General

Stories Over Stats

August 8, 2022 by Austin Gisriel

While on our way to breakfast Saturday morning, the subject of former Oriole, now newest member of the Houston Astros, Trey Mancini, came up. All of Orioledom was sad to see Trey go, but happy that his first three hits for Houston were all home runs, including a grand slam. You don’t even have to be a baseball fan to know that Mancini had to sit out... Read more of this article

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First Dibs . . . Second Thoughts?

August 7, 2022 by Frank Jackson

First-round draft picks always attract attention. There are 30 of them in the amateur draft every year, and the deck gets reshuffled annually. Great expectations abound, and being a first-round draft pick can be a burden. The same is true of expansion drafts. Every expansion team gets a first-round pick who attracts a lot of attention because he becomes... Read more of this article

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Bringing Back Fond Memories of The Rock

July 23, 2022 by Barry Sparks

The first baseball season I remember was 1960. As an 11-year-old, that season was very memorable. One of the first big baseball stories that year was the Cleveland Indians trading Rocky Colavito to the Detroit Tigers for Harvey Kuenn. How could Indians GM Frank Lane trade the American League home run champ, even if it was for the batting champ? It caused... Read more of this article

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Weekending With Weirdos

July 9, 2022 by Frank Jackson

Even if you’ve never been to Austin, Texas, you have likely heard the phrase “Keep Austin Weird.” If you haven’t actually heard anyone say it, you might have seen it on a bumper sticker, coffee mug, T-shirt, or some other trinket. Austin has long had a reputation for attracting genuinely creative folks (especially musicians) as well as poseurs,... Read more of this article

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SNAFU and FUBAR: A Comedy of Errors

July 2, 2022 by Frank Jackson

Josh Devore would have been a perfect candidate for SNAFU+ and FUBAR+. I’m sure I’m not the only baseball fan whose eyes have glazed over while contemplating the welter of statistics out there. Every time I encounter some new statistic, my usual reaction is “arrrghhhh, just what we need, another statistic and another acronym.” Now, however,... Read more of this article

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Making a Federal Case Out of Cooperstown

June 26, 2022 by Frank Jackson

The Federal League expired more than a century ago and lasted but two seasons (1914 and 1915), so its legacy is minimal. The eight franchises are little noted nor long remembered, though savvy fans may be aware that Wrigley Field, originally known as Weeghman Park (named after team owner Charles Weeghman), was built for the Chicago FL franchise. Joe... Read more of this article

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A Grey Area of Professional Baseball

June 22, 2022 by Frank Jackson

If you get a paycheck for performing a task, by definition you have lost your amateur status. Congratulations, you are a professional. But that status is not necessarily desirable. It’s no secret that MLB players are high-status and minor league players less so. Minor league ball encompasses different strata of status. Some minor leagues rank higher... Read more of this article

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Deconstructing the Juan Soto Horizon

June 6, 2022 by Ted Leavengood

Driving up to Baltimore yesterday morning I enjoyed listening to Jim Duquette opine on Juan Soto, Joe Girardi and a host of other baseball issues that dominated the day. The consensus about whether or not Soto gets traded is now one of those vastly complex scattergrams, a worm hole in which one could get lost for days. And yet, the discussion informs... Read more of this article

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Saying Goodbye to Juan Soto

May 17, 2022 by Ted Leavengood

Juan Soto has been the soul of the Washington Nationals since he first blasted his way through the DC organization’s minor league system as a 17- and 18-year old. In 2018 Soto brought the wide grin, the goofy setup in the batter’s box, and the infectious love of the game to Washington. And DC fans have been enthralled by him ever since.... Read more of this article

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Was Lifetime Ban a Raw Deal For Benny Kauff?

April 22, 2022 by Barry Sparks

BANNED FOR LIFE: The Benny Kauff Story Benny Kauff was known as the “Ty Cobb of the Federal League.” The 5-foot-8, 175-pound, left-handed hitting outfield won the FL battling titles in 1914 and 1915, hitting .370 and .342. The 24-year-old put together a sensational year in 1914 while playing for the Indianapolis Hoosiers. Besides hitting... Read more of this article

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