Rod Barajas finds missing World Series ring four years later
Found It 2001
Current Arizona Diamondbacks backup catcher Rod Barajas was also the Diamondbacks backup catcher when the team won the World Series in 2001. Barajas, then a 25-year-old rookie, batted just .160/.191/.274 in the regular season but stepped up and went 2-for-5 with a homer in the seven-game triumph over the New York Yankees.
Four years ago, Barajas lost his World Series ring, but now he’s finally found it. The real story, though, is how he found it. It involves Brajas’ wife, Stacie, and the recent death of her beloved grandmother.
Before leaving the couple’s home in San Diego, Stacie tried on a pair of shoes she had not worn in years. She tried one foot on, determined it matched her outfit and packed both shoes for the trip.
While getting ready at the hotel just before the funeral, Stacie put on both shoes for the first time. Only there was a problem with the one she hadn’t tried on before she left. There was something in the toe blocking her foot.
“I was getting ready and my wife yelled out, ‘Guess what I just found?’” Barajas said. “We’re in a hotel room and I’m like, what could you find in a hotel room?”
As it turns out, you can find a 2001 World Series ring and pendant.
“She walked out with the ring and pendant and we both looked at each other and I said, ‘That was your grandmother. Your grandmother grabbed that and put it there for us. One last gift that she gave us before she left,’” Barajas said.
Alex Rodriguez World Series ring up for sale
Till The Casket Drops
Alex Rodriguez’s longtime assistant and noted drug mule is apparently in need of some cash. Yuri Sucart, best known as the cousin who A-Rod says convinced him to take steroids, is selling his 2009 New York Yankees World Series championship ring.
Sucart was banned by Major League Baseball from clubhouses and private areas of stadiums after Rodriguez ‘s 2009 admission that he took performance-enhancing drugs from 2001-2003. As part of Rodriguez’s admission, he said a cousin supplied and administered “boli” to him in those years.
That cousin was later identified by reporters as Sucart, and his name emerged again recently in the logs of Biogenesis, the South Florida clinic that reportedly distributed substances – banned and otherwise – to at least 25 major league players, Rodriguez included.
Biogenesis logs obtained by the Miami New Times show Rodriguez’s and Sucart’s names in ledgers from 2009 – the year A-Rod exorcised his postseason demons and led the Yankees to the World Series title.
Now, reports the New York Daily News, the Rodriguez/Sucart ring could fetch as much as $40,000 via New Jersey-based Goldin Auctions, which says the bling “boasts a STAGGERING 95 diamonds.”
Curt Schilling’s bloody sock sells at auction
Fraud
A bloody sock worn by Curt Schilling while pitching for the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of the 2004 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals was sold for $92,613 at a live auction on Saturday night at the Fletcher-Sinclair Mansion.
Schilling had loaned his sock to the National Baseball Hall of Fame Museum but when his Rhode Island-based video game company “38 Studios” went bankrupt, he decided to sell the sock that was bloodied as he pitched on an injured ankle.
Bidding began at $25,000 several weeks ago. An anonymous bidder submitted the winning bid.
This was not the famous bloody sock he wore during Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS against the New York Yankees.
Jeffrey Loria writes ‘Letter to our Fans’ in Miami newspapers
Smug Asshole
Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria took out a full-page ad in the Sunday editions of the Miami Herald, Palm Beach Post and South Florida Sun-Sentinel and published a “Letter To Our Fans.” Here it is:
LETTER TO OUR FANS
It’s no secret that last season was not our best — actually it was one of our worst. In large part, our performance on the field stunk and something needed to be done. As a result of some bold moves, many grabbed hold of our tough yet necessary decision only to unleash a vicious cycle of negativity. As the owner of the ballclub, the buck stops with me and I take my share of the blame where it’s due. However, many of the things being said about us are simply not true. I’ve sat by quietly and allowed this to continue. Now it’s time for me to resond to our most important constituents, the fans who love the game of baseball.
THE ROSTER
Losing is unacceptable to me. It’s incumbant upon us to take swift action and make bold moves when there are glaring problems. The controversial trade we made with the Toronto Blue Jays was approved by Commissioner Bud Selig and has been almost universally celebrated by baseball experts outside of Miami for its value. We hope, with an open mind, our community can reflect on the fact that we had one of the worst records in baseball. Acquiring high-profile players just didn’t work, and nearly everyone on our team underperformed as compared to their career numbers. Our plan for the year ahead is to leverage our young talent and create a homegrown roster of long-term players who can win. In fact, objective experts have credited us with going from the 28th ranked Minor League system in baseball to the 5th best during this period. Of the Top 100 Minor Leagues rated by MLB Network, we have six — tied for the most of any team in the league. We’ll evaluate this roster and possibly bring in additional talent based on our assessment of what we need. The very same naysayers who are currently skeptical once attacked us for bringing Pudge Rodriguez to the Marlins in 2003. More than any other, that move contributed to our World Series Championship.
THE BALLPARK
The ballpark issue has been repeatedly reported incorrectly and there are some very negative accustations being thrown around. It ain’t true, folks. Those who have attacked us are entitled to their own opinions, but not their own facts. The majority of public funding came from hotel taxes, the burden of which is incurred by tourists who are visiting our city, NOT the resident taxpayers. The Marlins organization also agreed to contribute $161.2 million toward the ballpark, plus the cost of the garage complex. In addition, the Marlins receive no operating subsidy from local government funding. The ballpark required that all debt service is paid by existing revenue. Furthermore, many are attacking the County’s method of financing for its contribution, but the Marlins had nothing at all to do with that. The fact is, with your help, we built Marlins Park, a crown jewel in our beautiful Miami skyline, which has won over twenty design and architecture awards and will help make us a premiere ballclub moving forward.
OUR FINANCES
The simple fact is that we don’t have unlimited funds, nor does any baseball team or business. Fans didn’t turn out last season as much as we’d like, even with the high-profile players the columnists decry us having traded. The main ingredient to a successful ball club is putting together a winning team, including a ncecessary core of young talent. Are we fiscally capable and responsible enough to fill the roster with talented players, invest in the daily demands of running a world-class organization and bring a World Series back to Miami? Absolutely! Is it sound business sense to witness an expensive roster with a terrible record and sit idly by doing nothing? No. I can and will invest in building a winner, but last season wasn’t sustainable and we needed to start from scratch quickly to build this team from the ground up.
COMMUNICATION
An organization is only as good as its connection with the community. We know we can do a better job communicating with our fans. That starts now. From this point forward we can ensure fans and the entire community that we will keep you abreast of our plan, rationale and motivations.
Amidst the current news coverage, it an be easy to forget how far we went together not so long ago. In 2003, I helped bring a second World Series Title to South Florida. We know how to build a winning team, and have every intention of doing so again. I know you share my passion for great Marlins baseball, my love of MIami and my desire to win again. We’re in this together and I humbly ask that we start fresh, watch us mature qjuickly as a ball club, and root for the home team in 2013.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Loria
WTF: Sergio Romo
He Said, Not Me
Yesterday during the San Francisco Giants World Series parade closer Sergio Romo sported this shirt.
World Series Parade Carrying Trophy Runs Out Of Gas
Have You Seen Gas Prices
The San Francisco Giants celebrated their second World Series parade in three years yesterday, so they’ve been down this road before, suffered a major gaffe. The car carrying Giants manager Bruce Bochy , his wife and the World Series trophy ran out of gas along the route. The Giants never ran out of gas in the MLB playoffs and neither did there fans as three onlookers helped push the car. Talk about a true honor.
Miguel Cabrera Gets Actual Crown For Triple Crown
Doesn't Get Much Better Than That
Detroit Tigers third baseman Miguel Cabrera won the triple crown in baseball this season a feat that had not been achieved since Carl Yastrzemski did so in 1967. Cabrera received an actual crown from Major League Baseball and it features a Detroit Tigers “D” on the front, golden baseball on the top, and is lined with purple cloth.
Cabrera was presented with the trophy prior to Game 3 of the World Series in Detroit. Commissioner Bud Selig and former Triple Crown winner Frank Robinson presented him with the award. He also won the Hank Aaron Award for Most Outstanding Player in the American League.
The back is further customized to reflect Cabrera’s statistics of his league-leading .330 batting average, 44 home runs, and 139 RBIs which were engraved on the crown’s rim.
Bryan Stow Was In Attendance At World Series
Touching
Of all the luminaries and special guests the San Francisco Giants welcomed to AT&T Park for the first two games of this World Series, perhaps no one’s attendance was as moving as Bryan Stow’s.
Stow, the San Francisco Giants fan critically beaten in the Dodger Stadium parking lot in March 2011, attended Thursday night’s Game 2 as a guest of the club.
“He is a guest of ours tonight but the family had asked that we not do anything ceremonial,” Giants public relations official Jim Moorehead said. “He’s here to enjoy the game.”
Stow, a 43-year-old father of two, spent six months in critical and long-term care after the March 31, 2011 beating on Opening Day at Dodger Stadium. In the beating’s aftermath, he was placed in a medically-induced coma to ease pressure on his brain after the attack by two assailants in the stadium parking lot.
Stow’s family became close with the Giants organization, particularly pitcher Jeremy Affeldt, and all-time home run leader Barry Bonds visited Stow in the hospital after the beating and later pledged to pay his children’s college expenses.
Stow’s two alleged assailants, Louie Sanchez and Marvin Norwood, are to stand trial on three felony charges each of mayhem and assault and battery. Stow’s family also filed a $50 million civil suit against the Dodgers that is set to go to trial Feb. 5.
Free Tacos For Everyone In America
Every Fat Persons Hero
Angel Pagan has become a fan favorite in San Francisco. But with one clean swipe of second base, he may have won over America. At the very least, those in the country who love Taco Bell are now among his fans.
In eighth inning of the San Francisco Giants 2-0 win in Game 2 of the World Series, Pagan got a great jump on Detroit Tigers reliever Drew Smyly’s first pitch to Pablo Sandoval. Catcher Gerald Laird fired a strike to second baseman Omar Infante but Pagan slid in ahead of the tag. By stealing second, he not only got himself into scoring postion but he triggered a World Series promotion by the fast food chain.
The “Steal A Base, Steal A Taco” promotion promised that we’d all be treated to something called a Doritos Loco Taco if any player stole a base in the World Series. According to MLB.com, you just need to turn up at participating Taco Bell on Tuesday Oct. 30 between 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to get your free taco.
Triple Amputee War Veteran Throws Out First Pitch
As part of Major League Baseball’s association with the Welcome Back Veterans program, the first pitch for Thursday’s World Series Game 2 was thrown out by Marine Corporal Nicholas Kimmel.
Kimmel, a former high school baseball star in high school, lost both legs and his left arm in an explosion during his second tour of duty in Afghanistan.
He showed off his outfielder’s arm as he fired a strike to the Giants’ designated first-pitch catcher, reliever Sergio Romo. But perhaps the biggest thrill was sharing the mound with Giants Hall of Fame outfielder Willie Mays.
Mays is a U.S. Army veteran, who missed most of the 1952 and all of the 1953 seasons to serve in the Korean War.
Still undergoing treatment at Navy Medical Center in San Diego, Kimmel enjoyed season tickets to San Diego Padres games this season through the Strikeouts for Troops program established by Giants pitcher and Game 1 winner Barry Zito.
Zito and several other major league pitchers donate money for every strikeout they record during the season and the proceeds go toward helping wounded soldiers at military hospitals around the country.
A Red Sox fan growing up, Kimmel says baseball has helped him live a more normal life, despite his disability.
“It’s not that I had any crazy PTSD or anything, but for me the Strikeouts for Troops is more of a way to get out in public and enjoy something that I enjoyed before – baseball – without having to worry about a bunch of people staring at me.”
Vin Scully To Return Announcing Booth Next Season
Idol
A lot has changed for the Los Angeles Dodgers in recent days, but one thing is going to remain very much the same. The team announced Sunday that Hall of Fame broadcaster Vin Scully will return in 2013, his 64th season behind the microphone. Scully will call all Dodgers home and road games in California and Arizona.
Scully, 84, said he is feeling energized after the Guggenheim Baseball Management group bought the team from Frank McCourt this spring for $2 billion.
“I was so impressed by the new ownership,” Scully said Sunday morning in the Dodger Stadium press box. “I was here for the press conference, and I heard some big talk. I wondered whether they would actually do what they said they would do. How fast will they move? How high will they try to take the team? Well, they have done it 10 times over. And what they’ve done is revitalized the city, revitalized the team, the fans — and myself.”
“They want to win, and they want to win now. So I’d like to hold on with both hands and see just how far they’ll take this ballclub — because I really think they’re going to take it as high as it can possible go,” Scully said. “And with all the optimism, it would be pretty hard to walk away from that.”
The Dodgers haven’t won a World Series title since 1988, but that isn’t the primary reason Scully’s coming back.
“I don’t really measure how long I want to stay by the success of the team. I really think it’s inside,” Scully said. “It has nothing to do with the team. It’s the love affair. That’s part of the way I feel about baseball.”
The Dodgers say Scully’s tenure is the longest of any broadcaster with any team. He calls all nine innings of the team’s TV broadcasts, while the first three innings of each of his games are simulcast on radio.
Dodgers chairman and owner Mark Walter says Scully’s return for another season “means a great deal to all of us.”
Scully began his professional baseball broadcasting career in 1950 with the Brooklyn Dodgers. He has called three perfect games, 25 no-hitters, 25 World Series and 12 All-Star games.
Among the historic events he has broadcast: Don Larsen’s perfect game in Game 5 of the 1956 World Series, Kirk Gibson’s homer in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series, Hank Aaron’s record-setting 715th homer, Barry Bonds’ record-breaking 71st, 72nd and 73rd homers and the scoreless-inning streaks of Dodger greats Don Drysdale and Orel Hershiser.
Bobby Valentine Says Kevin Youkilis Never Got Over His Criticism
Bobby Valentine Blows
Chicago White Sox Kevin Youkilis is returning to Fenway Park on Monday for the first time since being traded from the Boston Red Sox three weeks ago. In anticipation of Youkilis return, Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine was asked on Sunday if there was friction between the two.
Based on his reaction, it’s safe to say Valentine still has friction.
“I think that’s a joke,” Valentine told the media, per the Boston Globe. “I wasn’t here last year. There was no friction in spring training. So I think that’s a joke. But I’ll take all that. I think the comment that I made early, he made a big issue out of and I don’t think he ever wanted to get over it.”
Valentine questioned Youkilis commitment early in the season, setting the stage for Youkilis being traded months later. Valentine was asked how his relationship was with Youkilis after the making those comments.
“I have no idea,” he said. “It’s whatever he wanted it to be. Like I said, we didn’t have any strained relationship in spring training and I wasn’t around last year.”
While Valentine still seems to indicate friction with Youkilis, the former Red Sox infielder took the high road.
“I got nothing about any of that stuff. I’m over all the Boston thing this year,” he said. “There’s a lot of great past history but this year I’m focused on the White Sox.”
Youkilis then posted a thank you letter to the Red Sox fans:
What an amazing run I have had these past 8 1/2 years in Boston!
It has been an honor and a privilege to play every home game of my career in Boston before a sold out Fenway Park. I would like to thank everyone who gave me an opportunity in Boston, and stood behind me through all these years. To the Spinners, the Sea Dogs, the PawSox, and to all those teammates on the Red Sox since 2004, I am forever grateful.
I want to thank the Red Sox ownership for all the hard work and dedication to making the Red Sox and Fenway Park a special place to play. They have always supported me on the field, and have helped out in many ways off the field. I can’t thank them enough for my time in Boston.
To Terry Francona, who led us to 2 World Series championships in 2004 and 2007, I thank you for your support and personal guidance through my career with the Red Sox. I thank you for being there for me not just as a manager but as a friend off the field. Thank you for the opportunity to play in 3 All-Star Games, winning 2 World Series, winning the Hank Aaron Award and a Gold Glove. I could have never accomplished all this without all my great teammates and coaches who made me a better player.
I want to thank my parents and brothers for all their support from the day I got drafted. Without my Dad’s hard work building that batting cage, and my Mom tirelessly schlepping me around to all my games, I would never have lived my dreams in Boston. I want to thank my beautiful wife Julie and all her family for all their support. We will always cherish Boston since it was the city in which we met and married.
I also want to thank all the philanthropic people around New England and across the country who supported my charity in the past and continue to support Youk’s Kids. Since its inception, we have raised over $3 million to support the neediest of children in Red Sox Nation. While my days of playing for the Red Sox have ended, I am still committed to serving the New England area through my charity. I thank all the charity’s sponsors for all they have done, and their continued support going forward.
And, last but no means least, to all the Red Sox Nation, the home of the most dedicated and knowledgeable fans in baseball, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. That final game at Fenway was the most emotional day of my life on the baseball field. It could not have been scripted any better. And to all those kids out there in Red Sox Nation, I can give you my Dad’s advice. “Life is like a throw to first base, always aim high.”
I love you all, and thanks,
Kevin Youkilis
3 Million Dollar Card Collection Found In Attic
Gold Mine
Karl Kissner picked up a soot-covered cardboard box that had been under a wooden dollhouse in his grandfather’s attic. Taking a look inside, he saw baseball cards bundled with twine. They were smaller than the ones he was used to seeing.
But some of the names were familiar: Hall of Famers Ty Cobb, Cy Young and Honus Wagner.Then he put the box on a dresser and went back to digging through the attic.
It wasn’t until two weeks later that he learned that his family had come across what experts say is one of the biggest, most exciting finds in the history of sports card collecting, a discovery probably worth millions.
The cards are from an extremely rare series issued around 1910. The few known to exist are in so-so condition at best, with faded images and worn edges. But the ones from the attic in the Ohio town of Defiance are nearly pristine, untouched for more than a century. The colors are vibrant, the borders crisp and white.
“It’s like finding the Mona Lisa in the attic” Kissner said.
Sports card experts who authenticated the find say they may never see something this impressive again.
“Every future find will ultimately be compared to this,” said Joe Orlando, president of Professional Sports Authenticator.
The best of the bunch — 37 cards — are expected to bring a total of $500,000 when they are sold at auction in August during the National Sports Collectors Convention in Baltimore. There are about 700 cards in all that could be worth up to $3 million, experts say. They include such legends as Christy Mathewson and Connie Mack.
Kissner and his family say the cards belonged to their grandfather, Carl Hench, who died in the 1940s. Hench ran a meat market in Defiance, and the family suspects he got them as a promotional item from a candy company that distributed them with caramels. They think he gave some away and kept others.
“We guess he stuck them in the attic and forgot about them,” Kissner said. “They remained there frozen in time.”
After Hench and his wife died, two of his daughters lived in the house. Jean Hench kept the house until she died last October, leaving everything inside to her 20 nieces and nephews. Kissner, 51, is the youngest and was put in charge of the estate. His aunt was a pack rat, and the house was filled with three generations of stuff.
They found calendars from the meat market, turn-of-the-century dresses, a steamer trunk from Germany and a dresser with Grandma’s clothes neatly folded in the drawers.
Months went by before they even got to the attic. On Feb. 29, Kissner’s cousin Karla Hench pulled out the dirty green box with metal clips at the corners and lifted the lid.
Not knowing whether the cards were valuable, the two cousins put the box aside. But Kissner decided to do a little research. The cards were at his office in the restaurant he owns when he realized they might have something. He immediately took them across the street and put them in a bank vault.
Still not knowing whether the cards were real, they sent eight to expert Peter Calderon at Heritage Auctions in Dallas, which recently sold the baseball that rolled through the legs of Boston Red Sox first baseman Bill Buckner in the 1986 World Series for $418,000.
Calderon said his first words were “Oh, my God.”
“I was in complete awe,” he said. “You just don’t see them this nice.”
The cards are from what is known as the E98 series. It is not clear who manufactured them or how many were produced, but the series consists of 30 players, half of them Hall of Famers.
The experts at Heritage Auctions checked out the family’s background, the age of the home and the history of the meat market. They looked at the cards and how they were printed.
“Everything lines up,” said Chris Ivy, the company’s director of sports auctions.
They then sent all the cards to Professional Sports Authenticator, which had previously authenticated fewer than 700 E98s. The Ohio cards were the finest examples from the E98 series the company had ever seen.
The company grades cards on a 1-to-10 scale based of their condition. Up to now, the highest grade it had ever given a Ty Cobb card from the E98 series was a 7. Sixteen Cobbs found in the Ohio attic were graded a 9 — almost perfect. A Honus Wagner was judged a 10, a first for the series.
Retired vintage sports card auctioneer Barry Sloate of New York City said: “This is probably the most interesting find I’ve heard of.”
In a measure of what baseball cards can be worth, the owner of the Arizona Diamondbacks paid a record $2.8 million for a rare 1909 Honus Wagner. Another version of the card brought $1.2 million in April.
Heritage Auctions plans to sell most of the cards over the next two of three years through auctions and private sales so that it doesn’t flood the market. In all, they could bring $2 or $3 million, Ivy said.
The Hench family is evenly dividing the cards and the money among the 20 cousins named in their aunt’s will. All but a few have decided to sell their lot.
“These cards need to be with those people who appreciate and enjoy them,” Kissner said.
Kenyan Students Recreate Bill Buckner World Series Play
Twenty-six years later and 8,000 miles away, Boston Red Sox Bill Buckner’s infamous error in game 6 of the 1986 World Series lives on all the way in Kenya.
Vin Scully call is timeless.
Pete Rose To Debut One Man Show At Casino
4,256
Major League Baseball’s all-time hit king Pete Rose, banned for life for betting on baseball while he was a player and the manager of the Cincinnati Reds, will do a one-man act at the Belterra Casino Resort in Florence, Indiana on Friday. The show is being called: “An Evening With Pete Rose,” or “4,192—The Making of the Hit King.”
“It’s me telling stories about how I got started playing ball, the impact my father had on me as an athlete, signing with the Reds and right on through the breaking of the (all-time) hit record,” Rose said.
The act will feature questions from an on-stage interviewer and audience members, and it is expected to last about 90 minutes.
“That’s what keeps it fresh for me,” Rose said. “You never know what people are going to ask. Somebody will ask a question I haven’t heard before and it calls to mind a story and I’m off and running.”
Rose, 71, retired with 4,256 hits, a .303 batting average and three batting titles. He was the 1963 NL rookie of the year, the 1973 NL MVP, the 1975 World Series MVP, a 17-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glove winner and a three-time World Series champion and until 2004 denied betting on the Reds or on baseball. In 2004, he admitted to betting on baseball and on the Reds.
For more than 20 years, Rose has lobbied unsuccessfully to be reinstated and to become eligible for the Hall of Fame.
Los Angeles Angels Of Anaheim Fire Hitting Coach
Albert Pujols Effect
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim fired hitting coach Mickey Hatcher on late Tuesday after Albert Pujols and many of his teammates have gotten off to dismal offensive start this season.
Hatcher’s dismissal was announced about 90 minutes after the Angels had 12 hits in a 4-0 victory over Oakland Athletics. A day earlier, Los Angeles lost 5-0 to the Athletics, a major league-worst eighth shutout loss already this season.
Los Angeles promoted hitting coach Jim Eppard from Triple-A Salt Lake to replace Hatcher, who had been with the Angels since manager Mike Scioscia, his former Los Angeles Dodgers teammate, took over the club in 2000. A 12-year major league veteran as a player, Hatcher was the Angels hitting coach during their only World Series title run in 2002.
“Offensively we have underachieved, and everyone shares in the responsibility of what has transpired thus far,” Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto said.
That’s putting it mildly for a club with one of the majors highest payrolls and enormous expectations for this season. Angels (16-21) has scored just 134 runs, ranking 22nd in the majors while setting a club record for shutout losses at this point in the season. The Angels’ on-base percentage is .301, worse than all but three teams.
Hatcher also angered Pujols a few weeks ago when he shared a few innocuous details about a team meeting with reporters. Pujols said he planned to talk to Hatcher about keeping clubhouse discussions private, although neither man commented about what happened after that.
Just three years ago Hatcher presided over a roster that set several franchise records for hitting and fielded a lineup with nine .300 hitters while the Angels reached the ALCS.
Shortstop Erick Aybar, who got a $35 million contract last month, is batting .187, and outfielder Peter Bourjos has been benched after his .193 start. New catcher Chris Iannetta slumped to .197 and Bobby Abreu was batting just .208 before Angels released him. High-priced outfielder Vernon Wells is in his second straight middling season, batting .242 with five homers. Howie Kendrick, an All-Star last season, is batting just .273.
Boston Red Sox PA Announcer Carl Beane Dies In Car Crash
R.I.P.
Boston Red Sox public address announcer Carl Beane, the voice of Fenway Park whose booming baritone called ballplayers to the plate for two World Series champions, died on Wednesday after suffering a heart attack while driving. He was 59.
Joe Buck Calling The Chicago Cubs World Series Win
During a charity event called, Red Cross Evening of Stars, Joe Buck gave Chicago Cubs fans some hope with this World Series call.
103 years and counting is reality.
Derek Lowe’s World Series Ring & Trophy Stolen
Hope All Is Returned
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the theft of a 2004 Boston Red Sox World Series ring and a gold World Series trophy from Major League Baseball pitcher Derek Lowe’s Fort Myers residence.
A housekeeper told investigators that someone had broken into the residence and stole the ring, trophy, necklaces, and women’s shoes and purses.
The total value of the items taken was about $90,000.
Lowe, 38, is currently a pitcher with the Cleveland Indians. He played for the Red Sox in 1997 and 1998-2004.
Buster Posey’s Road To The Show
The 2010 season was an incredible year for San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey. That year Posey got called up to the majors, notched his first big league hit, became a World Series champion and then was named the National League Rookie of the Year.
Sony and Posey team up to create one of the best promos I’ve ever seen for a video game. MLB 12 The Show is now available.
Rally Squirrel Part Of St. Louis Cardinals World Series Ring
Happy Flight
The rally squirrel has moved on from T-shirts and stuffed animals to World Series rings. The World Series championship rings the St. Louis Cardinals received over the weekend pay homage to the squirrel that served as a good luck charm last fall.
A tiny squirrel appears below the Cardinals logo and just above the player’s number inside a home plate with bats crossed.
The Cardinals won two straight to upset the Philadelphia Phillies in the division series after a squirrel scampered across home plate as Skip Schumaker batted against Roy Oswalt.
Read more: http://aol.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2012-04-15/rally-squirrel-part-of-championship-ring-design#ixzz1sBx3SRRc
Still Angry Terry Francona Won’t Attend Fenway Park’s 100th Birthday Party
Red Sox's Family
When the Boston Red Sox celebrate the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park on April 20, Terry Francona will not be in attendance. According to The Boston Globe, Francona, who managed the team to two World Series championships during his tenure (2004 and 2011), will skip the festivities.
“Somebody went out of their way to make me look pretty bad,” Francona told the newspaper. “It’s a shame. I’m sure they’ll have a great event and I was part of a lot of that stuff there, but I just can’t go back there and start hugging people and stuff without feeling a little bit hypocritical.’’
Shortly after the team and Francona parted ways following the 2011 season, there were reports that some within the organization felt Francona’s job performance was affected by his use of pain medication.
“I understand how strongly he feels on this matter and I accept that,” Red Sox CEO Larry Lucchino told The Boston Globe.
In fact, Francona felt strongly enough to get into an argument with Lucchino when that invitation was extended a second time.
“Larry called me,” Francona told the newspaper. “I was in a phone store in Arizona. I had three people standing around me. I was at a little bit of a disadvantage. He got a little perturbed at me, telling me I was being unfair to them. I called him back and left him a message. He called me back and we ended up getting into an argument. I just feel like someone in the organization went out of their way to hurt me and the more we talked I realized we’re just not on the same wavelength. They’re probably better off going forth and leaving me out of it.”
The Red Sox have invited every living ex-player and ex-manager in the team’s history to the 100-year ceremony on April 20.
Lance Berkman Gives Away Teammates Truck In April Fools Prank
HEY! That's My Truck
St. Louis Cardinals Lance Berkman pulled off the best April Fool’s prank yesterday, when just prior to the third inning he drove a 2009 white Chevrolet Silverado onto the warning track at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Fla. The public address announcer declared that it would be given away to a lucky fan.
However the truck wasn’t Berkmans or the Cardinals to give away it in fact belonged to teammate Adam Wainwright, who was in the dugout at the time.
Wainwright watched as the supposed prize winners, a father and son and cousin to World Series MVP David Freese, climbed into the pickup bed and Berkman drove them toward the home dugout. Wainwright did a double-take as the truck drove around the field and was in shock when he realized the truck belonged to him.
“Hilarious,” Wainwright said of the practical joke. “Those are the kinds of things that keep baseball pretty fun.”
Daughter Steals $28,000 Worth Of Fathers Sports Memorabilia
I Learned It From Watching You Dad
Stephanie Bernier is making her claim for daughter of the year as she figured her father would never miss multiple pieces of his sports memorabilia collection. Items such as his 1933 World Series program. Or his 1951 All-Star Game program. Or a Roger Clemens signed baseball.
Her father found out his collection was being sold off by actually cruising eBay looking to add to hits collection. The next day, her father realized some memorabilia he was bidding on online had been stolen from him.
The father recovered about $24,290 worth of his sports memorabilia from a Stratford sports memorabilia dealer. About $4,100 worth had already been sold on eBay; the sports dealer said he would try to recover the stolen items, the affidavit said.
The Stratford dealer told police he had purchased about 100 sports memorabilia items from Bernier. She told the man her father had died and he left her his collection, the affidavit said.
So, not only was dad bidding on his own property, his daughter had told the dealer that dad was dead. This isn’t Steph’s first run-in with police. Just last year she was arrested in a dispute over borrowed clothes. She was also arrested last year for drug possession after cops found her in a car with cocaine.
