointments for the ears on Wednesday.
Postseason Baseball is here and I couldn’t be happier.
PICK: Minnesota Twins
SGE Baseball Awards
The Best In 09
Oh it’s postseason time in baseball and that means it’s time to hand out some awards on the baseball diamond here at Sports Grind Entertainment.
Starting off with the senior circuit, the National League MVP couldn’t have been any easier. Don’t get it twisted that since Albert Pujols plays for the only professional sports origination in all of sports that I truly care about, that this vote wasn’t hands down his. Yes, if the race was close and I went with Pujols I could understand your concern but the 2009 season produce no one within a mile.
- NL MVP Award: The Cardinals first baseman leads his league in on-base percentage and slugging percentage plus homers, runs scored, total bases, grand slams and extra-base hits. He’s second in batting average with men in scoring position. Third overall in batting average and in RBI’s. Crazy as it sounds Pujols lead the Cardinals in stolen bases. Pujols also has an NL-record 184 assists from first base.
- NL Cy Young Award: There was a three-way choice between San Francisco’s Tim Lincecum and St. Louis teammates Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright. They’re 1-2-3 in ERA and 1-2-4 in wins.
- Carpenter has been the most brilliant and dominant, but he’s not in the top 10 in the NL in innings pitched because of early-season health issues. Lincecum has the lowest OPS allowed, but he plays in a great pitcher’s park. Wainwright leads the league the league in wins.
- Carpenter still took the ball against the other team aces so he gets it by a hair over Wainwright.
- NL Rookie of the Year: Was loaded with fresh new propest that made a mark in the 2009 season, with Philadelphia’s J.A. Happ, Atlanta’s Tommy Hanson, Randy Wells of the Cubs, Milwaukee’s Casey McGehee, Florida’s Chris Coghlan, Colorado’s Dexter Fowler and Pittsburgh’s Garrett Jones and Andrew McCutchen.
- As far as position player Coghlan (229 total bases, 82 runs scored and .319 average) is as good of a choice as any but it came down to the two pitchers that came to show earlier and never fell off all season. Happ (12-4, 2.85 ERA) vs. Hanson (11-4, 2.89 ERA).
- While Hanson is a terrific prospect, Happ threw 164 innings and the Phillies would have been in big trouble without him.
- NL Manager of the Year: There are a few good candidates. Fredi Gonzalez kept the Marlins in contention for 25 weeks. Tony La Russa had little in his lineup other than Pujols for the first three months. Charlie Manuel got the Phillies back on top, as did Joe Torre with the Dodgers.
- But this award is a no brainier for Colorado Jim Tracy, they have gone 74-41 since he took over for Clint Hurdle. That’s the equivalent of a 104-win season.
- AL Cy Young Award: When the Cy Young is discussed many see a losing team and figure there is no way a pitcher from such team would win the award over someone on a contending team, but that’s not what the Cy Young is about. On any squad the best pitcher is not responsible on how well or bad the team plays on his days off.
- And that makes Kansas City’s Zack Greinke is the best pitcher in the AL. Period. He lead the league with a 2.16 ERA on a bad defensive team. He had 6 complete games, 3 shutouts and was second in strikeouts with 242. Greinke had a 15 strikout performance and on his next outing threw a one hitter. He was the best pitcher in both leagues. Period.
- Felix Hernandez, Justin Verlander and CC Sabathia are great. And if Greinke wasn’t around, it would be a three-way debate. But this year, that debate is about second place.
- AL MVP Award: Joe Mauer leads the American League in batting, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. And he’s a catcher. Mauer leads the AL in batting average at home, on the road, against right-handers and in night games. He is second in average with runners in scoring position, third in average in day games and fourth in average vs. lefties.
- If Mauer was playing in New York, he’d be everywhere. He would be on every billboard, every magazine cover.
- Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Kendry Morales had very nice years. Very nice.
- Considering the lack of protection in his lineup as compared to the others in the debate, it Mauer as the choice. Also since the only protection he had in teamamte and former MVP Justin Morneau is sidelined for the year. That forced Mauer to put the team on his back as they got back into contention of the AL Central Divison to force a one game playoff with the Detriot Tigers.
- AL Rookie of the Year: What a great season for rookie talent, in both leagues. The White Sox third baseman Gordon Beckham, who has hit well. Baltimore outfielder Nolan Reimold who leads Beckham in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and homers. Texas’ Elvis Andrus, meanwhile, has played all season excelling at shortstop with acceptable production at the plate for a 20-year-old.
- Comparing position players against pitchers is comparing apples to oranges. Oakland’s Andrew Bailey with his .168 opponents’ average, Detroit’s Rick Porcello, Toronto’s Ricky Romero.
- Tough call, but Porcello is 20, and he made 30 starts while pitching in a pennant race to the finish and he went 14-9 with a 4.04 ERA.
- AL Manager of the Year: Great job by Ron Washington to help make the Rangers relevant. But Mike Scioscia didn’t just guide the Angels to another division title. He kept the team from falling apart through a rough first few months, not only because of a rash of pitching injuries but also because of the death of Nick Adenhart. Managing a team is about managing people, and Scioscia did a great job this year. Joe Girardi managed his team to 103 wins and probably wont get a sniff at the award is tough but that how things play out sometimes.
San Antonio’s Jeff Manship Earns 1st Big League Win
Congratulations
I’ve been eagerly waiting to write this post since September 1st when it was announced that San Antonio’s own Jeff Manship, a Reagan High School graduate, would get his first Major League Baseball start for the Minnesota Twins. The wait was well worth it as the win came at a well timed moment for the Twins as they closed the gab between the American League Central leading Detroit Tigers to one game, with two games remaining for both clubs.
Delmon Young helped Manship out in the Twins 10-7 victory over the Kansas City Royals with a grand slam and 5 RBIs. Manship (1-1) was tagged with four runs in 5 1/3 innings, but like four of his last six starts he’s pitched better than the box score reflects. Manship never gave up any huge hits, mostly singles that moved runners around in the newly named Mall of America Field at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. The announced crowd of 40,223 in attendence saw Manship strike out four.
Congragulations 49.
YOU AIN’T CHEATIN, YOU AIN’T TRYIN PART 2
You know what? I’m gonna tell everybody around here… when it comes to playin’ pool, Joe Mauer likes to cheat.
Mauer your future AL MVP.
Former Texas A&M Aggie Chuck Knoblauch Chokes Common Law Wifey
Steve Blass Disease
Chuck Knoblauch the former big league infielder, who played in five World Series with the Minnesota Twins and the New York Yankees, has been charged with assaulting his common-law wife, Stacey Stelmach. More specifically, he hit her in the face and then choked her in their Houston home.
Prosecutor Kari Allen explained the probable cause is that he arrived home and became upset with Stelmach. He then tried to leave, but because she was fearful of him driving, she kept the keys. That’s when Knoblauch attacked Stelmach, punching and choking her.
Lt. Bill Sala with the Memorial Villages Police said, “Choking does raise it to a felony in the third degree.”
Knoblauch once nicknamed “Fundamentally Sound” has many blunders to his name, in 1999 he began to have difficulty making accurate throws to first base, a condition sometimes referred to in baseball as “the yips” or “Steve Blass Disease”. During one game, an errant throw sailed into the crowd and hit sportscaster Keith Olbermann’s mother in the face. He was reassigned to left field by manager Joe Torre, never to return to his old position. he was also one of more than 80 players who were accused of using performance-enhancing drugs in the 2007 Mitchell Report on baseball’s steroids era. Knoblauch later acknowledged using performance enhancers.
A judge set Knoblauch’s bond at $10,000
Vikings Face Scheduling Conflict
October 5th Spoiler?
Since the Minnesota Twins have deiced to get back into the American League Central Division playoff race over the weekend, this could pose a very big scheduling conflict with the Metrodome’s other tenants the Minnesota Vikings. This may be premature, but with the Twins losing its star first baseman for the season and the Twins taking two of three games against Central division leading Detroit Tigers,it might not be.
Monday night games always have an extra excitement in NFL cities and when a certain quarterback plays his former team the level of excitement takes on a whole new level. That would be the case for Viking fans on October 5th as they have a home game scheduled against their rival the Green Bay Packers. However, the Twins may also need the Metrodome if they tie for the American League Central title, the Twins could be hosting a tiebreaker that night.
Major League Baseball says the Twins have priority over the use of the stadium that night, even if as it stands right now that the last day of their season is October 4th, and they also say the NFL knows what’s going on.
“The NFL is fully aware of it,” MLB executive Katy Feeney said. “That’s one of the reasons they schedule those as intradivision games, so they can flip [home sites] if they need to.”
The Twins are currently three games behind the Tigers in the AL Central race, but if it continues to stay close the NFL and Major League Baseball will need to resolve the scheduling issues in advance.
***UPDATE***
Due to the series being split 2-2 and producing no clear cut division front runner, MLB said they realizes the strain it would put on the NFL having to wait till the last series of the season and will play it’s game on Tuesday. If was hoping the series would help avoid such decision.
