http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080711/SPORTS0101/807110339/1011#pluckcomments
^ read before reading......
SO...yesterday I sit down in the break room eating a delicious iced ginger cookie with some intense chocolate milk and start to take a peek that the local newspaper. Page 2a, as always, is well-known Rochester columnist Bob Matthews' article. Matthews is one of those good-ole boys, a big fish in a little pond, (insert other cliche's). He's known in Rochester, but no where else and for good reason.
First of all, the headline read, "All-Star Game a Joke Minus Howard." Obviously, editing is a lost art.
But moving on, Matthews went on to describe why Ryan Howard should be an all-star. Simply, because he hits a lot of dingers. Thats it. Matthews mentioned the knocks on Howard like they didn't really matter. No BOB 125 K's at the all-star break, 10 fielding errors (both lead the league) and an awful .241 batting avg...they just dont matter.
Matthews also went on to say that Jose Guillen was a top 10 candidate for AL MVP. This put me over the edge, I signed up for an account on the D&C website and wrote Matthews a little comment.
Here is an excerp:
"I'd suggest not putting Jose Guillen in the top 10 for MVP. His .298 OBP is not only embarassing, but its the lowest on the Royals, who are awful. The lowest OBP by an MVP ever was Zoilo Versalles in 1965 at .319. In that same 65 season, the league only averaged a .311 OBP as opposed to .332 here in 08."
Come on, how can he, as a professional sports writer, sit in such a drunken stuper to think that Jose Guillen, hitting .274 with 13 hr and 65 RBI and only 10 walks could possibly be in the MVP race?
As I was running out of room on my comment box, I at least was able to fit in the much more obvious candidate for MVP Joe Mauer. His .328 avg, .420 obp both lead the league among catchers, He's thrown out 17 runners (6th best in MLB) and allowed just one passed ball. More importantly he's the leader of that young Twins squad that is far overachieving. But....he doesnt hit home runs.....ooooohhhhhh nooooooo. There are more important things in baseball than home runs, ask the 95 Seattle Mariners or Cecil Fielder...both hit alot of bomb shots, none was ever all that successful.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
SAL IS BACK!!!!
Sporting a Cleveland Indians jersey, career backup catcher Sal Fasano is back in the major leagues.
In his third game as an Indian, Sal went 3 for 4 with double and a run scored. He also added a fielding error, but despite that it was a triumph.
Cleveland is Fasano's 9th major league team in 12 years of service. He spent some time earlier this season with the AAA Richmond Braves, Atlanta's farm system.
Fasano is a career .220 hitter with 47 home runs in 414 games.
So why do we love Mr. Fasano so much?
Sal represents a group of players that make baseball special. These are backup catchers. They bounce from team to team, move up and down from the minors to the show and no one notices them. Until Victor Martinez gets hurt.
Most healthy starting catchers only play around 120 games per year due to the punishment handed out by the position, so who plays the other 42?
The unnoticed, unappreciated Sal Fasano's of the world. These backup catchers often look like they should be working night stock at the local grocery store chain or fixing the breaks on your SUV.
Similar to Fasano, Catchers like Jason LaRue, Toby Hall and Henry Blanco are all reserve players who play a significant role. They give a manager confidance that he can give his #1 guy a night off, they are intellegent and defensive minded and most of all, they so often act as mentors to other young players.
Most of the time, fans can't name the backup catcher for their favorite team, but a true baseball guru knows that in the dog days of summer, giving Yadier Molina or Jason Veritek a day off can be important to their health come October.
So we solute you Sal Fasano, congratulations on getting back to the bigs and good luck!
In his third game as an Indian, Sal went 3 for 4 with double and a run scored. He also added a fielding error, but despite that it was a triumph.
Cleveland is Fasano's 9th major league team in 12 years of service. He spent some time earlier this season with the AAA Richmond Braves, Atlanta's farm system.
Fasano is a career .220 hitter with 47 home runs in 414 games.
So why do we love Mr. Fasano so much?
Sal represents a group of players that make baseball special. These are backup catchers. They bounce from team to team, move up and down from the minors to the show and no one notices them. Until Victor Martinez gets hurt.
Most healthy starting catchers only play around 120 games per year due to the punishment handed out by the position, so who plays the other 42?
The unnoticed, unappreciated Sal Fasano's of the world. These backup catchers often look like they should be working night stock at the local grocery store chain or fixing the breaks on your SUV.
Similar to Fasano, Catchers like Jason LaRue, Toby Hall and Henry Blanco are all reserve players who play a significant role. They give a manager confidance that he can give his #1 guy a night off, they are intellegent and defensive minded and most of all, they so often act as mentors to other young players.
Most of the time, fans can't name the backup catcher for their favorite team, but a true baseball guru knows that in the dog days of summer, giving Yadier Molina or Jason Veritek a day off can be important to their health come October.
So we solute you Sal Fasano, congratulations on getting back to the bigs and good luck!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Proud to be an American
Happy Fourth of July Weekend!
Grab some beer, unplug the phone (does anyone do that anymore?) and watch baseball.
Last night every team had some sort of American and pro-American feel to their uni's. As Flash Gordon shows, he's wild about his navy blue Phillies hat.
So when will it end? All these "special" uniform pieces? Cincy was sporting camo jerseys, something usually done by the Padres. Hats off to Milwaukee and Pittsburgh for wearing the throwbacks... because I truly love throwbacks. Though they should make them flannel, for ol' time sake.
Might I digress, these uni's are getting crazy. It's one thing to have white players wear Jackie Robinson's number and another to have special hats for spring training and batting practice but why oh why do we need these special hats. What happened to sewing an American Flag on the sleeve or having veterans get reduced admission. Those guys did something, even though they may not be Thomas Jefferson or John Quincy Adams, they helped make sure the Fourth exists.
What's next, is the NFL going to put "C's" on the jerseys for team captains... oh wait they did.
Sal Says: The NFL ripped off the idea from the NHL, a real sport.
Goodbye Seattle SuperSonics... we hardly knew ye!
So it is official. The Seattle SuperSonics are no more. Someday I'll show my kids episodes of Frasier and they will ask me, "Who were the Seattle SuperSonics." From that moment, I'll get a little tear in my eye and say, "The best damn team.... ever!"
Okay, that's a little overboard. First and foremost, the Cavs are my team and I would probably say the Boston Celtics are the best team ever. Though it's hard to imagine twelve years ago, this team was vying for the championship. Despite the efforts of Kemp, Payton, Detlef and crew, there was no way a rejuvinated Michael Jordan was going to lose the Finals. But the seats were sold, everyone loved Kemp's highlight dunks (before he went to Cleveland and gained thirty pounds during the labor strife) and Sonics apparel was hot, even for Western New York.
I will hate to see the "team" since Seattle owns the likeness and name Sonics, when they move to Oklahoma City. In the long run, I don't know how long this love for OKC will last. Not as long as the Cleveland Barons.
Okay, that's a little overboard. First and foremost, the Cavs are my team and I would probably say the Boston Celtics are the best team ever. Though it's hard to imagine twelve years ago, this team was vying for the championship. Despite the efforts of Kemp, Payton, Detlef and crew, there was no way a rejuvinated Michael Jordan was going to lose the Finals. But the seats were sold, everyone loved Kemp's highlight dunks (before he went to Cleveland and gained thirty pounds during the labor strife) and Sonics apparel was hot, even for Western New York.
I will hate to see the "team" since Seattle owns the likeness and name Sonics, when they move to Oklahoma City. In the long run, I don't know how long this love for OKC will last. Not as long as the Cleveland Barons.
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