Clearing The Bases

Now that the fantasy players rankings are done it’s time to rank the teams they play on.  Yeah I know that predicting which team is going to finish where isn’t really fantasy relevant, but I do like to put my predictions on paper.  This column is dedicated to the American League.   With the addition of […]

Changed Forever

In 1968 baseball’s golden era did not go gently into that good night of historical lore and remembrance. It went out with the bang of Bob Gibson and Mickey Lolich fighting it out in one of the great pitching duels ever, one that played out in the final game game of the ’68 World Series. […]

Kingsford’s Recipes Are An Excellent Reason To Get Out And Grill Now!

Spring is almost upon us and Opening Day is just around the corner.  Those of you who have sojourned to Florida and Arizona are already smelling freshly cut grass, listening to the crack of the bat and noshing on peanuts and Cracker Jack.  But there’s nothing tastier at the Old Ball Game than a grilled […]

Off the Beaten Basepaths: Spring Training 2012

It wasn’t easy going to Florida for a Spring Training sojourn because it was up to us to have as much fun as possible on behalf of all our friends who couldn’t go. Our motto was We’re having fun because you can’t.  It took us 15 days and we drove almost 2,900 miles down, around, […]

If This “Return” Produces Nostalgia The Yankees Are Fried

Well, actually fried, which is much lower than editions capable of causing real nostalgia, are since 1965, above all because they have not had the sports shame that make them validate the feat that turned in perhaps 75 per cent in the history of major league baseball. Of course, absolute liability, or should I say […]

An Interview with Baseball’s “Wild Horse”

Neill “Wild Horse” Sheridan always enjoyed sports, playing a variety as a youth. He grew up believing the football was his best sport, and played collegiately at the University of San Francisco, but his future turned out to be baseball. He was just good enough to get a cup of coffee in the major leagues, […]

The Glory Days: 1960s Held Certain Mystique

There was a certain mystique surrounding baseball in the 1960s. Unlike today, with the Internet and satellite television providing an abundance of information as well as viewing of every big league game, fans knew very little about their favorite players. They were limited to one televised Game of the Week on Saturdays, and the rest […]

Top National League Rookies for 2012

The National League looks to have even more teams than usual in the hunt for the playoffs in 2012, with each division having a cluster of possible frontrunners. These races may be impacted by the strong crop of rookies that have appeared on the horizon of the senior circuit. Some of these young players will […]

Látigo indeleble (Unforgettable Látigo)

Hace unos años vi una película donde unos muchachos entierran en el jardín de su casa una botella con varios papeles donde escribieron sus experiencias de la época. Juegos, amistades, noviazgos, monedas, letras de canciones, envoltorios de caramelos y hasta arena de mar. En la noche soñé que tenía una botella de kolita sifón, aquella […]

Clearing The Bases

Closers can be a tricky position when it comes to fantasy as it is the one spot with the highest turnover as a couple of blown saves can cost someone his job.  When do we select them?  How many do we want?  These are all questions we ask ourselves.  Now in a 10 team league, […]

Independent Player of Year Finally Gets a Chance; Twins’ Chris Colabello Is One Happy Guy

While spring training can be devastating for those who have to face the reality of not making a team, it also brings out a great deal of happiness for some, especially for those players who have labored a long time to reach a certain level. Down in Fort Myers, FL where the Minnesota Twins train […]

Gene Michael, Peter O’Malley, and Jimmy Fallon Among Nominees on 2012 Ballot for The Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame

Voters Include Past Inductees and a Panel of Baseball Experts; Hall Recognizes Players, Executives, Journalists and Entertainers of Irish Descent New York, NY (March 15, 2012) – The Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame (IAB HOF) today announced the names of the nominees on the 2012 induction ballot.  They include: Big Ed Delahanty, whose lifetime […]

GQ Interviews Bryce Harper in April Issue

Will Leitch recently spoke with 19-year-old Washington Nationals phenom, Bryce Harper, for an interview that will appear in GQ’s 2012 MLB Preview Package.  Leitch and Harper discuss the ballplayer’s approach to the game, his cocky attitude, his on-field antics and being called the “Lebron of baseball.” Harper during a stint in the batting cage: “When I […]

Clearing The Bases

The last of our batting positions is designated hitters.  Now there are only a handful of players that qualify as a DH, and less than half of those will be drafted in most fantasy leagues.  I’ve added a few names onto this list just to lengthen it some, but the last four players are nothing […]

Clearing The Bases

When I first started playing fantasy baseball, late 80s, it seemed like there were plenty of outfielders to go around, not so much anymore.  Sure there is a nice top 10, even 15, but after that the pickings get real slim real quick.  In most leagues two of the top four picks will be OFs […]

The New High Risk Gambling in Baseball

Baseball is all about gambling; not the type that got the Black Sox and Pete Rose banned for life, but the way teams invest in their players and staff under the belief that they will provide them the best chance of winning. This gambling most often takes the form of a contract; locking up players […]

The Only Possible Solution

If one of the reasons that led to the departure of baseball from the Olympic calendar was, according to authorized chroniclers, the impossibility of “control the use or abuse of substances banned from organized baseball”, which recently wrote Jeff Passan puts the old and hypocritical Europe (Cathedral of the Inquisition that liquidated forever the spirit […]

Talking About the Dynamics and Emotions of Spring Training With Jack Perconte

The surface rituals of spring training are well known to fans, but camp presents unique challenges to players whether they’re established starters, prospects or trying to make sure they hold onto their big league jobs. Baseball instructor Jack Perconte, who now coaches players privately in Illinois, was in spring training most years in the ’80s, […]

The Glory Days: Indians Showcase Triple-20s

The Cleveland Indians’ pitching staff rode herd over the American League the first seven years of the 1950s, leading the league in earned run average four times during that period More impressive is the fact that three times during the decade, the Indians had three 20-game winners. No other team in major league history has […]

Do you know Puello of Edmundo Garcia Post?

The following is in response to an article posted here. Edmundo Garcia is not an important figure nor to the Castro dictatorship, by low contributions in decent circles, illegally trafficked works of art and his mother, Rosa Gomez, then in the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Castro by the Ministry of education, managed […]

A Pilgrimage To the Past

Baseball is all about connections. Players make connections with teammates that extend beyond the playing field and beyond their careers. Management links combinations of people whose connections strengthen the collective effort. As fans, we connect with teams, players, and events, and each of us accumulates a rich fabric of memories, favorites, and unfulfilled wishes. Every […]

Ron Cook: A Career Derailed

Success in professional baseball is fleeting enough that players should savor every one of their accomplishments because there is no telling which one will be their last. This is especially true of players who are not stars, but have enough talent to reach the majors. Team circumstances and positional depth often determine how much opportunity […]

Clearing The Bases

To finish out our infield rankings we come to the spot that defines position scarcity.  What I mean by that is fantasy owners will reach to grab a shortstop earlier than they probably should because they don’t want to be stuck with someone who is going to be a black hole on their team all […]

The Backstop for Sioux Falls’s 2010 Powerhouse Now Bidding for Job With San Diego

Back on the diamond, one of the fascinating stories still developing is that of Eddy Rodriguez, who only two summers ago was the catcher on the powerhouse American Association team in Sioux Falls, SD.  Still only 26, the former University of Miami (FL) product is one of seven catchers in the San Diego Padres’ major […]

An Interview With Shane Loux

For every major league star who annually makes tens of millions of dollars and are known by fans on a first name basis, there are countless others fighting to just get promoted from the minors. Some will eventually make it, with varying degrees of success, but most never realize their goal of being on a […]

A Cat Named Mo

I lost one of my best friends today.  He was a cat named Mo.  A Russian Blue, Mo was born in 1994 and named after then up-and-coming Red Sox slugger, Mo Vaughn.  It was a bit ironic considering Vaughn’s nickname was “Hit Dog,” but then again Mo the cat never had a problem with dogs, […]

Clearing The Bases

Time to get to the left side of our infield, starting with the hot corner, third base.  Most major league teams believe 3B is a position where power is required, and fantasy teams are no different.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that this position is pretty deep, with at least 12-14 I could live […]

How Baseball Connected John Dillinger to Crime

Throughout history, America’s obsession with outlaws is almost as strong as its love of baseball. While not necessarily condoning their illegal activities, the exploits of those like Billy the Kid, Jesse James, and myriad of others have captured the attention of many. John Dillinger, the notorious bank robber from the 1930’s is part of that […]

Me, My Dad & the ’92 Blue Jays

Anyone who has even remotely come in contact with the game of baseball has heard the old adage of how fans of the game use it to mark the times in their lives almost like mile markers on the road.  It is an understandable claim, as this sport itself has been around for almost as […]

Two Poems for Spring and Spring Training

For the Blues A trail worn at the corner where the street and dyke meet leads down to a little league field. Willows shade the players as they play. As if the balls were lead or sodden, the shadows splash both pitchers in the heat of their brash bravado. Both teams scream at and taunt […]

Clearing The Bases

Today we will complete the right side of our infield with rankings for second base.  Position scarcity comes into play at 2B as some owners will move players up their draft board a couple of slots because they are worried about selecting an undesirable player that will hurt their team, therefore they take one of […]

All That Twitters is Not Gold

Spring Training is a time of hope, it is said. But of course there is hope and then there is the stuff they sell on the sidewalks in Chelsea packaged as hope.  Maybe Bryce Harper really will hit ten home runs during the Spring and make the Opening Day roster. And that dude actually is selling a […]

Thanks for the Memories, Jason Varitek

Today, longtime Red Sox player and captain, Jason Varitek, is officially announcing his retirement from baseball. The 15 years he played in Boston were among the most notable in team history. Not only did he develop a reputation as one of the most hard working and gritty Red Sox of all time, but he is […]

The Glory Years: Triple Crown Winners

The Glory Years of the 1950s and ’60s gave us the last three triple crown performances in the major leagues. Since 1900, major league baseball has had 13 triple crown winners, nine in the American League and four in the National. That number represents 11 players since two – Ted Williams and Rogers Hornsby – […]

Reporte de Las Grandes Ligas / Mes de Febrero‏ (Report Major League Baseball / Month of February)

No hay mejor señal de que esta por iniciarse la temporada de las Ligas Mayores que la apertura de los campos de entrenamiemto. Arizona y Florida son las ciudades donde los equipos hacen sus practicas. Peloteros, aficionados y periodistas hacen sus viajes a estos lugares,ya que en ninguna época del año se van a concentrar […]

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