Monday Night in Chicago

Nearly 100 years ago the South Side of Chicago was home to one of the greatest shames in baseball history when eight members of the 1919 White Sox were accused of taking money from gamblers and handing the World Series to the Cincinnati Reds. Shame and controversy – and a battalion of reporters – returned […]

What If They Held an Induction and No One Came?

Back in January, when Hall of Fame President Jeff Idelson announced that the BBWAA had resisted the temptation to elect the all-time home run champ, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, two guys with more than 3,000 hits, and other significant ballplayers to the Hall of Fame, I sent him an e-mail. It read: “For […]

Negro Leagues DB Update: 1922-23 Cuban League

We’re making a small but important addition to the DB today—the 1922/23 Cuban winter league, plus a few additional games for 1916, 1919, and 1922. After a few seasons of turbulence in the Cuban game, the 1922/23 season marked a new beginning.  The league added two new teams, Santa Clara and Marianao, to the Habana-Almendares […]

John Fogerty: Rockin’ In Cooperstown

John Fogerty has taken his turn at bat in some of the world’s best-known concert venues. Fillmore West. The Fox Theatre. Madison Square Garden. The Royal Albert Hall. But it’s likely the performance that meant the most to him was the one he gave on July 25, 2010 in Cooperstown, New York, at the National […]

Hairy-chested Guys and Deadbeat Dads

The Washington Nationals ship of state was supposed to be sailing for glory. Instead, at the All-Star break it limped into Washington Harbor, their sails in tatters after a trip to Philadelphia and Miami that saw them lose three of four to the Phillies and two of three to the Marlins. The Nats scored 19 […]

James Brown and Phil Niekro: Not Knuckling Under

On The Good Foot …  Phil Niekro was feeling good. It was Sunday, July 9, 1978 and in two days he’d be in San Diego, pitching for the National League All-Stars. Three days earlier he had pitched a strong eight and a third innings against the defending National League Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers. Niekro […]

Songs of Change and Joltin’ Joe

Columbus Avenue in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood. Up and down the avenue and along the side streets. A multitude of fine Italian restaurants: some better than others with the pasta and sauces, while some exceed with atmosphere and comfort. Capp’s Corner, sitting at Powell and Green, serves wonderful plates but the restaurant is best at making a diner […]

Halfway Home and Competitive Balance is Winning With Pitching

The first half of the 2013 season is in the record books and surprises abound. Chris Davis is quietly on a pace to hit 62 home runs when most were predicting an end to the offensive surge of prior years. The Boston Red Sox team that unraveled under Bobby Valentine has vaulted to the lead in […]

Which Man Has Had the Best Overall Career in MLB History?

A blogging friend, Bill Miller, wrote about Walter Johnson’s hitting proficiency a while ago; it was something I had not known about. His post prompted me to come up with this question: Which man has had the best overall baseball career in MLB history, covering the roles of pitcher, position player and/or hitter, and manager? […]

Don Stanhouse – Less Than 6 Degrees of Separation

If you remember 1970’s baseball, you might remember Don Stanhouse. Star athlete from Du Quoin, IL. Played quarterback in high school, and had football scholarship offers from Notre Dame and Missouri. Drafted in the first round, 9th overall as a 3rd baseman/pitcher by the Oakland A’s in the 1969 player draft. Called up to the […]

October ’72

The Mustache Gang, the Big Red Machine and the World Series that climaxed one of baseball’s most memorable seasons (Following is an excerpt of Ed Gruver’s latest book, October ’72.) Reggie Jackson loved to hit a baseball. In the spring of 1972, the star right fielder for the reigning American League Western Division champion Oakland […]

From Dylan to Steinbrenner: The ‘Catfish’ Chronicles

Ashes and Diamonds …In the early ’60s Bob Dylan wrote “Poor Boy Blues,” a song about the travails of a young man down on his luck. It’s a life of struggle for Dylan’s protagonist as he seeks to hop a train, convince a bartender he’s of legal age and assure a long-distance operator “this phone call is on […]

Will There Ever Be Another All-Star Game In Washington, DC?

The Washington Nationals did an about face in their 2013 Rule 4 draft last week. For several years GM Mike Rizzo has pursued an aggressive draft strategy in which the team spent well beyond MLB recommended signing bonuses. If you were looking for a continuation of the Nationals spendthrift ways, look again. Jake Johansen was […]

Tyrus (The Georgia Peach) Cobb

One of the greatest players that ever played baseball Tyrus Raymond (The Georgia Peach) Cobb was born in Royston, Georgia, December 18, 1886.  He had a brother, John Paul and a sister, Florence Leslie.  He was a highly complex and misunderstood man. He was also the greatest player of his time and one of the […]

The Only All-Star Team Without Miguel Cabrera

I could make this easy on myself and just talk about the best players at each position but sports is goofy sometimes. You likely have one or two guys on your team that you hadn’t heard of when the season opened. Those guys are real the fantasy All-Stars, the ones who slipped under the radar, […]

Jen Royle is at Home with the Boston Red Sox

There is little doubt that people living in the Boston area love their baseball. Accordingly, the local media is constantly seeking to provide comprehensive and entertaining coverage of the Red Sox. This has led to the region boasting some of the best broadcasting and sports writing talent anywhere. One of the best is Jen Royle, […]

Baseball History Notes for May 27, 2013

The 2012 season saw Detroit Tigers’ slugger Miguel Cabrera win the Triple-Crown with a .330 batting average, 44 home runs and 139 RBI. Although it’s hard to fathom, he may be headed to an even better season this year, which could see him make history. Cabrera is currently hitting .385 with 14 home runs and […]

Negro Leagues DB Update: 1928 NNL & ECL

Today we add the 1928 Negro leagues to the DB.  This was the year the Eastern Colored League fell apart, putting an end to the first edition of the Black World Series.  Meanwhile the Negro National League continued with a split-season format.  The St. Louis Stars won the first half going away; in the second […]

Clearing The Bases

Arizona Diamondbacks: Outfielder Jason Kubel was kept out of the lineup again Wednesday, the sixth time in eight games that he hasn’t started. While it’s true that he has been nursing a couple of nagging injuries since the end of spring training, this doesn’t seem to be injury related. If manager Kirk Gibson continues to […]

Kid Blogger’s Interview with Mets GM Sandy Alderson LIVE!!!!!

Hey baseball fans!  I have another interview for you. It is with Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson. I actually got to interview him live at his office in Citi Field and the video of the interview is on YouTube. So, please click here to see me interview Sandy. I’m not sure that you all know about Sandy’s […]

The Air Was Shattered by the Force of Danny’s Blow

Strikeouts are proliferating throughout the game of baseball like never before.  Last year was the highest strikeout rate in the history of the game and the American League is on a record-setting pace in 2013. Batters in both leagues flail helplessly just over twenty percent of the time. Historic rates were usually no higher than […]

Mike Augliera: Boston Red Sox Pitching Prospect Talks Baseball

The Boston Red Sox have some of the better-known pitching prospects in baseball with Rubby De La Rosa, Allen Webster and Matt Barnes all leading most peoples’ lists. It turns out that they are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Boston’s farm system, as there are a number of other promising […]

A Save Was a Save Was a — But No, It Wasn’t

Don’t ask me why, but this morning I was looking at the New York Times obituary of Brooklyn Dodgers pitcher Jim Hughes, who died in 2001 at the age of 78. The headline identified Hughes as “Relief Pitcher Who Set Dodger Mark for Saves.” Despite the title of this post, the headline contained not one but two […]

An Interview with Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins

Hey baseball fans! I have another interview for you today! It is with Hall of Fame pitcher Fergie Jenkins! If you’d like to first learn some more about the only Canadian in the Hall of Fame, just click here for a prior blog post that I did about him. So, let’s get to the interview. Matt: If you could […]

SABR, Bud Fowler and a Taste of Cooperstown

Last Thursday I made my way to Upstate New York for the fifth annual Frederick Ivor-Campbell 19th Century Base Ball Conference. I have gone each year so that means it has been five times that I have attended if my math is correct. Driving to Cooperstown can be challenging since I cannot wait to get there and […]

Ben Chapman and Jackie Robinson

(Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on Seamheads.com in March 2010. With the release of “42” I thought it appropriate to re-post it—ML). Ben Chapman or “Chappy” as I was instructed to call him, (see my previous article for my introduction to him) was born and reared in the Deep South during a time when […]

A Conversation with Dan Duqeutte

It’s completely fine with the Baltimore Orioles if national pundits and soothsayers again pick them to finish close to the bottom of the always competitive American League East. They believed this time last season they were much better than the 100-loss aggregation most predicted, and they took that quiet confidence into a season that eventuated […]

Teammates Sharing Birthdays

If you are like me, then you are a child of the 90’s and you rooted for America’s Team, the Atlanta Braves. And you probably know that today, April 14th, is Greg Maddux, David Justice, and Steve Avery’s birthday. Alright, you don’t need to be a child of the 90’s OR have rooted for the […]

Negro Leagues DB Update: 1933

This week we’re making a slight break with chronological order and adding the 1933 Negro leagues to the DB. Many thanks to Scott Simkus, the creator of the Strat-O-Matic Negro leagues set, who did most of the heavy lifting on this. The year 1933 marked something of a fresh beginning for the Negro leagues, with […]

Are 1800s Innings Pitched Totals Valid?

Should the enormous innings pitched totals of hurlers in the nineteenth century be adjusted based on the distance thrown? In order to compare eras, let’s take a closer look at the progression of distances from the pitching “box” to home plate since 1876. 1876-1880: 45 feet 1881-1892: 50 feet 1893-2013: 60 feet 6 in In […]

Early Look at Possible NL Pennant Match Up in Cincy

The baseball season is the sum of a million small parts, “millions and millions of stars” as Carl Sagan used to say. As with the cosmos, the magic of baseball is both the enchanted aggregate and its many component parts. And that is why even at this early juncture there is no shortage of excitement […]

White Sox Opening Day: 39 Degrees and Billion-Dollar Burgers

The Chicago White Sox opened the 2013 season on Monday by beating the Kansas City Royals, 1-0, at U. S. Cellular Field in front of an announced crowd of 39,000 people. In other words, there were one thousand people in the ballpark for every degree in the air. The high temperature in Chicago for the […]

We Declare Peace on War

The 2013 Major League Baseball season begins Sunday night. In preparation for another exciting campaign, the founders at 60ft6in.com has introduced a new pitching metric called Pitcher Evaluation ACE (PEACE). This new tool compares each pitching season to the average historical season. The structure of PEACE is similar to Factor12. However, adjustments have been made to account for […]

Kevin Pillar: How the Toronto Blue Jays’ Prospect is Raking His Way Through the Minor Leagues

The Toronto Blue Jays traded a significant amount of their minor league talent to the Miami Marlins this past offseason in a huge trade that netted Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson among others. Despite the deal, their cupboard is far from bare. Outfielder Kevin Pillar is one of the organization’s best young players […]

Fair Trade?

March 17, 2013 something bizarre occurred in major league baseball.  Mike Cisco, the grand son of Galen Cisco, former MLB pitcher, and pitching coach , was traded to the Los Angeles Angels.  So, what was so unusual about that?  The Angels acquired the Philadelphia pitching prospect for nothing! Mike Cisco, a prospect, pitched at Reading […]

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