Reading the post below this one begs the question

Where the heck is Kitsap?

I never knew a county government that had a slogan: Efficient, Accessible, and Effective government

Selective Capitalization, Though.

Scouting reports on possible pitchers

J at MarinerMinors.com dug up a story in the Kitsap Sun.

The story takes a brief look at former Rattler pitchers who moved quickly through the system last year (Mark Lowe, Eric O'Flaherty, and Ryan Feierabend). Then, it takes a look at some potential future Rattlers with a little help from former Rattler pitching coach Pat Rice.

There are strong-armed hurlers in the minor league system who made such positive impressions this year that the Mariners wouldn’t be surprised to see them accomplish what Lowe, O’Flaherty and Feierabend did.

"We had a couple of guys who moved quickly this year and there are a couple who could move quickly next year," said Pat Rice, the Mariners’ minor league pitching coordinator.
...
The most impressive was one of the youngest, 18-year-old right-hander Chris Tillman, a second-round draft pick in 2006 who spent much of last season with the Class A Everett AquaSox.

"He’s a young kid, but he might come up in a hurry," Rice said.
...
The Mariners also are high on another who pitched in Everett this year -- 22-year-old right-hander Doug Fister.

"He wasn’t even in instructional league, but he’s another guy who could move really quickly," Rice said.

The story says that there are four other pitchers in the system who could move quickly. They are:

Right-hander Kameron Mickolio, who pitched with Everett last season

"He’s got the stuff to pitch in the big leagues next year," Rice said. "He’s big (6 feet, 9 inches; 256 pounds), he throws across his body and he’s really tough against right-handed hitters. He throws 94 (mph) with a heavy sink."

Right-hander Juan Ramirez, an 18 year-old, who pitched for the Mariners’ Venezuela League team last season

"He’s a young kid from Panama, and he’s very, very good," Rice said.

Oak Creek, Wisconsin's own Anthony Butler who was in Everett in '06.

"He was tired when he got to instructional league, but he still found ways to get everybody out," Rice said. "That was impressive."

Right-hander Nate Adcock, another 18 year-old, is the other pitcher on the list. He was in the Arizona League last season.

If you go to the link for the Kitsap Sun, you may need to register.

While you were working...(11/30)

or watching The Office, which gives me an idea about learning the banjo.

Here's a little bit of a where are they now?

Roadcap to lead defending Champs

The Philadelphia Phillies have selected Steve Roadcap to lead the 2007 field staff for the defending South Atlantic League (SAL) champion Lakewood BlueClaws. Former Phillies infielder Kevin Jordan, veteran minor league coaches Joe Alverez and Ed Hodge will join Roadcap on the bench this season.

Roadcap, 46, is no stranger to managing a professional clubhouse. The Pottsville, PA native coached and managed in the Chicago Cubs organization from 1987-98. After leading Rockford to the playoffs in 1995 he was named the best managing prospect in the Midwest League by Baseball America.

Following his time with the Cubs, the current Elkview, WV resident joined the Seattle Mariners player development staff from 1999-2004 handling different roles that included the club’s minor league catching coordinator for the last two seasons.

That is just a bit wrong. Roadcap was the manager of the Rattlers in 1999, was a roving catching instructor foe a few years, managed Inland Empire in 2003, and managed the Rattlers again in 2004.

This was just too good a picture not to share:

From cardenalesdelara.com

Yep. That is Oswaldo Navarro (WI '05) sliding in headfirst with his eyes closed. Here is the headline and the first part of the story:

Navarro lo decidió
Con hit de Oswaldo Navarro en el cierre del noveno, Cardenales de Lara dejó en el terreno 4 carreras por 3 a Pastora de Los Llanos, colocándose a medio juego del comodín que poseen los llaneros. Alcides Escobar anotó desde segunda la rayita de la victoria.

Translated through a free internet translator:

From Navarre decided it

With hit of Oswaldo from Navarre in the closing of the ninth, Cardinals of Lara left in the land 4 careers for 3 to Shepherdess of The Plains, being placed to half a play of the wild card that possess the plainsmen. Alcides to Sweep noted from second the rayita of the victory.

Those free translators don't work very well, do they? I think that I have another resolution for January.

Foster headlining Curve's Hot Stove bill

ALTOONA, Pa. -- Former National League Most Valuable Player and two-time World Series champion George Foster will be the featured guest for the 2007 Altoona Curve Hot Stove Dinner & Benefit Auction, which will be held on Friday night, Jan. 26, at the Blair County Convention Center in Altoona.

I hope that goes better than his speaking engagement in Appleton for the NCAA Division III World Series.

One more from MILB

MILB.com has been doing a series called cracked bats about odd or unusual events that have happened over the history of minor league baseball. Since there was recently a list of all the no-hitters in the minors this season, this one merits a link:

Luck, longevity result in Walker's historic no-hitter

Tom Walker secured a place for himself in baseball history in Albuquerque. He threw inning after inning of no-hit ball, putting 15 zeroes on the scoreboard in The Sports Stadium. And after 35 years, it still seems inconceivable that Walker completed what he started on that steamy night in New Mexico.

Walker, a former first-round pick by the Orioles, put forth one of the finest efforts ever produced by a professional pitcher on Aug. 4, 1971. That evening, the right-hander tossed a 15-inning no-hitter for Dallas-Fort Worth, besting Albuquerque in a matchup that still stands as one of the Texas League's most memorable games.

Walker's manager? Appleton Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Sr. Lots of interesting stuff at the link.

Look who some ex-Rattlers will be playing for

I heard about this yesterday but am just getting around to it this morning. There are new owners in Tacoma.

Lachey part of Rainiers ownership group

SEATTLE -- Pop singer Nick Lachey will be a part of the new ownership group for the Tacoma Rainiers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.

Lachey was in Tacoma on Wednesday morning with representatives from the Schlegel Sports Group, who were introduced to a group of civic leaders, business people and season-ticket holders.

"When I was given the opportunity to purchase the Rainiers with Kirby Schlegel I jumped on it," Lachey said in a statement. "Baseball is a true passion of mine, Tacoma is a growing city and I have every intention of playing an active ownership role in the Rainiers as we continue to grow."

That's the story from MILB.com and it focuses on the celebrity. The Tacoma News-Tribune story focuses on the new owners in the story, but has plenty of pictures

Rainiers introduce off-field players Down-to-earth Lachey brings an everyman attitude

The Schlegel Sports Group, the fourth ownership group in the Tacoma Rainiers’ 46-year minor league baseball history, hit town Wednesday morning with a celebrity investor and a promise to create a fan-friendly atmosphere at Cheney Stadium.

The Schlegels – primary owner Kirby and his father, Bob – as well as pop singer Nick Lachey, a minority owner of the team, attended an introductory gala at the Greater Tacoma Convention & Trade Center.
...
Schlegel Sports Group president Mike McCall hesitated to divulge the group’s entire strategy, but he did provide a couple of examples of expected upgrades at Cheney Stadium.

Multitiered patio seating will be constructed along the third-base side, replacing the casual amenities that were offered in previous years.

And a wider variety of entertainment, especially in between innings, will be offered.

“It will be developing culture,” said McCall, adding that the franchise will increase its full-time employee count from 16 to 30 people before the 2007 season starts in April. “We’re going to roll up our sleeves and do what’s right.”

Sounds good to me, but have you ever heard new owners come in to a situation and say, 'We are really going to try and screw things up as much as we can.'?

And if they are going to be hiring fourteen new people, they are going to be pretty busy in Orlando at the Winter Meetings next week.

You want a picture? Okay, here is the one from the MILB.com site:

Baseball History -- November 30

Complete entry for November 30 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1958
Italian baseball commissioner Prince Borghese visits the U.S. to seek aid in organizing Italian teams.

Was his first name Prince or was he really a prince? A quick google search turns up this possibly related, possibly not related, individual.

1948
Player-manager Lou Boudreau is selected the AL MVP. Boudreau had almost been traded to the Browns earlier in the year, but protests by fans kept Lou in Cleveland. After the WS win, owner Bill Veeck commented, "Sometimes the best trades are the ones you never make."

I wonder if anyone will ever use that quote again.

While you were working...(11/29)

MILB.com has their year end awards up right HERE.

There are categories for Offensive Player, Starting Pitcher, Relief Pitcher, Outstanding Team, Single Game Performance, and Playoff Performance.

There are overall awards and it is also broken down by division.

One ex-Rattler snagged the High-A Playoff Performance:

Opening two postseason series, Justin Thomas of the Inland Empire 66ers dominated California League opponents, earning MiLB.com's Class A Advanced Playoff Performer of the Year Award.

The 22-year-old left-hander struck out 17 batters over 13 scoreless innings as the 66ers won their second championship in four years.

"I think that the first (playoff) game is very key. You want to get more momentum on your side," Thomas said.
...
Unlike 2005, Thomas was in the starting rotation throughout the season and said he has improved his changeup and sinking fastball. He began this year in the Midwest League with Wisconsin, where he struck out 51 over 61 innings, before a June promotion to Inland Empire.

Midwest Leaguers to garner the Low-A Awards:

Relief Pitcher: Anthony Claggett, West Michigan

The baseball world got to know Anthony Claggett on Nov. 10. That was the day the Detroit Tigers acquired Gary Sheffield from the New York Yankees for what the press called either "three Minor League pitchers" or "right-hander Humberto Sanchez and two other Minor League pitchers."

Some stories written about the trade included Claggett's name, and even had it spelled correctly (two Gs and two Ts), but they said little, if anything, about the two prospects not named Sanchez that the Yankees got in return for Sheffield.

All you need to know about Claggett you can learn from his last nine outings of the season for the Class A West Michigan Whitecaps. The right-hander pitched an inning in each appearance and didn't give up a hit, while racking up a win and six saves in nine innings. In fact, he allowed just one base runner, a walk against Lansing on Aug. 31.

Outstanding Team: West Michigan Whitecaps

It wasn't just that West Michigan won the title; it's more that the Whitecaps were a rarity in sports. They were the best team in the league and finished the deal by capturing the championship.

Single Game Performance: Jordan Renz, Cedar Rapids

On a rainy night in Clinton, Iowa, Jordan Renz of the Cedar Rapids Kernels did something that had not been done in nearly three decades.

Renz belted three homers and drove in 10 runs in Cedar Rapids' 18-14 loss to the Clinton LumberKings on May 15, earning MiLB.com's Class A Single-Game Performer of the Year Award.

Renz became the first Midwest League player to rack up 10 RBIs in a game since Quad Cities' Michael Bishop on June 24, 1978 -- five years before Renz was born.

Playoff Performance: Cameron Maybin, West Michigan

After earning the league's Prospect of the Year Award by hitting .304 with 35 extra-base hits and 27 steals, the 10th overall pick in the 2005 draft went 12-for-35 (.343) in the postseason with six extra-base hits and a 1.068 OPS. He also played a scintillating center field.

His West Michigan Whitecaps beat the Kane County Cougars in four games to win their second championship in three years.

"Everyone wants to win a championship," Maybin said. "My first year in pro ball and we got the job done. It's a great feeling."

New logo for the new team in the neighborhood


Also known as, "What if Gene Simmons were a frog?"

Baseball History -- November 29

Complete entry for November 29 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1990
A consortium of Canadian investors led by Montreal Expos president Claud Brochu agrees to buy the club from Charles Bronfman for a reported $85 million, assuring that the team will remain in Montreal.

For a few more years at least.

1962
ML officials and player representatives agree to return to a single All-Star Game in 1963. The players' pension fund will receive 95 percent of the one game's proceeds (rather than 60 percent of the two games).

One All-Star Game? What a concept.

1926
Tris Speaker resigns as Indians manager. Stories of a thrown game and betting on games by Ty Cobb and Speaker gain momentum when Judge Landis holds a secret hearing with the two stars and former pitcher-OF Joe Wood. The story and testimony will not be released until December 21st. Former Tiger P Dutch Leonard wrote to Harry Heilmann that he had turned over letters written to him by Joe Wood and Ty Cobb to American League president Ban Johnson, implicating Wood and Cobb in betting on a Tiger-Cleveland game played in Detroit, September 25, 1919. He charged that Cobb and Speaker conspired to let Detroit win to help them gain 3rd-place money. At a secret meeting of AL directors, it was decided to let Cobb and Speaker resign with no publicity. But, as rumors spread, Judge Landis takes charge of the matter and holds the hearings, at which Leonard refuses to appear. Cobb and Wood admit to the letters, but say it was a horse racing bet, and contend Leonard is angry for having been released to the Pacific Coast League by Cobb. Speaker, not named in the letters, denies everything. Public sympathy is with the stars, but the matter will remain unresolved until January of next year.

Now that is a gambling scandal.

While you were working...

Here is a brief rundown:

BaseballAmerica.com his this behind their subscriber wall, but too good to not share:

Sorting Through The New Logo Landscape by Will Lingo

As mentioned in this space before, we don't ask for much in a minor league nickname and logo--known as a brand or identity in marketing-speak. Don't get too silly, and don't make your logo too cartoonish. If at all possible, give your name a local tie, both to connect with your fans and to let the rest of the world know about where you are.

And above all, remember that professional baseball players will be wearing your cap and uniform. Nothing looks sadder than one of the stars of tomorrow wearing an animaniac on his head.

Funny, I don't recall the Wakko, Yakko, or Dot ever being on a minor league baseball cap. Give it time, I guess.

Lingo missed out on the Kernels and the Bees new logo, but he gets this in on the Loons :

And finally, we have the launch of a completely new franchise, which gives you the opportunity to start with a blank slate.

A new franchise that's coming to the Midwest League next season has nowhere to go but up, with the former Southwest Michigan Devil Rays moving to Midland, Mich.

The name is pretty good: the Great Lakes Loons. Great Lakes gives you a better idea of where the franchise is than the name Midland would, and Loons is a distinctive nickname that also happens to be a bird that lives on shorelines all over Michigan.

Unfortunately, the logo is no good. There's nothing outrageous about it, but the lettering doesn't work and the cartoon loon just is not attractive. Teams sometimes seem happy when a new logo and nickname create controversy because it at least shows that people are interested. This is the kind of logo that seems to draw a wrinkle of the nose and a shrug.

Wow. A slam on the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays and the new logo.

Lingo gives a thumbs-up to the name and a thumbs-down to the logo. I might have gone with bills-up and bills-down, but that is just Tuesday Night Quarterbacking.

Okay, enough fun at the Loons expense for now. Here is something the guys at Ballparkdigest.com found that promotes Dow Diamond as a ballpark district:

Ballpark could connect with shoppers

MIDLAND -- Midland's downtown has the potential to serve as a regional drawing card, a consultant says.

"You have a fantastic opportunity to find a vision for downtown with the construction of a new ballpark rising at the end of Main Street," said Nicholas P. Kalogeresis, senior officer with the National Trust Main Street Center, referring to Dow Diamond.

...

The team, the Great Lakes Loons, and state officials have offered a 12-page report outlining Midland's progress in its first year with Michigan Main Street status through the state's Cool Cities Initiative.

Kalogeresis urged officials to design a "powerful vision" that reflects plans to expand and enhance the Ashman Court Hotel with streetside restaurants.

Midland is one of 13 communities participating in Michigan Main Street.

On reading the rest of the article these Michigan Main Street and Cool Cities Initiative things sound like a very large home owners association with forced awnings and updated facades and the like.

You may have noticed

That high school yearbook picture of me and the link to the blog have been taken off the main Rattler site.

Merry Christmas.

Seriously though, with the Christmas season here, it is time to get the word out about the holiday ticket packages, other ticket packages, gift cards, and internships on the rotating banner.

I've mentioned this before, but I will continue to update the site (frequently, if not daily) during the off-season.

Boy, is this late...

BaseballAmerica.com had this story about ex-Rattler Jeff Clement up on November 16 and I just stumbled across it this morning.

HONOLULU--Of all the U.S. players in Hawaii Winter Baseball, Mariners prospect Jeff Clement came in with the most experience at the highest level in the minors. Yet, he has struggled, as has the majority of the hitters in the pitching-strong league.

The third overall selection from the 2005 draft out of Southern California was batting .174 with one double, home run and two RBIs in 46 at-bats as of Nov. 16 with at least five games to go, plus the championship his Waikiki BeachBoys are expected to play in on Nov. 22. But the Mariners sent help. A lot of it.

This past week, Clement and the other Mariners position players--first baseman Reed Eastley (.192) and outfielder Sebastien Boucher (.151) got help from Mariners’ big league hitting coach Jeff Pentland and newly-hired hitting coordinator Alonzo Powell. They were accompanied by catching coordinator Roger Hansen and director of player development Frank Mattox.
...
Clement was fast-tracked this past season. After spending his first pro season at short-season Everett and Low-A Wisconsin, Clement skipped high Class A and started 2006 at Double-A San Antonio, where he hit .288 with six doubles, a triple and two home runs with 10 RBI in just two weeks into the season before having surgeries to remove bone chips from his left elbow and to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee.

Yet when he returned from rehab, he was sent to Triple-A Tacoma, where he batted a respectable .257 with 10 doubles, four home runs and 32 RBIs in 67 games. To make up lost at-bats because of the injuries, he was sent to HWB.

Two week old quotes and more at the link.

A Beloit stadium clearinghouse

While checking sitemeter this morning, there were a few visits that have been popping up from a new site.

This new site is Rock County County Fair Home Run, a pro-stadium deal site. You don't need a Personal Identification Number Number or to go to the Automatic Teller Machine Machine to check it out.

There are links to the feasibility study and other reports. Plus, most recent stories and opinion pieces on the project can be found HERE. And there is this description of Pohlman Field that was borrowed from ballparkwatch.com:

Most minor-league ballparks built in the early 1980s are fairly nondescript, and Pohlman Field certainly fits in that category. It's functional and comfortable, with theater-style seats in the grandstand and metal bleachers down each line. A pleasant picnic area caters to groups and smokers. With only a 3,500-person capacity, there aren't too many bad seats in Pohlman Field.

Pohlman Field and the Snappers represent all that's good in community support of minor-league baseball. The team is owned by the Beloit Professional Baseball Association Inc., a not-for-profit organization charged with keeping professional baseball in the Beloit area. While the organization isn't exactly the same as the city ownership of the Green Bay Packers, the goal is the same: by providing community ownership and community accountability, there's less chance that the franchise will bolt for greener pastures. Given the relative instability of the Midwest League, community ownership is great idea for a city like Beloit.

But, wait. They left something out of the ballparkwatch.com review:

Most minor-league ballparks built in the early 1980s are fairly nondescript, and Pohlman Field certainly fits in that category. It's functional and comfortable, with theater-style seats in the grandstand and metal bleachers down each line. A pleasant picnic area caters to groups and smokers. With only a 3,500-person capacity, there aren't too many bad seats in Pohlman Field.

So why does it warrant a five-ball rating? Because Pohlman Field and the Snappers represent all that's good in community support of minor-league baseball. The team is owned by the Beloit Professional Baseball Association Inc., a not-for-profit organization charged with keeping professional baseball in the Beloit area. While the organization isn't exactly the same as the city ownership of the Green Bay Packers, the goal is the same: by providing community ownership and community accountability, there's less chance that the franchise will bolt for greener pastures. Given the relative instability of the Midwest League, community ownership is great idea for a city like Beloit.

Yep, ballparkwatch.com gave Pohlman Field its highest rating. Which is interesting, isn't it? Now, I'm one of the first to say or agree with those who say that the Snappers need a new stadium. It's probably minor, but leaving one sentence out of a review isn't going to help get that done.

EDIT: Of course, the review was written in 1999. So, this probably shouldn't have even been put up there anyway.

Baseball History -- November 28

Complete Entry for November 28 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries are:

1978
The Reds fire manager Sparky Anderson after nine years, during which the club averaged 96 wins per season and won five divisional titles, four league pennants, and two World Championships. The surprise move comes six days after the Reds return from a trip to Japan. Anderson has one year left on a contract and had no idea he'd be fired.

The more you read that paragraph, the less sense it makes.

If you look at the list of Red managers, John McNamara was Sparky's replacement. McNamara won the NL West in 1979, but lost to the Pirates in the NLCS, finished third in 1980, had the best record in baseball in 1981, but missed the playoffs because of the split season, and started 1982 34-58 before getting fired.

1957
Warren Spahn of the Braves wins the Cy Young Award as ML Pitcher of the Year almost unanimously. His only competition for the title is the White Sox, Dick Donovan, who received one vote.

There were only sixteen votes, but there was only one Cy Young Award, um, awarded in 1957.

1952
IL President Frank Shaughnessy reveals plans to form two new major leagues by merging the top teams in the American Association and the top teams from the International League. He thinks that in five to six years, ML baseball will elevate these two leagues, along with the Pacific Coast League, which nearly has ML status now.

This would be like me revealing plans for a retractable dome at Fox Cities Stadium and then saying that in five to six years the ML will be playing games on the moon.

Rattlers in Transactions

I saw these today on BaseballAmerica.com today. The fact that the date is November 22 on their story is going to be ascribed to the holiday weekend.


First a transaction from the Mariners involving a Rattler from 2006:

Seattle Mariners
Released LHP Lance Beus

Now, a couple of transactions involving former Rattlers:

St. Louis Cardinals
Signed C Ryan Christianson (WI '00)

San Francisco Giants
Signed RHP Scott Atchison (WI '99)

Sorry about the light posting today. Lots of stuff to get caught up on at the office today and now it's time for the Packers to kickoff.

Baseball History -- November 27

Complete entry for November 27 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1973
Gary Matthews outpolls eight other vote-getters, receiving 11 of 24 nominations for the NL Rookie of the Year Award. The Giants OF batted .300 in 145 games.

I wonder what Sarge, Sr. would have gotten from the Angels.

1947
Setting off a storm of controversy, Joe DiMaggio is named American League MVP by a single point over Ted Williams. Williams, the Triple Crown winner, receives 201 points, and is completely left off one writer's ballot. A 10th-place vote would have given Williams the needed 2 points. Williams is selected The Sporting News Player of the Year.

1941
Joe DiMaggio is named AL MVP. His 56-game hitting streak edges out Ted Williams and his .406 batting average for the award (291 votes for DiMaggio and 254 for Williams).

At least Williams didn't get left off the ballot in '41. He did win the AL MVP in 1946 (Hal Newhouser was runner up) and 1949 (Phil Rizzuto was runner up).

Packerless Sunday: UPDATED

The Packers are in Seattle for Monday Night Football, so the choices for the noon football games in the Fox Valley are Saints @ Falcons and Texans @ Jets.

Everything in the trailer has been cleaned to within an inch of its life, a small landscaping project out front (switching out the flamingos for the garden gnomes) has been completed, all the stuff in the carport has been pushed into the farthest corner so that it will be hidden by the car.

It might actually be time to go outside and do something, anything.

Have a good Sunday. Back tomorrow morning.

UPDATE: Yelling at the neighbor kids to stay off the gravel can only hold my attention for so long.

I had forgotten that on Sunday's in the off-season I was going to post a link to some of my favorite Rattler games of 2006.

javascript:mp.play({ w:'http://web.servicebureau.net/conf/meta?i=1112777657&c=14667&m=was&u=/w2.xsl', w_id:'26944', pid:'milb_ga', type: 'a_free'} );

Just copy and paste that into your browser and it will take you back to Friday, August 25. Jake Rasner had a no-hitter through seven innings of a game that was scheduled for seven. But, David Asher and Brian Kappell held the LumberKings off the scoreboard. Curt Ledbetter had the only Rattler hit of the game, a home run in the bottom of the eighth to win it.

Just a warning, the game is not picked up on the archive until the top of the third.

Just another warning, the radio announcer only partially spoils the homer.

A chance to use the word "cornucopia"

Not me, the folks at milb.com:

The year of the no-hitter

There were 20 no-hitters this past season involving 38 different pitchers in 11 leagues. This cornucopia of hit deprivation afforded fans across the country the opportunity to witness the thrill of a "no-no."

There is a full review of all the 2006 no-nos at the story. Including that rain-shortened one against the Rattlers on May 13.

Wisconsin scored nine runs in the first game of its doubleheader and defeated Dayton, 9-6. Dominican right-hander Johnny Cueto made sure the nightcap had a radically different outcome. The 20-year-old struck out eight and walked two in the Dragons' 6-0 victory, which was halted after five innings due to rain. "I was upset that it was pouring at the bottom of the fifth," Cueto said. "I was cold, but I was determined not to lose the game."

The other Midwest League no-hitters were:

May 14

When it rains, it pours. That cliche could be taken figuratively and literally on May 14, as Jared Lansford followed up Cueto's rain-soaked, five-inning gem with a seven-inning masterpiece. The 19-year-old overcame control problems -- he walked five batters -- in leading Kane County to a 4-0 win over Beloit in the first game of a doubleheader. The son of former American League batting champion Carney Lansford had spent the first month of the season at extended Spring Training while recovering from inflammation in his right rotator cuff.

August 18

"We're here to develop first. We don't want to risk anyone throwing more pitches than they should." Those were the words of Southwest Michigan manager Skeeter Barnes, who removed Mike Wlodarczyk after the southpaw threw eight no-hit innings. The 23-year-old picked up his eighth win of the season as the Devil Rays coasted to a 12-0 win over Peoria. Celso Rondon made his Midwest League debut in the ninth inning and struck out the side as Southwest Michigan recorded the fourth no-hitter in team history.

On August 31, the last MWL no-hitter was something even more rare, a loss for the pitcher who threw it.

Wade Davis couldn't catch a break all season. The 20-year-old Floridian compiled a stellar 3.02 ERA and struck out 165 batters over 146 innings while holding opponents to a .234 average. Yet he ended the season with a 7-12 record. Davis' final loss was his most painful as he hurled seven hitless innings against Beloit in the first game of a doubleheader. It was all for naught, however. In the fourth, Davis' error allowed Yancarlos Ortiz to reach first base. Ortiz stole second, took third on a throwing error by catcher Christian Lopez and scored on Dwayne White's sacrifice fly. That was all she wrote as Beloit held on for a 1-0 win.

Meanwhile in Felixland...

Geoff Baker ventured to Venezuela in mid-October and got the following about a former Timber Rattler.

At home with Felix Hernandez

Some tasty nuggets from a long article that is well worth the read:

VALENCIA, Venezuela — The noon sun belts out high heat as a bleary-eyed Felix Hernandez drags himself from his bedroom.

An entire morning has passed since his first wake-up call, from a rooster serenading him just outside the door. Now, the voices from downstairs, in the only true home Hernandez has ever known, finally convince the Mariners pitcher he'd best show his face.
...
Hernandez returns each winter to this industrial South American city of 1.4 million people, about 100 miles southwest of Caracas. His father bought the family's two-level home 23 years ago with his savings as a truck driver and — despite some remodeling — little about it has changed. Life here isn't much different for Hernandez now than it was in his early teens. The simplicity of it all would shock many fans in the United States.

While he drives a Ford Explorer, it's not all that uncommon in this oil-rich country, where public transit is woefully inefficient and gasoline costs about 12 cents a gallon. Hernandez also recently bought his own two-story home about a half-hour's drive away, though it won't be ready until December.
...
"I'm not famous," the ballplayer protests while making his bed, which is covered by one of those blankets given away by the Mariners in fan promotions. "Please, don't call me famous because I'm not famous."
...
Hernandez's neighborhood, while quieter than the skyscraper-filled downtown, is by no means exclusive and has its share of drunks, beggars and would-be muggers and extortionists prowling the streets.

"I don't let him go out at night," his mother says, shaking her head. "It's too dangerous."

His father adds: "We try to give him advice all the time, to explain to him how the situation is in Venezuela and what he should be doing. Or shouldn't be doing."
...
Hernandez gets told to pick up his things, to help clear away the family's laundry backlog and when he can come and go. He knows better than to argue. After all, it was his mother who cracked down on his boyhood penchant for shooting hoops at the playground during school hours and told him his best hope for the future was honing his baseball talent.

"He was terrible as a child," she says with a laugh. "He skipped school all the time to play basketball. I was the one who told him, 'You're going to play baseball because it's what I want you to do.'
...
Hernandez admits he'd never really envisioned himself as a baseball player. He played shortstop in Little League and could hit the ball farther than most of the other children. But it was on the basketball court where he really excelled.

"I wanted to make it to the NBA," he says. "I was real good, too, man. Really good. I had the moves."

The whole article is really good, but my favorite part is right at the end. It is a quote from Hernandez and I'll let it be the end of this post:

"I didn't play baseball because I wanted a different life," Hernandez says. "I played baseball because it was fun. I enjoyed it. It wasn't about having money. It wasn't about wanting to live somewhere else.

"I like playing baseball, so I play. All I wanted to do was play and have fun. And that's what I'm still doing. So, for me, I'm very happy. I don't need more."

Baseball History -- November 26

Complete entry for November 26 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted Entries:

1980
Outfielder Ron LeFlore, who hit .257 with 97 stolen bases for the Expos last season, signs as a free agent with the Chicago White Sox.

I only highlight thisentry to point to the 1978 made for TV movie, One in a Million, The Ron LeFlore Story. Starring LeVar Burton as Ron LeFlore. It also featured performances by Billy Martin, Al Kaline, Norm Cash, Jim Burton, and Bill Freehan as themselves.

1975
Fred Lynn becomes the first rookie to win MVP honors, taking the American League award. Lynn batted .331 with 21 home runs, 105 RBI, and league-leading figures in runs (103), doubles (47), and slugging (.566).

1909
The Phils are sold for $350,000 to a group headed by sportswriter Horace Fogel. Because of his dual roles, Fogel will become the only executive barred from a league meeting.

Those meetings must have been awkward.

The Mighty Casey

This week's baseball on TV episode takes a detour. That signpost up ahead. It's

The Mighty Casey was an episode about the Hoboken Zephyrs, a last place team in the National League. It was originally aired on June 17, 1960.

Rod Serling's opening narration ended like this:

Once upon a time in Hoboken, New Jersey it was tryout day. And though he is not yet on the field, you're about to meet an most unusual fella, a left-handed pitcher named Casey.

Then, he took a big drag off his cigarette because he had not taken one in thirty seconds. Okay I'm making that part up. By the way, the narrations that will be used in this post come from this site.

The plot of the story is that an inventor/doctor/scientist who brings his remarkably life-like robot (Hey, give me a break, it was The Twilight Zone) to a tryout for the Zephyrs. Hoboken was the Tampa Bay Devil Rays of their day and needed all the help they could get.

The grizzled manager, Mouth McGarry was played by Jack Warden.

Warden specialized in these types of characters. He was a coach in Heaven Can Wait. He also actually played the most evil man in the history of the planet sympathetically. I am talking about his portrayal of George Halas in Brian's Song. He took on the Morris Buttermaker role in The Bad News Bears TV series...and, um, where was I?

Oh, right.

McGarry is skeptical at first but is won over by the talent of the robot and realizes this is going to be the Year of the Zephyrs! As long as they can keep the secret that Casey is a robot.

Hoboken goes on a winning streak and races up the standings. Then, the twist that occurs in all Twilight Zone episodes happens. Casey is beaned. A doctor checks him out and discovers that Casey has no heartbeat, and is a mechanical man.

The case goes to the commissioner who rules that a team is made up of nine "men". Since Casey is not a man, he must go.

Time for another twist! The doctor and the manager come up with an idea. Give Casey a heart so that he could play. But, unlike the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz, a heart for this mechanical man doesn't work out too well.

The heart makes Casey too nice to strike out opposing batters and the Zephyrs eventually revert to their losing ways. Stupid heart and feelings and emotions. What are they good for anyway? I guess nice guys do finish last.

The episode ends with the doctor giving McGarry the blueprints to Casey. The manager has an idea and chases down the doctor.

The closing narration:

Once upon a time there was a major-league baseball team called the Hoboken Zephyrs who, during the last year of their existence, wound uup in last place and shortly thereafter wound up in oblivion. There's a rumor, unsubstantiated of course, that a manager named McGarry took them to the West Coast and wound up with several pennants and a couple of world's championships. This team had a pitching staff that made history. Of course, none of them smiled very much, but it happens to be a fact that they pitched like nothing human. And if you're interested as to where these gentlemen came from, you might check under 'B' for baseball, in the Twilight Zone."

Why do I have this sudden urge to play pinball?

From Pinball Rebel

How to spend an off day

About a month ago, an old friend of mine from Duluth called and asked for a favor. "Could you announce the women's hockey game between Minnesota-Duluth and Wisconsin on November 24?"

"Sure," I answered.


It was a good game. UMD beat Wisconsin 2-0 and the loss was first for the Badger women's team in 26 games.

It was enjoyable to do a little hockey again and to see the Kohl Center. It has been awhile since I've had a chance to walk around there and they have some really neat displays about UW athletics through the decades. Including a show of the domination that the Badgers had in collegiate boxing. HERE is an old Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel article that was written in 2001 after the death of Badger Boxing coach John J. Walsh.

John J. Walsh built one of the greatest dynasties in the history of intercollegiate sports, coaching University of Wisconsin boxers to eeight NCAA team championships and 35 individual titles.

Quiet, modest and keenly analytical, Walsh approached his job with a dignity and professionalism that seemed at odds with the brutal nature of the sport.

Walsh, who coached UW boxing teams from 1934-'57, died [November 1] in Madison. He was 89.

"He talked about boxing like a painter talks about paintings," said Bobby Hinds, 71, a heavyweight at Wisconsin from 1951-'55. "I'll tell you, he produced national champions who couldn't have made my club team."

Walsh, a native of Minneapolis, first came to Madison in 1933 as a collegiate boxer for St. Thomas College of St. Paul, Minn. He so impressed George Downer, then the director of Wisconsin's athletic publicity, that Downer hired Walsh to coach the Badgers in '34.

Wisconsin could have used a boxing dual meet to pad their record yesterday. It was a tough day for Bucky.

The men's basketball team lost to Missouri State, women's hockey got beat, and men's hockey lost to Michigan. Ouch.

Wrapping up Paradise

BA.com has posted the story on the Hawaii Winter Baseball Championship game. But, the interesting part of the entry is after the main story.

League chairman and chief executive officer Duane Kurisu said that while the league did not make money, its losses were substantially less than the league's first time around from 1993 to 1997, when HWB paid the players' salaries. This time, Major League Baseball paid the players and Fullcast, a Japanese human resources company, was a title sponsor.
...
He added the league is considering taking some series to the islands of Maui and Hawaii (the big island), where HWB originally had teams. Some of the league's best fan support came from those islands, even though Oahu has the largest population.
...
"It was well-run," [Waikiki manager Lenn] Sakata said. "There were some mistakes, but overall we played a lot of games. I think the kids will benefit down the road and, hopefully, get to the big leagues."

Baseball History -- November 25

Complete entry for November 25 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Lots of Rookie of the Year Awards announced in the highlights.

1986
Jose Canseco wins the American League Rookie of the Year Award, becoming the first A's player to do so since Harry Byrd in 1952.

1985
White Sox SS Ozzie Guillen, who hit .273 with just 12 errors in 150 games, is named American League Rookie of the Year. Milwaukee lefty Teddy Higuera finishes 2nd.

1974
Mike Hargrove of the Rangers takes American League Rookie of the Year honors.

1970
Yankee catcher Thurman Munson receives 23 of 24 votes in being named American League Rookie of the Year. Munson batted .302 in 132 games.

1969
Kansas City OF Lou Piniella is voted American League Rookie of the Year.

And here is one that involves money and TV:

1952
The St. Louis Cardinals seek payment from the New York Giants for two televised games in an effort to determine the TV and radio rights of visiting teams for revenue.

Busy day

There are quite a few things I have to do today and none of them involve heading to a mall. I have to get moving here pretty soon, but will try to do something about it when I get there.

Mariner Mailbag

MLB.com Mariner beat writer Corey Brock answers questions from fans HERE.

Of possible interest to Rattler fans is this one:

I really like Cha Seung Baek, but does the fact that Jake Woods is left-handed hurt Baek's chances of becoming the Mariners' No. 5 starter in 2007?-- Andy T., Mountlake Terrace, Wash.

[Answer]: You really can never have too much left-handed pitching, and the Mariners already have one lefty -- Jarrod Washburn -- as part of the rotation for next season. So does this give Woods a significant leg up on Baek? Maybe, though this rotation question could very well be solved long before the team heads to Spring Training in February.

The Mariners already have Washburn and Felix Hernandez set for next season, and they could be looking for as many as three starters during the offseason. That's a tough order to fill. My guess is the team signs two starting pitchers and retains either Baek or Woods as the No. 5 starter in the rotation

Baseball History -- November 24

Complete entry for November 24 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

It is a manager kind of day in the highlighted entries:

1986
The Twins announce that interim manager Tom Kelly will return on a permanent basis next season.

And he would celebrate with a World Series in the Dome in 1987.

1953
The Dodgers sign the relatively unknown Walter Alston to a one-year pact as their manager for 1954.

Alston kept on signing one-year contracts to manage the Dodgers until the end of the 1976 season. End result was five World Series championships and three other NL Pennants.

1913
Joe Tinker is out as Reds manager, but is still their property as a player. On December 12th he will be sold to Brooklyn for $25,000, $10,000 of which goes to him. P Earl Yingling and OF Herbie Moran are sent to Cincinnati later as part of the deal. When Charles Ebbets puts off signing Tinker, he jumps to the Feds, signing to manage Chicago for 12,000.

That's just not a normal firing.

Happy Thanksgiving

I'm off for the family celebration in a little bit and there is something I've got planned for Friday that I'll try and post about because it is kind of neat.

The site will be updated regularly over the weekend so check back when you have a chance.

Have a great and safe Thanksgiving.

Beloit Stadium Editorial

Ballparkdigest.com had this yesterday, so here it is today on this site. The deadline is rapidly approaching for the stadium deal to get done in Beloit and the Beloit Daily News checks in with an editorial.

Due diligence on land proposal

PERHAPS SUPERVISOR Adam Peer said it best: “I'm worried people who may oppose this are just going to ask a million questions and we'll lose a real golden opportunity to keep two institutions alive and viable in Rock County.”

The two institutions are the Beloit Snappers and the Rock County 4-H Fair.

The proposal is a complicated land swap deal that may provide space and considerable financial support for development of a new fairgrounds and a new ballpark for the Snappers.
...
The county fairgrounds in Janesville is land-locked and inadequate, and has been for years. As such, it contributes to an image that the fair is a Janesville event rather than a countywide institution.

Likewise, the Beloit Snappers stadium simply won't meet the demands of modern professional baseball, even at a low minor-league level. Snappers' management has looked long and hard for solutions in the Beloit area, without success. The window of opportunity for keeping the team in Beloit already may have closed.

That's not a pleasant prospect for many Beloiters, especially those who object to any linkage with Janesville. But here's the truth: To survive, the Snappers need Rock County - Beloit and Janesville and all surrounding points. Otherwise, the area will lose the team. It's that simple.

The editorial is short and worth the read. What I take away from it is this: It is going to be an interesting couple of weeks in Rock County.

Baseball History -- November 23

Complete entry for November 23 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1943
Commissioner Landis rules that Phils owner William D. Cox is permanently ineligible to hold office or be employed in baseball for having bet on his own team. The Carpenter family of Delaware will buy the Philadelphia club and Bob Carpenter, age 28, will become president. The Phils, in an effort to change their image, will conduct a contest for a new name. The winning entry, the Blue Jays, submitted by a Mrs. John Crooks, will be the unofficial team name for 1944-45 until abandoned in 1946.

Philadelphia Blue Jays? That's just wrong.

1889
Before what one writer claims is "the largest gathering in California history" (15,000 - 20,000), Oakland wins the California League pennant by beating San Francisco amid much confusion on the final day of the season. San Francisco tied for the pennant by winning three in a row, so for the final game Oakland hires ringers Willard Brown, George Van Haltran, and Cliff Carroll. San Francisco refuses to play so the ump awards the game to Oakland. To appease the crowd, the clubs play a game with their regular nines. Oakland wins, 5–4, behind 32-game winner Bill Coughlan.

Baseball in the 19th Century must have been wonderfully strange. Bringing in some ringers sounds strangley like the end of Slap Shot, when the Syracuse Bulldogos brought back Clarence "Screaming Buffalo" Swamptown, Andre "Poodle" Lussier, Gilmore Tuttle, and Ogie Oglethorpe for the Federal League Championship game against the Chiefs.

Rattlers in Paradise -- November 22

In the championship game of Hawaii Winter Baseball, North Shore beat the Waikiki BeachBoys 5-1. Both the Star Bulletin and the Honolulu Advertiser have a writeup and a boxscore. Over 3,700 fans turned out for the Final.

Ex-Rattler for the BeachBoys:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) was 0-for-4

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley went 1-for-2.

Swing update

From QCTimes.net yesterday:

Swing deal not a done deal yet

Although a new lease for city-owned John O’Donnell Stadium has been approved, the current and prospective owners of the Swing of the Quad-Cities continue to work to complete an agreement that would lead to the sale of the Midwest League franchise.

Swing team president Kevin Krause said Monday that the ownership group he heads, Seventh Inning Stretch, remains in negotiations with representatives of Florida-based Main Street Baseball.

“There are a few details remaining which we continue to work through,’’ Krause said.

There are some other steps to go through once the deal is finished.

Once that happens, the process begins when a Control Interest Transfer document is filed with the Midwest League.As of Monday, that had not happened, and league president George Spelius said it is unlikely the proposed sale will be discussed by league directors during an upcoming meeting on Dec. 5 that is being held during baseball’s winter meetings in Orlando.

“That’s two weeks away. I can’t see it happening that fast, even if the CIT arrived in the mail tomorrow,’’ Spelius said. “Although we try to expedite the process as quickly as we can, we’re not just going to push it through.’’

When the CIT arrives, a committee consisting of three league directors, Spelius and league attorney Richard Nussbaum will review the document, which includes financial and background information on all individuals involved in the purchase of a team.

“The review is thorough, and I’ve never been part of a review where questions have not been asked,’’ Spelius said. “All of the questions are required to be answered to the committee’s satisfaction before we take the proposal to the league directors.”

This story reads like that old Schoolhouse Rock, "I'm just a bill" cartoon that taught how a bill became a law.



Frankly, I wouldn't mind a cartoon narrated by a signing George Spelius to inform people how Midwest League teams are sold.

Baseball History -- November 21

Complete entry for November 21 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1992
The American League names Milwaukee SS Pat Listach the Rookie of the Year. Listach was recalled on April seven to replace the injured Bill Spiers and hit .290. He was the first Brewer to steal 50 bases in a season.

In 1992, there were only four players to receive votes for AL Rookie of the Year. Listach, Kenny Lofton (Cleveland), Dave Flemming (Seattle), and Cal Eldred (Milwaukee).

1989
Twins OF Kirby Puckett re-signs with the club for $9 million over three years, making him the first ML player ever to sign a contract that calls for an average salary of $3 million per year. More will follow.

Nolan Ryan was the first player to receive a million dollars a year and that was in 1979. It only took ten years to get to $3 million.

1954
The Pirates draft young Roberto Clemente from the Dodgers farm system. Clemente hit just .257 at Montreal and Brooklyn assumed he would not be noticed.

Yep, who would possibly look past the stats and notice a player's talent?

Rattlers in Paradise -- November 21

In the final regular season game of Hawaii Winter Baseball last night, the Waikiki BeachBoys lost 10-2 to Honolulu. Scroll down a bit at the link for the boxscore. The BeachBoys finished the season 20-16 to beat out Honolulu by 4-1/2 games for the East Division title.

Ex-Rattlers for the BeachBoys:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 1-for-2 with an RBI and a run
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 1-for-3
David Asher (WI '06): 2-2/3 innings pitched, six runs (five earned), five hits, two walks, seven strikeouts, and the loss
Joe Woerman (WI '06): 1-2/3 innings pitched, no runs, no hits, no walks, two strikeouts

Wednesday's Hawaii Winter Baseball Championship Game:
Waikiki vs. North Shore 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Mariner 40-Man Roster Movement

Some former Timber Rattlers were involved in the 40-man roster moves of the Mariners:

Added:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03)
Bryan LaHair (WI '04)
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03)
Mike Wilson (WI '05)

TJ Bohn (WI '03) was claimed off waivers by the Atlanta Braves.

Complete details about the additions at at the link above. Mariner Minors has a review of the additions HERE.

Details about Bohn and the Braves are at the Braves site HERE.

Great Lakes Parrish

The Dodgers have assigned a manager to Great Lakes:

The team's release:
Lance Parrish Named Loons' First Manager

The story from the Midland Daily News is HERE.

"It’s really the perfect fit in every way," said Paul Barbeau, Loons’ president and general manager. "He spent 19 years in the majors, and from there, he spent time in Major League and Minor League coaching and managing. And on top of that, he’s a name that local people know and love."

Parrish played for the Tigers for ten years and was a member of the 1984 World Championship team.

What about his coaching staff?

The Loons’ pitching coach will be another former Tiger, Glenn Dishman, who pitched for Detroit in 1997. The Loons’ hitting coach is former Dodgers’ player Garey Ingram.

Baseball History -- November 21

Complete Entry for November 21 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1980
Ending weeks of speculation that he would be fired despite having led the Yankees to 103 wins last season, manager Dick Howser "resigns" and is immediately replaced by GM Gene Michael.

Hey, he lost to the Royals in the ALCS. What did Howser expect in New York?

1960
Bob Scheffing signs to manage the Tigers after the job is turned down by Casey Stengel.

Instead, Casey waited around for a couple of years and took the Mets job.

1959
In the first inter-league trade, the Cubs send 1B Jim Marshall and P Dave Hillman to the Red Sox for 1B Dick Gernert.

Somehow, it seems appropriate that the first inter-league trade would be between the Cubs and the Red Sox.

1900
Given a 10-year contract to control the Baltimore franchise, John McGraw says he intends to be in baseball a long time, and wants to lease grounds in Baltimore where he can stay. He'll be in baseball 32 more years, but not in Baltimore. Nick Young says the National League wishes success to the American League, but does not consider it a major league.

Jon McGraw. What a guy. Managerial record HERE. Wikipedia page is HERE. BaseballLibrary page is HERE. Highlights from that one:

[As a player] McGraw was notorious for blocking, tripping, or otherwise obstructing the baserunners while the lone umpire watched the flight of the ball. Some say his shenanigans prompted the stationing of additional umpires on the basepaths.

Why didn't McGraw complete the ten-year contract?

In 1901 he became player-manager of the new American League's Baltimore franchise, but after frequent run-ins with league president Ban Johnson, a man as intractable as himself, he jumped in mid-1902 to the NL's New York Giants.

McGraw hated Johnson so much that when the Giants won the 1904 NL pennant, he refused to let the Giants play the AL Champions in what would have been the second World Series.

Rattlers in Paradise -- November 20

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat Honolulu 10-3. (scroll down for boxscore)

Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) went 2-for-4 with two runs scored for Waikiki as the only ex-Rattler to play in the game.

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 3-for-5 with four RBI for Waikiki.

Tuesday's Schedule (Final game of the regular season):
Waikiki at Honolulu 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Baseball History -- November 20

Complete entry for November 20 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1989
Brewers centerfielder Robin Yount edges the Rangers Ruben Sierra to win his 2nd American League MVP Award. Yount, who won as a SS in 1982, hit .318 last season with 21 home runs and 103 RBI.

1934
Seventeen-year-old Eiji Sawamura gives up one hit, a home run to Lou Gehrig, as the touring American all-stars win in Japan 1–0. At one point Sawamura strikes out four in a row -- Charlie Gehringer, Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, and Gehrig. The all-stars easily win the other 15 games against high school and post-college players. College players in Japan are prohibited from playing against foreigners.

That is interesting. But, this is more interesting entry from 1934.

Catcher Moe Berg shoots movie film showing the roofs of Tokyo. The film will allegedly be used as a guide by U.S. bombers during WWII.

Berg was a backup catcher for many years in the 20's and 30's. He was also the subject of the book The Catcher Was a Spy. Here is part of an editorial review of the book from Amazon.com:

Baseball catcher, lawyer, and spy-Moe Berg was all of these, but first and foremost he was an enigma. All the ascertainable facts concerning Berg's life are presented here, including his 19 years as the most famous journeyman catcher in professional baseball; his stint at Columbia University and subsequent abortive legal career; his investigation of Germany's atomic bomb program for the Office of Strategic Services (a predecessor of the CIA) during World War II; and his postwar years, in which he lived off the kindness of friends.

Berg's wikipedia page is HERE. Fun facts from there:

On February 21, 1939, Berg made his first of three appearances on the radio quiz show, Information, Please!. After missing the first question, Berg put on a dazzling performance. Of his appearance, Kenesaw Mountain Landis told him, "Berg, in just thirty minutes you did more for baseball than I've done the entire time I've been commissioner." On his third appearance, Clifton Fadiman, the moderator, started asking Berg too many personal questions. Berg did not answer any more questions and never appeared on the show again.

and

On August 2, 1943, Berg accepted a position with the Office of Strategic Services for a salary of $3,800 a year. In September, he was assigned to the Secret Intelligence branch of the OSS and given a place at the OSS Balkans desk. In this role, he parachuted into Yugoslavia to evaluate the various resistance groups operating against the Nazis to determine which was the strongest.

Rattlers in Paradise -- November 19

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat Honolulu 2-0 to clinch the Eastern Division. The championship game is Wednesday.

No ex-Rattlers played for the BeachBoys yesterday.

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 1-for-4.

Monday's schedule:
Waikiki at Honolulu 7:00pm Hawaii time

Flashback to Sunday, August 6

If you have nothing else to do today or might be looking for something to do after the Packer game today, here is something for you. Just copy and past the ugly looking code into your web browser.

javascript:mp.play({ w:'http://web.servicebureau.net/conf/meta?i=1112755449&c=14667&m=was&u=/w2.xsl', w_id:'26878', pid:'milb_ga', type: 'a_free'} );

That should take you to the broadcast of the Rattler game against the Snappers on 8/6. It was a back-and-forth game right up to the big hit at the end by Johan Limonta. The game winner was only partially ruined by the radio announcer.

Enjoy a little tase of baseball today.

More Baseball America

Jim Callis' Ask BA column on Friday took the following question first:

What do you think if the numbers that Marlins righthander Rick Vanden Hurk and Mariners catcher Jeff Clement are putting up out here in Hawaii Winter Baseball? Vanden Hurk's ERA is a little high (4.11), but he has 55 strikeouts in 35 innings. Clement isn't catching every day here, so maybe that has something to do with it, but his statistics are lousy: .174 average, one homer and 12 strikeouts in 46 at-bats.

SSgt Justin Rusnak

Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

The answer regarding Clement (WI '05) from Callis follows:

Clement has had a strange year. Though the Mariners had Kenji Johjima in the big leagues, they jumped Clement to Double-A. He got off to a good start before he jammed his left knee into a wall while chasing a foul popup, requiring surgery to repair a torn meniscus. Clement also had bone chips removed from his left elbow and missed two months. When he came back, Seattle inexplicably promoted him to Triple-A, where he predictably struggled.

I'm giving Clement, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2005 draft, the benefit of the doubt. He has been hurt and he has been pushed, and I still believe in his bat. His main point of emphasis is supposed to be his defense, which may be taking away from his offense. With Johjima coming off a solid rookie season and signed for two more years, I could see the Mariners moving Clement to another position to turn his bat loose and get it in their major league lineup sooner.

There is a Hawaii Winter Baseball Top 15 prospect list for BA subscribers. Clement checks in at number 13.

Only three other Midwest Leaguers make the list and they all played this season. John Mayberry, Jr of Clinton is #2; Will Venable of Fort Wayne is #11; and John Whittleman of Clinton is #15.

Also for BA subscribers, there is a list of top 20 prospects in the just completed Arizona Fall League. No ex-Rattlers on that list. Only three players with Midwest League ties made that list. #10 Kevin Slowey who was with Beloit in 2005; #16 Mark Reynolds, s South Bend Silver Hawk in 2005; and #20 Eric Patterson who played for Peoria in '05.

Brewer fans take note. Ryan Braun was named the #2 prospect in the AFL this year.

Transactions

BaseballAmerica.com had these up on 11/15 on their transaction page.

Seattle Mariners
Signed 3B Brant Ust
Signed RHP Cibney Bello
Signed RHP Renee Cortez
Signed RHP Jared Eichelberger
Signed RHP Jesse Foppert
Signed SS Rey Ordonez
Signed SS Carlos Triunfel
Released 1B Bryan Sabatella
Released 2B Juan Guzman
Released OF Robert Gary

I believe that should be Alex Gary instead of Robert?

Also of note, the Cubs released former UW-Oshkosh Titan Casey Kopitzke.

Intercontinental Cup XVI - Day 11 UPDATE

In games involving ex-Rattlers:

Chinese Taipei beat Japan 4-0 and Yung Chi-Chen (WI '05) went 3-for-3 with an RBI to help Taiwan win the bronze medal.

Italy lost 3-2 to Australia. Alex Liddi (WI '06) was 1-for-3 with a triple for the Italians, who finished in sixth place.

For the tournament, Liddi was 8-for-35 (.229) with no homers and four RBI. Chen went 17-for-36 (.472) with a homer and nine RBI.

The championship game between the Netherlands and Cuba is still going on right now; tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth with the Netherlands batting.

UPDATE: It's a final now. Cuba beat the Netherlands 6-3 in eleven innings. Both teams scored a run in the tenth. Cuba scored three in the top of the eleventh for the Gold.

Intercontinental Picture of the Day. Alex Liddi's triple against the Aussies.

Photo IBAF© 2006 by Patty Ortín

Baseball History -- November 19

Complete entry for November 19 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

1979
The Astros sign reentry free agent Nolan Ryan, formerly of the Angels, to a 4-year, $4.5 million contract, making him the highest-paid player in the ML.

Nolan Ryan, the first million dollar man in baseball.

1939
The National Professional Indoor Baseball League, headed by league president Tris Speaker, begins play. The league has 10 clubs, one in each then major-league city except Washington. Alas, it disappears within a month.

Indoor baseball? TIME thought the startup was worthy of a writeup in 1939.

Last week softball (minus its rover) was brought back indoors, stripped of its aliases and launched as a big-time winter sport. Patterned after major-league baseball's setup, the National Professional Indoor Baseball League sold franchises to New York, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, Boston, Cleveland, Chicago, Cincinnati, St. Louis. Each club, locally financed, is to play a 102-game schedule from mid-November to mid-March, with a World Series at season's end between Eastern and Western champions.

Though big names are notably absent from the roster of players (most of whom are drawn from the 10,000,000 sandlot baseballers and softballers in the U. S.), many a onetime star has turned promoter of indoor baseball. President of the league (at $7,500 a year) is 51-year-old Tris Speaker, Cleveland's baseball Immortal who has spent the past nine years as a radio sportcaster, Hollywood actor, minor-league club owner, wholesale liquor dealer and steel salesman. Managing the Cleveland club is another onetime Indian, baldpate Bill Wambsganss, only baseballer ever to make an unassisted triple play in a World Series (against the Dodgers in 1920).

It doesn't say in what arenas these teams played. Hey, it was Indoor Baseball in 1939. Those things were just known back then and didn't need to be put into a news sotry.

Rattlers in Paradise

Arizona Fall League is over.

Phoenix won the Championship with a 6-2 win over Grand Canyon.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, that doubleheader on the schedule of the Waikiki BeachBoys didn't happen. They lost 7-4 to West Oahu. The HWB website hasn't put a boxscore on their website since last Saturday. So, no link.

Ex-Rattlers for the BeachBoys included:

Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 1-for-5
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 1-for-4 with his second home run in Hawaii, a solo shot
Joe Woerman (WI '06): 1-1/3 inning pitched four hits, three runs, two walks, two strikeouts, and the loss.

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 1-for-4 with an RBI.

Sunday's Schedule:
Waikiki at Honolulu 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Blackout Biggins

This week's Baseball in a TV Series post is about Wings.

Wings was a sitcom that ran on NBC from 1990-1997. The setting was an airport on Nantucket Island and the characters were, um, characters. The main stories usually revloved around two brothers (Brian and Joe Hackett) who ran a small airline (Sandpiper Air) and the operator (Helen Chappel) of the lunch counter at the airport.

But, Blackout Biggins was a fourth season episode that focused on Roy Biggins, the slimy owner of Aeromass, a larger airline based out of the same airport.

Roy complains about a rap version of the National Anthem performed at a Red Sox game and states that he could do a better job.

Through a device on sit-coms known as "Hey, I know someone who..." Brian gets Roy a chance to sing the anthem at Fenway.

Roy fails miserably and faints at the completion of his attempt. Not only does he catch more grief than usual from the workers at the airport, a TV sportscaster ramps up the ridicule with continuous replays of the faint.

Roy, who is used to dishing it out, demands another shot at the anthem. Helen, a cello player, agrees to help with some music tips.

The Red Sox give Roy another chance and the whole group heads to Fenway for a chance to watch Roy fail again.

Roy nails the anthem, but due to a malfunction of the PA system no one hears him. There is a scene at the end where he is trying to sing the song one more time, but the game is ready to start. If I remeber it right, security guards drag Roy off the field.

Good episode of a nice show.

Intercontinental Cup XVI - Day 10

In games involving ex-Rattlers:

Cuba beat Chinese Taipei 5-4 in a semifinal game. No box score at the site yet.

Italy beat Korea 8-3 with six runs in the top of the ninth.

Alex Liddi (WI '06) was 1-for-4 and played third base for the Italians.

Day 11 Schedule:
Italy vs. Australia in the fifth place game.
Chinese Taipei vs. Japan in the bronze medal game.

The championship game for the Intercontinental Cup is:
Cuba vs. The Netherlands

Your Cup Picture of the Day is Taichung Stadium at night:

Baseball History -- November 18

Complete entry for November 18 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1997
The expansion draft for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks is held in Phoenix, Arizona. Florida pitcher Tony Saunders is taken with the 1st pick by the Devil Rays, while the Diamondbacks select pitcher Brian Anderson from Cleveland. Following the draft, the Diamondbacks acquire 3B Travis Fryman from the Tigers in exchange for infielders Joe Randa and Gabe Alvarez and P Matt Drews. They also obtain OF Devon White from the Marlins in exchange for P Jesus Martinez. In a rash of moves, the Devil Rays get 1B Fred McGriff from the Braves in exchange for a player to be named, C John Flaherty from the Padres in exchange for P Brian Boehringer and IF Andy Sheets, SS Kevin Stocker from the Phillies in exchange for Bobby Abreu, and sign free agent P Roberto Hernandez to a 4-year contract.

The entire draft is HERE.

Also in 1997
In one of their best swaps ever, the Red Sox obtain Cy Young Award winner Pedro Martinez from the Expos in exchange for P Carl Pavano and a player to be named.

If the Expos were still around, it would be the Curse of Pedro. I wonder if that curse made it through Customs to Washington.

1987
Cubs OF Andre Dawson becomes the first player from a last-place club wver to win an MVP Award, taking National League honors for his .287-49-137 season.

The story here is that no team wanted Dawson before the season started. He signed a blank contract with the Cubs and GM Dallas Green filled in the terms. Dawson signed a little better contract leading up to the 1988 season.

1966
Sandy Koufax announces his retirement, due to increasing pain in his arthritic left elbow.

Koufax (you can find his complete statistics HERE) was about six weeks shy of his 31st birthday when he retired from baseball. In his first six seasons with the Dodgers, he was 36-40. In his final six seasons, Koufax won 129 games. He was inducted to the Hall of Fame in 1972.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

The Arizona Fall League Championship is today. The Peoria Javelinas did not make it to the final game. They finished 14-18 and in third place in their division of the AFL. Final statistics for the season are HERE.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, the Waikiki BeachBoys lost 4-3 to West Oahu. (No boxscore available on line yet)

The only ex-Rattler to get into the game for the BeachBoys was David Asher (WI '06). He pitched a scoreless inning with a walk and a strikeout.

The BeachBoys are 18-14 and lead Honolulu by 4-1/2 games in their two-team division.

Saturday's Schedule:
West Oahu at Waikiki (Doubleheader) 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Weekly Mariner look-in

The Mariners have an update on how some of the Winter and Fall League players are doing at their site.

Michael Garciparra (WI '03): gets the headline;

Garciaparra in a zone in 'Zona

Michael Garciaparra continues to rake in the Arizona Fall League for the Peoria Javelinas. The former first-round pick has hit safely in three of his last four games, going 5-for-16 with his first homer and three RBIs.

The 23-year-old connected for a two-run shot in a 6-5 loss to the Peoria Saguaros on Tuesday.

Garciaparra has four three-hit games this fall and is eighth in the AFL with a batting .338 average. Overall, he has 13 RBIs, 11 runs scored and two stolen bases in 18 games for the Javelinas.

Ex-Rattlers and how they are faring:

Hawaii Winter Baseball
Waikiki BeachBoys
LHP David Asher -- The 23-year-old allowed one hit and struck out two in a scoreless inning Nov. 6. The Orlando, Fla., native made his fourth start of the season, and first since Oct. 13, on Sunday. Asher allowed five hits and four walks in four scoreless innings as the BeachBoys beat the CaneFires, 3-1. The 6-foot-1 left-hander is 1-1 with a 4.57 ERA in eight outings, including four starts.

RHP Joe Woerman -- The 23-year-old reliever bounced back with back-to-back scoreless outings after allowing his first run in four appearances on Nov. 5. On Nov. 9, he struck out two and walked two in one inning. On Saturday, Woerman fanned three and walked three over three innings en route to his third win. The 6-3 righty is 3-0 with a 2.66 ERA in 14 games. He has allowed six runs while striking out 23 in 20 1/3 innings.

LF Sebastian Boucher -- The Canadian is hitless in his last 11 at-bats, dropping his average to .159. Dating to Oct. 31, the 24-year-old is 0-for-19. Boucher has 15 runs scored and three RBIs in 22 games.

C Jeff Clement -- The former first-round pick went 2-for-9 in three games last week, but is still batting .163 through 18 games. He has one RBI on the season.

Arizona Fall League
Peoria Javelinas
RHP Craig James -- The Miami native has made two appearances out of the 'pen over the last week. The 23-year-old fanned one in a perfect inning on Nov. 7 against the Saguaros and he allowed an unearned run and two walks while striking out two in one inning in a 13-10 victory over Mesa. The 6-1 righty has a 4.00 ERA in nine games for the Javelinas.

RHP Stephen Kahn -- Kahn, who has struggled for most of the season, allowed one run on two hits in one inning in the Javelinas' 8-0 loss to Grand Canyon on Nov. 9. The 23-year-old rebounded with a perfect inning in a 6-5 loss to the Saguaros on Tuesday. He has a 8.64 ERA in nine games, surrendering eight runs and 14 hits in 8 1/3 innings.

LHP Bobby Livingston -- The St. Louis native earned his first win of the season on Sunday. He allowed three runs on six hits over five innings. The 24-year-old fanned four and did not walk a batter in the Javelinas' 13-10 victory over Mesa. He is 1-3 with a 10.45 ERA in six starts. Opponents are batting .374 against him.

LHP Ryan Rowland-Smith -- The Australian has made three appearances over the last week. He allowed a run on one hit and two walks while fanning two in one inning on Nov. 7. He followed that up by tossing a perfect inning on Friday. The 23-year-old allowed one hit and struck out one in a scoreless inning against Grand Canyon on Monday. The 6-3 left-hander is 0-1 with a 5.79 ERA in 11 games.

3B Matt Tuiasosopo -- The Bellevue, Wash., native is mired in a terrible slump after going 2-for-13 over a recent four-game span. The former third-round pick has seen his average fall to .158 after 20 games. He has yet to hit a home run and has four RBIs and two extra-base hits on the season.

RF Michael Wilson -- The 23-year-old is 3-for-14 with one RBI over a recent four-game stretch. The Tulsa, Okla., native is batting .243 with three home runs, 19 RBIs and 10 runs scored in 20 games.

Venezuelan Winter League
Cardenales de Lara
RHP Emiliano Fruto -- After earning his fifth save of the season on Nov. 7, Fruto experienced his worst outing the next day. The 22-year-old surrendered three runs -- two earned -- on four hits and a walk with one strikeout while retiring two batters. The Colombian rebounded with a scoreless inning on Sunday. He allowed one hit and struck out one. Fruto is 1-1 with five saves and a 3.65 ERA in 11 games.

LHP Jose Escalona -- The 20-year-old has not appeared in a game since Nov. 2. He has a 6.75 ERA in four games.

RHP Rich Dorman -- The 28-year-old made his fourth start of the season on Nov. 8. He allowed a run on three hits over seven innings. The native of Venezuela struck out four and walked one, but did not receive a decision. He is 1-1 with a 2.63 ERA in six games. Opponents are batting .228 against him.

RHP Ivan Blanco -- Blanco allowed two unearned runs on one hit and a walk while fanning two over 2 2/3 innings on Sunday. The 23-year-old is 1-1 with a 2.13 ERA in eight games. He has struck out 11 in 12 2/3 innings.

RHP Cibney Bello -- The 24-year-old has not appeared in a game since Oct. 27. He has a 4.15 ERA in three games for the Cardenales.

2B Luis Valbuena -- The Venezuela native has not appeared in a game since Oct. 13.

SS Oswaldo Navarro -- After a 2-for-18 stretch, Navarro has come on strong. The 22-year-old is 5-for-11 with two RBIs over his last three games, raising his average to .280. He has five RBIs and four runs scored in 14 games.

Aguilas del Zulia
1B Jon Nelson -- The 26-year-old has not played since Oct. 22. He is batting .160 with two RBIs and two runs scored in seven games.

Tiburones de La Guaira
C Luis Oliveros -- Oliveros went 1-for-2 on Nov. 7 and struck out as a pinch hitter on Friday. The Venezuelan is batting .273 with two homers, eight RBIs and two runs scored in five games for the Tiburones.

Mexican Pacific League
Caneros de los Mochis
1B Bryan LaHair -- LaHair has not appeared in a game since Nov. 1. He is hitting .234 with two home runs, 11 runs scored and nine RBIs in 19 games.

Baseball History -- November 17

Complete entry for November 17 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries are:

1992
Baseball holds the expansion draft to stock the rosters of the National League's two new teams, the Florida Marlins and Colorado Rockies. A total of 72 players are chosen. P David Nied is the 1st pick of the Rockies, while OF Nigel Wilson is selected 1st by the Marlins. The Fish take Jose Martinez with #2, while the Rocks pick vet Charlie Hayes. The best picks for Florida are #4 Trevor Hoffman, eventually packaged for Gary Sheffield; #11 Jeff Conine, who will hit 81 homers in four years; and #18 Cris Carpenter, later dealt to Texas for Robb Nen. For Colorado, they will find gold with #6 Eric Young, #10 Joe Girardi, #16 Vinny Castilla, and #18 Armando Reynoso. Picks #13 and 14 are good ones -- Andy Ashby, Brad Ausmus and Doug Bochtler -— but they'll all go to the Padres in 1993 in an ill-fated deal for pricey vet pitchers Bruce Hurst and Greg Harris.

Complete Marlins list is HERE. Brewer fans might get a kick out of the 14th pick, Chuck Carr. Why? Because Chucky Carr takes his hacks on 2-0!

Complete Rockies list is HERE. Rattler fans will get a kick out of the 34th pick, our own pitching coach Lance Painter.

1979
On a flight to Austin, TX, Daniel Okrent sketches out the first draft of rules for what would become Rotisserie League Baseball. Had the friends he was seeing not ignored these rules, the Rotisserie League would have been called Pit League, after the Austin barbecue joint where Okrent first unveiled them. Two weeks later in New York, he pitches the idea to a more receptive group with whom Okrent lunched monthly at La Rotisserie Francaise.

I think fantasy baseball would have caught on more quickly over Pit League Baseball.

1959
William Shea of the Continental League shows sketches of the proposed stadium in New York City with its transparent retractable roof.

If I know my 50's science fiction, that stadium would have looked like something out of Rocky Jones, Space Ranger. And it would have be so. freaking. cool. For about ten minutes.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Scottsdale 1-0 in seven innings. That was the final game of the AFL season. There is a championship game on Saturday between Grand Canyon and Phoenix.

Ex-Rattler for the Javelinas:
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05): 1-for-2

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, the Waikiki BeachBoys were off on Thursday.

Friday's Schedule:
West Oahu at Waikiki 7:30pm Hawaii Time

Tonight's Episode

The super-sized episode of The Office was a good one.

I laughed out loud watching the episode tonight. The "Night at the Roxbury" skit was hilarious as was most of the show. But, one thing I can't shake:

No matter how hard some try to be Jim, we wind up being Dwight, or Andy, or Michael.

Great episode though.

Back to baseball in the morning.

Dayton's "Greenwich Village"

Fifth Third Village doesn't have the ring to it.

DAYTON — Developers want to create Dayton's own version of New York's "Greenwich Village" on the banks of the Great Miami and Mad rivers downtown, said Matthew Daniels of the Cincinnati-based Bear Creek Capital, a partner in the proposed $230 million Dayton Waterfront Development.

At Wednesday's Dayton City Commission meeting, Daniels said the mix of housing, shops, restaurants and entertainment venues — a "24-hour village" — would build on the success of RiverScape MetroPark and Fifth Third Field, home of the Dayton Dragons.

This headline might make some Dayton taxpayers nervous;

City officials beaming over developement plan

DAYTON — Dayton city officials could barely contain their excitement Wednesday as developers publicly unveiled a proposed development they've been negotiating with city administrators since March.

"We just burst at the seams tonight," said Commissioner Nan Whaley.

They're BURSTING, Jerry! BURSTING!

Across the Mad River, near Fifth Third Field would be "Ballpark Village," complete with a gourmet grocery store, a bookstore and other shops, restaurants, a fitness facility and entertainment spots.

Developers and city officials will spend the next six months trying to determine if the deal can work: looking at financing, doing environmental studies, and analyzing the market.

The preliminary agreement approved Wednesday obligates the city to obtain options on or rights to private and public property — with time frames ranging from 90 days for two businesses on Monument Avenue and Parkside Homes, and no later than April 1, 2008, for Dayton Public Schools Career Academy.

Don't make plans to see it next year or even 2008. It will take years.

Another step for the SWING

From QCTimes.net this morning:

City council approves JOD lease

Despite misgivings by a couple of aldermen, the Davenport City Council approved a long-term lease Wednesday night with Florida-based Main Street Baseball, paving the way for new ownership at city-owned John O’Donnell Stadium.

Under the conditions of the lease, Main Street — which also operates a Class A baseball franchise in Columbus, Ga. — will lease the stadium for 25 years.

Under the terms of the contract, the city gets an annual payment of $273,000 for the first two years of the lease and $385,000 annually in years three through 25. Current owner, Seventh Inning Stretch, now pays a little less than $490,000 on its 15-year lease.

The lease agreement vote was not made without some spirited debate.

The highlight (to me) of the spirited debate:

“It’s always interesting to see how many attorneys show up after a contract is written,” he said. “This contract has been negotiated by the legal department. We fiddle and diddle with things in this city until they’re gridlocked.”

'fiddle and diddle'. I have GOT to use that during a game at John O'Donnell Stadium next season.

The one commenter (so far) on the story atQCTimes.net has a bad feeling about this:

Comment 3: And this is the same legal department who was found to be in error on Malin's contract. We're doomed.

Buck up there, Camper. Turn that frown upside-down.

Baseball History -- November 16

Complete entry for November 16 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Today's highlighted entries:

1999
Surprise! Boston Red Sox P Pedro Martinez is named the unanimous winner of the American League Cy Young Award. He led the AL in wins, strikeouts and ERA. Martinez also won the award in the National League, just the 3rd pitcher to do so.

Other winners of the Cy Young in both leagues: Gaylord Perry (Cleveland 1972, San Diego 1978) and Randy Johnson (Seattle 1995, Arizona 1999-2002)

1962
John McHale and six former stockholders of the White Sox purchase the Milwaukee Braves from the Perini Corporation for $6,218,480.

1891
The Louisville Colonels club is sold at auction to satisfy a $6,359.40 mortgage. The new ownership is headed by Dr. T. Hunt Stuckey

The above two entries are to show the increase in value of a franchise.

Intercontinental Cup XVI - Day 8

In games involving teams with former Rattlers:

Chinese Taipei beat Cuba 4-3.

The boxscore had a link, but it wasn't on the website yet. No idea how Yung Chi Chen (WI '05) did for Chinese Taipei. Will check back later.


Italy lost to Korea 5-1.

Alex Liddi (WI '06) played first and was 0-for-2 for the Italians.

Day 9 Schedule:
REST DAY (or rest night at Taichung Stadium looking at the picture)

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Phoenix 11-0.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 1-for-2 with a double and two runs scored
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03): One scoreless inning with two hits and a strikeout

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, the Waikiki BeachBoys lost 2-1 to Honolulu.

Ex-Rattlers for the BeachBoys:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 0-for-4
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 1-for-3 with an RBI

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-3.

Thursday's Schedule:
Scottsdale at Peoria Javelinas 2:05pm CST
Waikiki -- Off Day

News from the around MWL

Lots of good stuff at BallparkDigest.com today.

There are three entries with a Midwest League flavor.

Dragons owner proposes $200 million development near ballpark

DAYTON — The owner of the Dayton Dragons wants to expand entertainment venues around Fifth-Third Field with a $200 million development that would include a mix of retail, restaurants and possibly condominiums.

The project will include three separate developments, confirmed Tom Biedenharn, the city's director of public affairs: a residential development at Deeds Point along the Great Miami River; an entertainment and retail complex just north of the ballpark and a large retail project on the site of Dayton Metropolitan Housing Authority's Parkside Homes.

There is a Dayton City Commission meeting going on RIGHT NOW!!!

Battle Creek approves Northwoods League lease

In the end, baseball never left Battle Creek.

It just took a two-month vacation.

Battle Creek's city commissioners approved by a unanimous 9 to 0 the lease of C.O. Brown Stadium to be used for the college-player Northwoods League on Tuesday night.

The agreement with the Northwoods League comes barely more than two months after the Southwest Michigan Devil Rays of the professionally-affiliated Midwest League left town.

The Midwest League had been in B.C. for 12 seasons but left due to dwindling attendance.

Northwoods League president Dick Radatz Jr. has already signed the stadium lease and the deal will become official when city manager Wayne Wiley inks the dotted line today.

"We're excited to get something back in the stadium," said Jeff Hovarter, Battle Creek's director of parks and recreation.

It remains to be seen if the community of Battle Creek is excited to get something back in the stadium.

Also, still no owner for the team. If one isn't found, the league will run the team.

Meanwhile, the new home of the old Battle Creek MWL franchise is shaping up nicely.

Work continues rapidly on Dow Diamond

MIDLAND (WJRT) - (11/14/06)--In five months, the first pitch will be thrown at the Dow Diamond. The ballpark is still under construction. It will be the home of Midland's new minor league baseball team.

If they had to, they probably could play baseball in the stadium today.

"You try to pull it up and it's like pulling hair out of your head," said Dow Diamond groundskeeper Matt McQuaid.

McQuaid is talking about the stadium playing field, which was installed last month, and has already taken root.

Good. The field is in. What about the rest?

The bullpens are being completed, and this is something many people might not know: Bricks make up the foundation of pitching mounds in major and minor league ballparks.

"And you actually never get into the brick itself, but you will get into the bag clay, and it's easy on maintenance," McQuaid said. "It's great for the players to dig into."

The stadium's two fire pits are in place, and there are bases for the solar panels which will help produce power for the ballpark.

And workers have started on the roof of the facility, which has to be done before the freezing weather settles in.

Two firepits? Something like this?
Probably not. But, you may want to click on the video link at the TV station's site to make sure.

Intercontinental Cup XVI - Day 7

Italy lost 6-3 to Japan.

Alex Liddi played first base and went 0-for-2 for Italy.

Chinese Taipei shutout the Phillippenes 14-0.

Yung Chi Chen (WI '05) played second for Taiwan. He was 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI.

Day 8 schedule for teams with ex-Rattlers:
Chinese Taipei vs. Cuba
Italy vs. Cuba

Today's picture from Intercontinental Stadium:

Baseball History -- November 15

Complete entry for November 15 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1983
Cal Ripken is named MVP of the American League, edging Orioles teammate Eddie Murray. Ripken hit .318 and led the league in hits (211) and runs (111) while playing every inning of every game, and is the first player ever to win the Rookie of the Year and MVP Awards in consecutive seasons.

The voting for the '83 AL MVP is HERE. 322-290 isn't exactly edging. Neither is 15 first place votes to 10.

1967
Boston's Carl Yastrzemski is the overwhelming selection as the American League's MVP. The Triple-crown winner misses unanimity by one vote, which goes to Cesar Tovar (.267, six home run, 47 RBI).

The last Triple Crown winner. For a complete list of Triple Crownm winners got to Baseball Almanac HERE.

1886
Cincinnati and St. Louis complete the first trade ever of reserved players, the Browns sending Hugh Nicol to the Reds for Jack Boyle and $400.

I wonder what ESPN said about this trade? Boyle's nickname was "Honest Jack". Hugh Nicol had no nickname at Baseball Reference. Nicol had more years playing in the league, but I'm guessing that with a name like "Honest Jack" he would have been the lede on any story out of Bristol.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas lost 6-5 to the Peoria Saguaros.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI
Stephen Kahn (WI '05): A scoreless inning with a strikeout

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat Honolulu 9-5.

Ex-Rattler for the BeachBoys:
Joe Woerman (WI '06): Two innings, two hits, two walks, three runs, one walk.

Wednesday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Phoenix 2:05pm CST
Honolulu at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Read the WHOLE thing next time...

Checked Mariner Minors after the post about Daren Brown heading to Tacoma. Something there caught my eye. That led to this story at the Mariner site. That's when this jumped up and said "LOOK OVER HERE, KNUCKLEHEAD!"

Scott Steinmann will begin his first season as manager of the Mariners new Single-A affiliate, the High Desert Mavericks, in the California League. He enters his 10th season in the Mariners organization and third as manager. Steinmann managed the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in 2003-04. The rest of his staff, which remains unchanged from last season, will include pitching coach Scott Budner, coach Rafael Santo Domingo and trainer Matt Toth.

Great news for Scott. But, you would think the Mariners would remember that he managed the Rattlers in 2005. As has been stated below, Daren Brown was in Appleton in 2003. Steve Roadcap was the Rattler manager in 2004.

But, hey, like I never made a mistake.

And what the heck is going on in the QC

A link at Ballparkdigest.com leads to this story at QCTimes.com:

JOD, Swing deals still not official

A new owner for the Swing of the Quad-Cities and a new lease on John O’Donnell Stadium are not done deals just yet.

The Davenport City Council is scheduled to vote at its regular meeting Wednesday night on a 25-year lease for prospective new owners Main Street Baseball. That is a necessary step before they can buy the franchise from Seventh Inning Stretch, the current ownership group headed by Kevin Krause.

But at Monday’s committee-of-the-whole meeting, several aldermen voiced concerns about elements of the 25-year lease — including the leniency of the late payment penalty, the loss of any stadium naming rights revenue, relatively low liability insurance requirements and whether the city would be on the hook for future stadium upgrades and renovations.

Lots of issues raised by different city councilors. But, in the end it can be magically wiped away. How?

City Finance Director Alan Guard said he will draft a memo in response to the aldermen’s concerns, discuss any possible changes with Main Street Baseball and hopefully have an agreement that can be voted on at Wednesday night’s meeting.

Memos! Is there anything that they can't do?

Elswhere in the Mariner system

A former Rattler manager is moving up to Tacoma.

M's get new skippers for minor-league teams

Daren Brown is the newest manager in the hot seat for the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners' Class AAA team.

With Seattle's top organizational brass away in Naples, Fla., attending the annual general managers' meetings, the team named Brown as the Rainiers' third field boss in 12 months.

Brown, 39, spent the final weeks of the season with the Mariners as a first-base coach and now assumes a role held in 2005 by Dan Rohn and in 2006 by Dave Brundage — dismissed by the organization in September and October, respectively.

Brown was the Rattler manager in 2003.

The other new skipper in the story is West Tennessee's Eddie Rodriguez.

Now with QUOTES!

The Post-Crescent had the story this morning on the naming of the Timber Rattler coaching staff for 2007.

Horner back as manager

The Seattle Mariners officially announced on Monday that [Jim] Horner will be returning to the Rattlers dugout for the 2007 season.

He made his professional managerial debut last year with Wisconsin, guiding it to a 54-84 Midwest League finish.

"In my mind, I still have to learn things as a manager before you go higher up," said Horner, who celebrated his 33rd birthday on Saturday.

"Do I think I know everything? Not even close. Were there a lot of things I got caught up on? Heck yeah. Could we have won more games with an experienced manager with that team? I'd say so.

"I need to learn and grow as a manager, but I just want to get the players to get better, to move up. I care more about promoting the players than I do myself. I'm definitely looking forward to coming back."
Although Wisconsin struggled to win games last year, Horner and his staff were responsible for the development of a handful of players who earned promotions within Seattle's upper minor league levels.

According to Mariners director of player development Frank Mattox, that was a key factor in deciding to place Horner back in Wisconsin, which has served as Seattle's low Class A affiliate since 1993.

"You have to do the fundamentals and the things that are required to move on to the next level, and he's getting a lot of young men who are in on-the-job training and getting them to do their jobs on a daily basis," Mattox said. "We're talking about development here, and he did very well in terms of getting players better in the program we have in place. I think it's a nice spot for him to continue his development as a manager as well."

Baseball History -- November 14

Complete entry for November 14 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

1985
The Brewers release 39-year-old P Rollie Fingers, the major leagues' all-time saves leader with 341.

Fingers had a chance to sign with the Reds after this. But, the 'No Facial Hair' policy of the Reds would have meant that the handlebar would have had to go. Rollie retired.

1957
The AP names Henry Aaron as the 1957 National League MVP with 239 votes. Stan Musial is a close 2nd with 230, and Red Schoendienst is 3rd with 221.

Aaron hit 44 homers with 132 RBI and an average of .322 that season for his only MVP award. Plus, in the World Series that year, Aaron hit three homers and drove in seven RBI.

1900
The National League rejects the American League as an equal, declaring it an outlaw league outside of the National Agreement, thus inaugurating a state of war. This follows the AL's announcement two days ago that it has made arrangements to go into Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia. Two weeks later the AA makes it a 3-way battle.

Rivalry makes the world go round.

1887
Cleveland announces a new uniform design featuring dark blue stripes and piping. The new suit will inspire the nickname "Spider" because of the web-like pattern.

Unfortunately, the uniform database only goes back to 1900. No luck finding a picture of this uniform. But, I think it went a little something like this:

But that is just a guess.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Grand Canyon 5-2.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05): 0-for-4 with two strikeouts
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03): One inning pitched, one hit, one strikeout, no runs

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki had the day off.

Tuesday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Peoria Saguaros 2:05pm CST
Honolulu at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

One question unrelated to baseball.

Why couldn't the Packers do this...

Photo Credit:Tom Lynn/JSOnline.com

when I lived HERE amongst the Viking Fans? Oh, well. Yesterday was fun at least.

Another new logo...in Iowa

Cedar Rapids did it a short time ago. Now, its Burlington's turn.

Bees Unveil New Logo

"We felt that a new logo was necessary to help us capture the attention of future Bees fans," Bees General Manager Chuck Brockett said. "We have a beautifully renovated stadium, a long-term relationship with the Kansas City Royals, and have watched our attendance grow 30% over a five-year span. We want to continue these trends, and our staff felt in order to do that we needed something that younger fans will think is cool and be more likely to identify with."

...

"In an age where the internet, and specifically our own website at gobees.com, takes Bees baseball to literally every corner of the world, we need to represent our organization and our community in a way that projects that pride we feel in our team and our town," Bees Asst. GM Randy Wehofer said in the presentation on Sunday. "We want people to instantly recognize that Burlington Bees baseball is fun, exciting, and is an organization ready to fulfill the promise of a bright future for generations to come."

First reaction...I LIKE it!

Look at the old one:
Buzz the Bee is kinda Chuck Jonesy cartoony, ain't it?

Here is the local reaction from The Hawkeye

Was the team being sold? Were the naming rights to the stadium sold? Was Chuck Brockett retiring?

The Burlington Bees accomplished their goal when they started talk several weeks ago with their "Have you heard the Buzz about your Bees?" campaign.

They got Burlington talking about what might be happening with the local Midwest League baseball team.

Sunday, everyone got the answer.
...
"We thought with the reading program, with Honor Roll and DARE Day, with the renovation and affiliation extension, and all the positive things, that for the first time since we've been around, and looking back through the history, maybe ever, we can actually think long term about this organization," said Randy Wehofer, the team's assistant general manager and radio broadcaster. "Long term, we didn't [think] the logo was appealing to the next generation of Bees fans. That was really the driving force behind this decision."

So, anything happen while I was at work today?

Oh, yeah. You bet.

Rattler Field Staff Announced

Jim Horner will be back to manage for his second season with the Rattlers. His staff includes second year pitching coach, Lance Painter, and the return of hitting coach, Dana Williams. Tim Higgins will begin his first season as the Rattlers' athletic trainer.

Jeremy Clipperton, the Rattler athletic trainer since 2002, and Tommy Cruz, the Rattler hitting coach in 2005 and 2006, are both headed to West Tennessee, Seattle's new Double-A affiliate.

The release has a few more details. Follow the link for the whole story.

Baseball History -- November 13

Complete entry for November 13 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

1979
For the first time in history, two players share the MVP Award. The NL co-winners are Willie Stargell, the Pirates spiritual leader, who batted .281 with 32 home runs; and the Cardinals Keith Hernandez, who led the NL in runs (116), doubles (48), and batting (.344).

The voting for the 1979 NL MVP Award is HERE. Hernandez had ten first place votes and Stargell had four. They finished tied with 216 points. Why? Well, I'd guess it would be because of the single first place votes for Joe Niekro, Kent Tekulve, Gary Carter, or Bill Madlock by four different sportswriters.

1967
Following a meeting of National League owners, President Warren Giles says the league will not stand in the way of American League expansion to Seattle and Kansas City.

Gotta love that interleague cooperation.

1958
Mayor Robert Wagner of New York announces preliminary plans for a 3rd ML. Chairman William Shea, of what will become the Continental League, says it is apparent that the National League is going to ignore New York City. He implies that the new league will be free to raid ML rosters.

Yep. The National League was going to ignore the largest market in the US. That's why they tried to start the Continental League. For more info on the Continental League go HERE. It is wikipedia, so take that with a grain of salt.

The Continental League (or formally the Continental League of Professional Baseball Clubs) was a proposed third major league for baseball, announced in 1959 and scheduled to begin play in the 1961 season. The league disbanded in August 1960 without playing a single game, but it helped to accelerate the expansion of Major League Baseball.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

The Peoria Javelinas had Sunday off in the Arizona Fall League.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat West Oahu 5-2 in a seven inning game.

Ex-Rattlers for the BeachBoys:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 0-for-3
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

Monday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Grand Canyon 2:05pm CST
Waikiki -- Off Day

Addition to the sidebar

If you follow the One More Favorite TV Show link on the left, it will take you to the official NBC website of The Office.

Currently, there is a producer's cut of Branch Closing, the episode from last Thursday, available at the site.

Intercontinental Cup XVI - Day 4

Chinese Taipei beat Korea 9-7 in twelve innings.

Yung Chi-Chen (WI '05) was 1-for-6, but that one hit was a seventh inning Grand Slam for Taiwan.

Italy lost 8-7 to Australia in thirteen innings.

Alex Liddi (WI '06) was 2-for-7 with a double and an RBI for the Italians. Also, Liddi has been playing first base during the tournament.

Checking in on the Phillippines, they got crushed by Cuba 24-0. Cuba scored 15 runs in the first inning. Phillippine starting pitcher Ernesto Binarao gave up eight hits, two walks, and ten runs in 1/3 of an inning. Ouch.

One thing that I've noticed on the boxscores for the Intercontinental Cup, three official scorers!

From Italy vs. Australia:

SCOREKEEPER(S) : SANTOS, SUSANA (ESP); HUANG, FU-YING (TPE), WANG, SHIH-SUNG (TPE)

From Korea vs. Chinese Taipei

SCOREKEEPER(S) : DROST, FEIKO (NED); HUANG, FU-YING (TPE), HUANG, HSIN-CHANG (TPE)

Picture that conversation.

Scorer No. 1: Hit.
Scorer No. 2: E-3.
Scorer No. 1 & Scorer No. 2 look at Scorer No. 3
Scorer No. 3: E-3!
Scorer No. 2: Exactly!
Scorer No. 1: You're NUTS! No WAY was that an E-3.
Scorer No. 2 & Scorer No. 3. YOU'RE NUTS! He should have had it!
Scorer No. 1 throws a pencil at the ceiling of the pressbox and spends the next three innings muttering to himself.

Day 5 Schedule:
REST DAY

Nice picture of Intercontinental Stadium from the REST DAY site. Very restful.

Baseball History -- November 12

Complete entry for November 12 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1992
Arbitrator George Nicolau overturns the suspension of Yankees P Steve Howe for being too severe. The pitcher is resigned by the Yankees.

Steve Howe stats. Steve Howe story.

He pitched for Sioux Falls in the Northern League when I was working for the Dukes. To say it was interesting watching him try to comeback is an understatement.

1980
Don Zimmer is named manager of the Texas Rangers, becoming the 10th manager in the club's 9-year history.

Ten managers in nine years? Here's the list: 1972-Ted Williams; 1973-Whitey Herzog (138 games), Del Wilber (1 game), Billy Martin (23 games); 1974-Martin; 1975-Martin (95 games), Frank Lucchesi (67 games); 1976-Lucchesi; 1977-Lucchesi (62 games), Eddie Stanky (1 game), Connie Ryan (6 games), Billy Hunter (93 games); 1978-Hunter (161 games) , Pat Corrales (1 game), 1979-Corrales, 1980-Corrales

1920
With Ban Johnson barred from the meeting, the 16 ML clubs settle their differences. The 12-team-league idea is discarded, and the two leagues will continue with their same identities. The owners unanimously elect Kenesaw Mountain Landis chairman for seven years. Judge Landis accepts, but only as sole commissioner with final authority over the players and owners, while remaining a federal judge (with his $7,500 federal salary deducted from the baseball salary of $50,000). The agreement will be signed on January 12, 1921, when he is to begin his duties.

Landis is in the Hall of Fame. Part of his plaque reads:

His integrity and leadership established baseball in the respect, esteem and affection of the American people.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Mesa 13-10.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored
Mike Wilson (WI '05): 0-for-3 with two walks and two strikeouts

Bobby Livingston (WI '03): Got his first win for the Javelinas. He allowed three runs on six hits with four strikeouts and no walks over five innings.

Craig James (WI '05): Pitched one inning, walked two, struck out one, and gave up an unearned run.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, the Waikiki BeachBoys beat West Oahu 3-1 with a pair of runs in the top of the ninth.

Ex-Rattlers for the BeachBoys:
David Asher (WI '06): Pitched four scoreless innings with five hits and four strikeouts.
Joe Woerman (WI '06): Got the win with three scoreless innings with three walks and three strikeouts.

Rattler farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-1 for Waikiki.

Sunday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas -- Off Day
Waikiki at West Oahu 3:00pm Hawaii Time

Something to look forward to

BaseballAmerica.com has started releasing their organizational top 10 prospects.

The page is HERE and they have started with the Orioles, Red Sox, and Yankees.

The Mariners are slated for a December 8 release.

Mark your calendars.

At the Intercontinental Cup

Ex-Rattlers Yung Chi Chen (WI '05) and Alex Liddi (WI '06) are participating for Chinese Taipei and Italy at the Intercontinental Cup in Taiwan.

In action from either yesterday or sometime tomorrow (don't you just love International Date Line humor?):

Chinese Taipei beat Australia 4-2. Chen was 1-for-4 with an RBI.

Italy lost 9-0 to Cuba. Liddi went 0-for-3.

The score of the day was the Netherlands beating the Phillippines 22-0. The eleven run sixth inning put it away for the Dutch.

Action for either tomorrow or next Thursday is:
Italy vs. Australia
Chinese Taipei vs. Korea

I never have been the quickest...

Last night, the story about Ryan Ketchner getting selected as a six-year free agent by the Padres from November 4 finally got posted on this blog.

After a check of sitemeter, I saw someone did a blogger search for Ryan. After following that link, this is what I found (scroll down a bit) at Baseball Digest Daily:

The San Diego Padres today signed Ryan Ketchner to a one-year contract and added the left-handed pitcher to the 40-man roster. Executive Vice President/General Manager Kevin Towers made the
announcement.

Midwest League News

Credit to Ballparkdigest.com for digging these up.

Deadline nears for moving Snappers to LaPrairie

The deadline is December 29. Maybe a late Christmas for the Snappers?

Bill Watson, president of Mulder Dairy Farms Inc., is more committed than ever to making sure a land swap deal with the county goes through.

“If the Board of Supervisors think we are on the right track, we are going to make sure it happens and nothing on the face of the earth will stop it from happening,” Watson said. “If the supervisors support us and we make the trade, we are going to get this thing built without using public dollars.”

If a recently submitted proposal makes it past the Rock County Board, the Beloit Snappers could move from Pohlman Field to the I-90 corridor in the Town of LaPrairie. Watson is offering three pieces of land totaling 346 acres located near the Highway 11/Interstate-90 ramp in return for the 421 acres of Rock County farm land on the north side of Janesville. In addition to a new baseball stadium, the land would be used for a new Rock County fairgrounds, according to the proposal. Ken Hendricks, owner of ABC Supply in Beloit, has proposed a racetrack similar to the Rockford Speedway for the site.

...

Watson still maintains the deadline can't be extended. If it extends past the calendar year, Watson said the MDF won't have the $7 million to contribute.

“We went through great pains to work out business arrangements and tax considerations to make the offer we did. We never thought it would cause any controversy,” Watson said. “We thought the project would have such great benefit. We thought it was a slam dunk and it was just like we kicked a hornets' nest.”

Rock County Board Chair Richard Ott, like some of the other supervisors, is concerned that the deadline is too quick to make a decision on such a complex process. Although Watson understands the supervisors concerns he said if the deadline is not met MDF won't be able to put extra money in the transaction.

“Unfortunately we don't have any control whatsoever over the calendar year deadline,” Watson said.

Somebody needs to work on their sports metaphors. Watson thought the project would be a "slam dunk". Next time, try "home run", "grand slam", or "free pass".

And did he really think that a complicated land swap involving a county board and millions of dollars and a baseball team wouldn't be just a bit controversial?

Swing suitor receives good marks on report

The company planning to buy the Swing of the Quad-Cities is financially healthy, has never had a lawsuit or lien filed against it and is unlikely to fail to pay its bills on time, according to a background report conducted by the business information firm Dun & Bradstreet.

The results were shared Thursday with the Davenport Finance Committee, which discussed ongoing lease negotiations with Florida-based Main Street Baseball.

“From everything I’ve been able to glean from the report, they’re a very good company,” city finance director Alan Guard told aldermen.

There's a glean, men. There's a glean. Marty Schottenheimer said that once and then the Browns lost to the Broncos in an AFC Championship game.

There is a lot of inside baseball about the new lease and where moeny will be going. But, the bottom line is this...

A resolution approving the lease likely will be voted on at next week’s City Council meeting.

This one is from November 1, but I don't think I've done an update of the Wizard stadium situation lately:

Poll: Tax-funded downtown Fort Wayne ballpark is unpopular

A proposed baseball stadium for downtown Fort Wayne strikes out with the public – especially if they’re going to have to help pay for it.

Just 36 percent of Allen County residents say they favor using at least some taxpayer dollars to build the stadium, which has been touted as one of the centerpieces of downtown revitalization. Forty-three percent oppose the idea, according to The News-Sentinel/News Channel 15 poll.

Significantly, however, 21 percent are undecided – not surprising, since a specific project, cost and funding plan have not yet been proposed. Those and other still-to-be decided details ultimately could setermine whether the public embraces or rejects the planned replacement for Memorial Stadium.

But with just one year left on the Wizards’ lease with the 13-year-old Memorial Stadium, [Jason] Freier [of Hardball Capital, the group that owns the Wizards] knows something must be decided quickly. “By 2008, we want to be in an improved stadium,” he said.
...
At this point, it appears likely a downtown stadium will be built, but if it isn’t, Memorial Stadium may be upgraded. Coliseum General Manager Randy Brown in June said he was considering investing about $5 million into the field, which would pay for improved seating, a partial roof, new scoreboard and other features to make the no-frills stadium more fan-friendly.

The time to discuss those improvements is approaching rapidly, Freier said.

Mayor Graham Richard conceded the downtown stadium project is a little behind schedule, “but I’m very optimistic the public will support it” when a proposal is finalized, which will be coupled with plans for a new downtown hoptel. Property taxes would not be increased to pay for the stadium, he said, but other public funds – including income taxes and creating of a special downtown taxing district – could be tapped. Memorial Stadium could then be used by IPFW, high schools and other public functions, he said.

“It’s hard to get all of that in a poll question,” Richard added.

Yeah, it's hard to get people to shell out tax money for something they don't want, too.

Also, "and other public functions"? Graduations? Weddings? City Council meetings?

One politician in Fort Wayne has this leadership thing down though:

In the meantime, downtown advocate and City Councilman Tom Smith said officials should concentrate on downtown projects he believes the public does support: riverfront development and an indoor water park.

“My first choice is the people’s choice,” said Smith, R-1st.

Blood Ties (2)

This is the second in the series of posts this off-season that deal with baseball appearing in television shows.

Homicide: Life on the Street was an NBC police drama that was critically acclaimed, but never reached the heights of popularity that the critics wanted for it. It lasted for seven seasons and followed a Baltimore homicide squad as they dealt with the murders and the tolls that solving (or sometimes, not solving) murders took on the detectives.

The sixth season of the show opened with a three part story. The main crime in these three episodes was the murder of the housekeeper for a prominent Baltimore citizen (played by James Earl Jones).

The second episode of that season was Blood Ties (2).

The detour into baseball had nothing to do with the James Earl Jones character. On Homicide: Life on the Street, there was typically more than one murder to an episode. This particular murder occurs at Camden Yards during an Oriole game against Oakland.

Detectives Munch and Kellerman are called out to the stadium and find out that the victim is a Yankee fan. One of the detectives notes something along the lines of "A Yankee fan? Great. We only have 48,000 suspects."

Munch and Kellerman, new partners who don't particularly like each other, find a ticket stub and go to where the victim had been sitting. A couple of rows up, in the same section they seen an obvious Yankee fan and have the following exchange.

Munch: Hey pal, where you from?
Scott Russell (an obvious New Yorker): Baltimore.
Kellerman: Oh yeah?
Russell: Abso-freakin'-lutely. I love Baltimore. Eat crabs. Go, Orioles.
Munch: That's not how we say it.
Kellerman: It's 'Bawlmer,' hon. We lose the 't.'
Russell: Oh yeah, well lose this, pal.

It's been a while since I've seen this episode, but I'm pretty sure Munch and Kellerman take the Yankee fan to identify the body of the victim. Russell says something along the lines of "Yeah, he's my friend. The dope deserved this because he talked me into taking the train down here for a make-up game between the Yankees and Orioles. Instead we're watching this crappy game between two teams I don't care about."

At this point, Munch and Kellerman realize they have a suspect. (Hey, not all the murderers were geniuses on this show.)

They take the Yankee fan to a room that had a view of the field (from the right field corner if I am remembering correctly for an interrogation. Munch and Kellerman close the drapes and block the view of the game and begin with some questions. The Yankee fan realizes that he isn't going to get out of this situation. But, he wants to watch the end of the game. So, he tries this tactic:

"Look. You open those drapes, bring me a beer and a hot dog, and let me watch the end of this game and I will tell you everything you want to know."

Munch and Kellerman look at each other, shrug, and give the Yankee fan what he wants so they can close the case.

As they are leaving Camden Yards, the detectives see Armando Benitez and Scott Erickson leaving the ballpark. Kellerman tells Munch that he has a fantasy baseball team and is thinking about adding Benitez to his team for some saves. He heads over and strikes up a conversation with the Oriole pitchers before awkwardly mentioning his fantasy team and asking Benitez how many saves he thinks he'll have. Both pitchers give him a strange look and Erickson pretty much calls Kellerman a loser.

It might have been because Benitez was a setup man for Randy Meyers, who had 45 saves for the Orioles in 1997.

Dorman feature

The Seattle Times has a story on Rich Dorman (WI '03) today; An educational experience playing in Venezuela

Rich Dorman has seen much of the country in his bid to make it to the major leagues.His six-year pro career has taken him to Fishkill, N.Y.; Appleton, Wis.; Charleston, S.C.; and San Antonio.

But none of that compares to his experience playing for Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League. Dorman, who was signed by the Mariners as a free agent in 2002, was 7-7 this past season for Class AAA Tacoma. Now a free agent again, Dorman, a 28-year-old right-hander from Medford, Ore., went to Venezuela to try to impress the Mariners and any other major-league teams that might be watching.

The story notes that Rich is writing a diary of his time in Venezuela for the Ratinier web site, but this link HERE is the only entry that I could find. It was written on October 10.

Good stuff from a former Rattler at both links.

Baseball History -- November 11

Complete entry for November 11 is available at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries:

2001
Cardinals' 1B Mark McGwire announces his retirement, saying "I am unable to perform at a level equal to the salary the orgainzation would be paying me." McGwire's 583 career home runs place him 5th on the all-time list.

In 2001, McGwire hit .187 in 97 games. He had 56 hits that season. Four doubles, 23 singles, and 29 home runs. More homers than other hits combined. And he was 1-for-11 with no homers or RBI in the Cards NLDS loss. The Cardinals paid him $11,000,000 for that season.

1998

In a swap of high-priced unwanteds, the Mets send P Mel Rojas to the Dodgers for OF Bobby Bonilla. Neither will help, but the little-used, outspoken Bonilla, with a 2-year contract, will be a heavier burden than Rojas.

I hope that one day, someone will write that Bobby Bonilla was a heavier burden then me.

1981
Fernando Valenzuela becomes the first rookie ever to win a Cy Young Award, edging the Reds Tom Seaver 70-67 for National League honors. He was the first rookie since Herb Score in 1955 to lead his league in strikeouts with 180.

FERNANDOMANIA!!

1970
Boog Powell, who batted .297 with 35 homers and 114 RBI for Baltimore, is named American League MVP by a 234-157 margin over the Twins Tony Oliva.

Powell is a member of the Appleton Baseball Hall of Fame and a World Famous Barbecue Chef with a website that hasn't been updated since last year.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall Legue, the Peoria Javelinas lost 4-2 to Grand Canyon.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:

Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 0-for-3
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05): 0-for-2
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03): One inning pitched, no hits, no runs, one strikeout.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki played to an eleven inning scoreless draw with West Oahu. Unfortunately, there is no boxscore to link to yet.

Ex-Rattlers for Waikiki:

Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 0-for-5
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 0-for-4

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-2.

Amazingly, West Oahu couldn't score despite ten hits and four walks.

Saturday's Schedule:
Mesa at Peoria Javelinas 2:05pm CST
Waikiki at West Oahu 6:30pm Hawaii Time

Veterans Day

Before getting started with the usual today, just take a moment to thank a veteran.

From Military.com:

November 11, or what has come to be known as Veterans Day, was originally set as a U.S. legal holiday to honor Armistice Day - the end of World War I, which officially took place on November 11, 1918. In legislature that was passed in 1938, November 11 was "dedicated to the cause of world peace and to be hereafter celebrated and known as 'Armistice Day.' As such, this new legal holiday honored World War I veterans.

In 1954, after having been through both World War II and the Korean War, the 83rd U.S. Congress, at the urging of the veterans service organizations, amended the Act of1938 by striking out the word "Armistice" and inserting the word "Veterans." With the approval of this legislation on June 1, 1954, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

The following poem was written by Canadian Lieutenant-Colonel John McRae in 1915. Before there was an Armistice Day, Remembrence Day, or a Veterans Day.

IN FLANDERS FIELDS
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

If you see a veterans group selling Buddy Poppy, get one.

Intercontinental Cup XVI

This got kicked around the office today. Intercontinental Cup XVI is underway in Taichung, Taiwan.

There are a couple of Ex-Rattlers playing for their country at the Cup.

Alex Liddi (WI '06) is playing for Italy and Yung-Chi Chen (WI '05) is playing for Chinese Taipei.

Through two games:

Liddi is 4-for-10 with two doubles and two RBI as Italy has gone 1-1 in their first two games.

Chen is 4-for-7 with a triple as Chinese Taipei is 0-2 in their first two games.

Italy's next opponent is Cuba. Taiwan plays Australia next.

About time this got posted

This has been out there for a bit. Mariner Minors had it out there and there hasn't been a chance to do this here. There is some news about a former Rattler pitcher.

Padres add several six-year free agents

Ryan Ketchner, a left-hander originally selected by Mariners in 10th round of 2000 draft, spent last year in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization where he went 2-1 with a 1.69 ERA over three leagues spanning 13 appearances. He missed the 2005 season after elbow surgery.

Ryan was a Rattler -- and a highlight -- in 2002.

Fall/Winter Ball Recap

The Mariner Website has their weekly wrap up on how their farm hands are doing in the various fall and winter leagues HERE.

The top of the recap story is on Joe Woerman (WI '06):

Joe Woerman is having a very solid season for the
Waikiki BeachBoys.
The 23-year-old reliever tossed six consecutive scoreless
innings over his last three appearances last week. However, the former
11th-round pick concluded his week by allowing one run on three walks over two
innings Sunday.

On the season, Woerman is 2-0 with a 3.31 ERA with
18 strikeouts in 16 1/3 innings over 12 games. He is one of many Mariners
prospects seeing time in fall or winter leagues this offseason.

And to check on former Rattlers among those Mariner prospects:

Hawaii Winter Baseball

Waikiki BeachBoys

LHP David Asher -- The 23-year-old was roughed up on Nov. 2. He allowed two runs on three hits over two innings. Asher fanned four and walked one. The 6-foot-1 left-hander is 1-1 with a 5.94 ERA in six appearances.

LF Sebastian Boucher -- The 24-year-old went 0-for-4 with a walk over a recent two-game stretch, dropping his average to .190. The former seventh-round pick has not driven in a run since Oct. 24, a span of five games. He has five RBIs on the season.

C Jeff Clement -- The 23-year-old's season-long struggles continue. The former first-round pick went 0-for-6 this week and is batting .147 with one RBI in 15 games with the BeachBoys.

Arizona Fall League

Peoria Javelinas

RHP Craig James -- The Miami native allowed one hit in a scoreless inning on Oct. 31 against Scottsdale and followed that up with a perfect frame in the Javelinas' 9-4 loss to the Saguaros on Nov. 3. The 23-year-old has a 5.14 ERA in seven games for the Javelinas.

RHP Stephen Kahn -- The 23-year-old reliever surrendered one run on two hits and a walk against the Saguaros on Nov. 3. He walked two and fanned one over a scoreless inning against Phoenix on Monday. The Fullerton, Calif., native has a 9.95 ERA in seven games. Opponents are batting .429 against him.

LHP Bobby Livingston -- On Monday, the 24-year-old suffered his third loss, despite producing his best outing of the season. Livingston allowed a run on three hits over four innings. The St. Louis native struck out five and did not walk a batter. The 6-foot-3 left-hander is 0-3 with a 12.06 ERA in five starts.

LHP Ryan Rowland-Smith -- The 23-year-old reliever worked a scoreless inning in a 7-6 loss to Scottsdale on Oct. 31. He yielded one run on one hit in one inning against the Saguaros on Nov. 3. The Australian is 0-1 with a 7.36 ERA in eight games, and opponents are batting .326 against him.

3B Matt Tuiasosopo -- The former third-round pick is batting .159 after 16 games. He went 3-for-14 with a run scored over a recent four-game span. He has just four RBIs and two extra-base hits on the season. Tuiasosopo has not driven in a run since Oct. 16, when he had two RBIs against Mesa.

RF Michael Wilson -- The Tulsa native is batting .254 in 16 games for the Javelinas and he hit his first home run in almost three weeks on Nov. 2. He went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer in Peoria's 8-1 victory over Mesa. The 23-year-old plated another run against the Saguaros on Nov. 3 and is fourth in the league with 18 RBIs.

2B/SS Michael Garciaparra -- The former first-round pick went 5-for-11 over a recent three-game span and raised his average to .380. The 23-year-old has hit safely in nine of his first 12 games and has 19 hits with 10 RBIs and nine runs scored on the year.

Venezuelan Winter League

Cardenales de Lara

RHP Emiliano Fruto -- The 22-year-old collected his fourth save last Wednesday, allowing one run on two hits while fanning one in one inning. He followed that up with a perfect inning on Saturday. The 6-foot-3 righty is 1-0 with four saves and a 2.79 ERA. He has allowed three runs in 9 2/3 innings over eight games.

LHP Jose Escalona -- The 20-year-old has appeared in two games over the last week. He walked the only batter he faced last Tuesday and yielded one hit in a scoreless inning last Thursday. The native Venezuelan has a 6.75 ERA in four games.

RHP Rich Dorman -- Dorman made his fourth start of the season on Nov. 3. The 28-year-old allowed two runs on six hits over six innings. He fanned seven and walked three, but did not receive a decision. The 6-foot-2 righty is 1-1 with a 3.10 in five games, including four starts.

RHP Ivan Blanco -- The 23-year-old was roughed up in his first loss of the season last Tuesday. The native Venezuelan didn't record an out, allowing four runs -- two earned -- on three hits and a walk. He is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA in seven games and opponents are batting .189 against him.

RHP Cibney Bello -- The native Venezuelan has not appeared in a game since Oct. 27. The 24-year-old has a 4.15 ERA in three games.

2B Luis Valbuena -- The 20-year-old has not appeared in a game since Oct. 13.

Oswaldo Navarro -- Navarro has cooled off after a fast start. The 22-year-old has two hits in his last 18 bats over a five-game span. He is batting .231 with three RBIs and three runs scored.

Aguilas del Zulia

1B Jon Nelson -- The 26-year-old has not appeared in a game since Oct. 22. He is batting .160 with two RBIs in seven games.

Tiburones de La Guaira

C Luis Oliveros -- The 23-year-old hit a grand slam in his only at-bat on Saturday. He is 2-for-8 with two home runs and eight RBIs in three games.

Mexican Pacific

LeagueCaneros de los Mochis

1B Bryan LaHair -- LaHair is 1-for-7 in his last two games, dropping his average to .234. He has two homers, 11 runs scored and nine RBIs in 19 games.

Bobby Livingston is from St. Louis? Oh, he may have been born there. But, ask him and he is not shy about saying that he is from Texas/

Want to buy the Cubs?

Sure. You can buy the Cubs and Wrigley Field. All you need to do is give the Tribune Company:

ONE BILLION DOLLARS!

From BallparkDigest.com

Baseball History -- November 10

Complete entry for November 10 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

1992
Baseball owners refuse to grant permission for the San Francisco Giants to move to St. Petersburg, Florida.

And Tampa-St. Petersburg got the Devil Rays instead.

1978
In a major trade, the Yankees send former Cy Young Award winner Sparky Lyle, along with pitchers Larry McCall and Dave Rajsich, C Mike Heath and infielder Domingo Ramos to the Rangers. The Rangers pack up outfielders Juan Beniquez and Greg Jamison, and pitchers Dave Righetti, Mike Griffin and Paul Mirabella. Righetti, considered the top lefty prospect in the minors, will win Rookie of the Year honors in 1981.

A 10-player trade. Can't wait to see that happen again.

1950
After nine years at the helm, the Indians fire their manager, Lou Boudreau, amid the howls of fan protest. Although Boudreau's overall winning percentage is a moderate .529, he won 92 games in a 4th-place finish, his best showing since 97 in the championship year of 1948. Al Lopez, who has piloted Minneapolis (AA) since 1948, takes over with a 2-year contract.

Two seasons after a World Series Championship Boudreau was looking for work. He found it. Managing the Red Sox, the Kansas City A's, and the Cubs. The Indians? Still looking for that next World Series Championship.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Javelinas were shutout 8-0 by Grand Canyon.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas were:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 1-for-4 with a stolen base and an error
Mike Wilson (WI '05): 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05): 0-for-4 with a strikeout

Stephen Kahn (WI '05): One inning pitched, two hits, and one run

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat North Shore 3-2 in ten innings.

Ex-Rattlers for Waikiki:
Joe Woerman (WI '06): One inning pitched, two walks, two strikeouts

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts.

The boxscores from the previous two games on the BeachBoys schedule -- for November 7 and November 8 -- are on-line. Click on the date to check them out.

Friday's Schedule:
Grand Canyon at Peoria Javelinas 2:05pm CST
Waikiki at West Oahu 6:30pm Hawaii Time

A Pretty Good Day: UPDATED

The weather was great in the Fox Cities today. Slight breeze, bright sunshine, temperature in the 60s or 70s. I took my camera out into the stadium during my 10:30 Coca-Cola break today and got a chance to take some pictures.

The new Fox Cities Stadium field has been installed and is taking root. April 5th can't get here soon enough.






Yep. A pretty good day.

UPDATE: A pretty good end to a pretty good day. I'm still laughing about tonight's episode of The Office.

I had to pause the DVR and rewind the opening joke twice. The whole episode was exactly why I watch that show. Need to update to the sidebar tomorrow.

Now, I just need to try to make tomorrow better than today was.

Baseball History -- November 9

Coomplete Entry for November 9 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

1982
Robin Yount, who hit .331 for Milwaukee and led the league in hits (210), doubles (46), and slugging percentage (.578), is a unanimous choice as American League MVP.

Guess who placed 2,3,4,&5 in the AL MVP voting in 1982. Click and drag on the white space below to see the answer.

2.) Eddie Murray - Baltimore
3.) Doug DeCinces - California
4.) Hal McRae - Kansas City
5.) Cecil Cooper - Milwaukee

Go HERE for the full list. If Yount was unanimous, how come this page shows Reggie Jackson (who finished sixth) with a first place vote?

1953
The U.S. Supreme Court decides 7-2 that baseball is a sport and not a business and therefore not subject to antitrust laws. The ruling is made in a case involving Yankee farmhand George Toolson, who refused to move from AAA to AA.

This will be a first on this blog, a link to and an excerpt from Legal Affairs.

Between 1903 and 1975, baseball teams abided by a "reserve clause" system insisted on by the owners. Teams were barred from bidding for one another's players—meaning each team enjoyed the exclusive right to re-sign their own players. Those who refused to return to their teams were blacklisted from baseball.

IF THIS SYSTEM HAD BEEN DEVISED BY AIRLINES to manage the nation's pilots, it would have been an obvious violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act, instituted in 1890 to forbid collusion in the marketplace. But owing to a controversial Supreme Court ruling in 1922, baseball, alone among American professional sports, enjoyed immunity from antitrust prosecution. Writing for his fellow justices, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. dismissed the notion that baseball operates like a national business, saying that it involved "personal effort" but not "production" or "commerce." When the issue of baseball's exemption was revisited by the court in 1953 for a minor leaguer named George Toolson and again in 1972 over the status of the outfielder Curt Flood, the justices took issue with Holmes's logic but continued to uphold the exemption. Considering the time that had passed since the 1922 decision, they found that only Congress could change baseball's status—and it hadn't.

I'll never understand the law.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat the Peoria Saguaros 10-6.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03): 0-for-6 with a pair of strikeouts. (ouch)
Mike Wilson (WI '05): 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki shutout North Shore 2-0. (no box score on-line).

Ex-Rattlers for Waikiki:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05): 0-for-3 with a run scored.
Jeff Clement (WI '05): 1-for-2.

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 1-for-2 with an RBI.

Thursday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Grand Canyon 12:05pm CST
North Shore at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

A rhyme from the past

Spahn & Sain by Gerald V. Hern

First we'll use Spahn
then we'll use Sain
Then an off day
followed by rain
Back will come Spahn
followed by Sain
And followed we hope
by two days of rain.

from BaseballAlmanac.com

Warren Spahn and Johnny Sain were pitchers for the Boston Braves and that poem is based on a battle cry of Brave fans in 1948 as their team was pushing for the NL pennant. "Spahn and Sain and pray for rain."

Why that poem today?

From the Chicago Tribune All-Star pitcher Johnny Sain dies

Johnny Sain went from accomplished student to expert teacher in one of sports' most difficult disciplines: pitching a baseball.

Sain's major-league accomplishments were remarkable and varied but were not deemed impressive enough to earn him entry into Baseball's Hall of Fame.

Sain, best known locally as a highly effective White Sox pitching coach in the 1970s, died Tuesday at Resthaven West Nursing Home in Downers Grove after a long illness. He was 89.

Sain was masterful in a variety of roles from starting pitcher to reliever to pitching coach.A right-hander, Sain was a 20-game winner four times. He completed more than half the games he started and was a three-time All-Star in an 11-year career shortened by extensive military service in World War II.

If his 139-116 career record was merely good, his feats in the 1948 season were near mythic, particularly in September of that year. Sain pitched nine complete games in 29 days, winning seven and teaming with Warren Spahn to lead the Boston Braves to the National League pennant.

He capped the streak by beating Bob Feller and the Cleveland Indians 1-0 in the first game of the World Series.

Here is a quote from Appleton Baseball Hall of Fame member Roland Hemond:

"He had a fine pitching career as well as an incomparable career as a pitching coach, so he should be in Baseball's Hall of Fame," said fformer White Sox general manager Roland Hemond, who hired Sain as Sox pitching coach late in the 1970 season. "I don't know of a greater pitching coach in my career."

As pitching coach for the White Sox, Yankees, Twins and Tigers, Sain tutored 16 pitchers who won 20 or more games in a season. Jim Kaat, of the Twins and the White Sox, and Jim Bouton of the Yankees credit him with rejuvenating their careers.

"Johnny Sain belongs in the Hall of Fame for a combination of his accomplishments as a great pitcher and pitching coach," Bouton said. "He's the greatest pitching coach who ever lived."

Baseball History -- November 8

Complete entry for November 8 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highylights include:

1990
Free-agent slugger Darryl Strawberry signs a 5-year contract with his hometown Dodgers, formally ending his 8-year stay with the Mets. He is the Mets all-time home run leader with 252.

Strawberry spent three seasons in LA. He hit 29 homers in 1991 over 139 games. But, he played only 43 games in 1992 and 32 games in 1993 while hitting a combined ten home runs. The Dodgers released him in May of 1994.

1989
Cubs OF Jerome Walton wins the National League Rookie of the Year Award, collecting 22 of 24 first-place votes to defeat teammate Dwight Smith. They are the first NL teammates to finish 1-2 in the voting since the Phillies Jack Sanford and Ed Bouchee in 1957. Walton is the first Cub to win rookie honors since Billy Williams, in 1961.

Walton and Smith were supposed to help keep the Cubs at the top of the National League for at least a few more years. Walton played for five other teams before being released by Tampa Bay in 1998. Smith played for the Angels, Orioles, and Braves through 1996 before heading to the independent leagues.

1962
Charlie Metro, head coach of the Cubs college of coaches from June 4th to season's end (43-69), is fired.

Ah, the College of Coaches. From wikipedia:

The College of Coaches was an unorthodox strategy employed by the Chicago Cubs in 1961 and 1962. After the Cubs finished 60-94 in 1960, their eighth straight losing season and 14th consecutive nonwinning campaign, Cubs owner P.K. Wrigley announced in December 1960 that the Cubs would use four coaches as managers, rather than the traditional one-manager approach. Said Wrigley at the time, "Managers are expendable. I believe there should be relief managers just like relief pitchers."

Makes sense to me! How did that work out for ya?

The Cubs front office argued that under this system, players would be exposed to the wisdom and experience of four coaches instead of just one field manager. However, in practice, players were often confused by this system. It was not always clear which coach would be in charge for a given game, and occasionally the various coaches were at odds with each other. The Cubs would be managed by four different men in 1961 and three more in 1962 — two were holdovers from 1961 — and all seven had losing records, despite managing teams with future Hall of Famers Billy Williams and Ernie Banks.

Oh. Well, at least they tried something.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas lost 5-2 to the Peoria Saguaros.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03) was 2-for-5 with two strikeouts.
Mike Wilson (WI '05) 1-for-4 with a walk and three strikeouts.
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05) was 2-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.

Craig James (WI '05) pitched a scoreless inning with a strikeout
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '05) allowed a hit and an unearned run over an inning with two walks and two strikeouts.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki lost 2-0 to North Shore. (no on-line boxscore yet):

Ex-Rattlers for Waikiki:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) drew a walk as a pinch hitter in the ninth.
David Asher (WI '06) pitched a scoreless inning, allowed a hit, and struck out two.

Wednesday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Peoria Saguaros 2:05pm CST
North Shore at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Baseball History -- November 7

Complete entry for November 7 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.


Highlights:

1964
With their home attendance below 800,000 for the past two seasons, the National League orders the Braves to stay in Milwaukee in 1965, but permits a move to Atlanta in 1966.

Might as well have let them move for 1965. Lame duck seasons are never fun.

1951
Representative Emanuel Celler's committee issues financial data from 1945-49 that differs with Walter O'Malley's numbers. According to Celler, the Dodgers made a profit of 2.364 million dollars from 1945-49; the Dodgers' "loss" of $129,318 in 1950 included a $167,000 loss due to the promotion of the Brooklyn Dodgers professional football team. In his continuing investigation into antitrust violations, Celler says that evidence in his committee suggests altering the reserve clause in that it does limit players.

Brookylyn. Dodgers. Football? Team?

1928
The Cubs get Rogers Hornsby from the financially strapped Braves in exchange for $200,000, IF Fred Maguire, P Percy Jones, C Lou Legett, former A's P Harry Seibold, and P Bruce Cunningham. Braves owner-president Emil Fuchs also decides to be his own manager. He'll be the last manager with no pro playing experience until Ted Turner's one game, in the 1970s. Under Fuchs, the Barves will finish 56-98, good for last place.

Did Fuchs fire himself at the end of the season? Did he give himself a vote of confidence in September as the season was winding down to the end?

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas were shutout 5-0 by Phoenix.

Bobby Livingston (WI '03) was the starting pitcher for the Javelinas. Bobby allowed one run on three hits over four innings with five strikeouts and got the loss.

Stephen Kahn (WI '05) pitched a scoreless inning with a pair of walks and two strikeouts.

For the offense:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03) was 2-for 4 withh a double and has moved his average to .380.
Mike Wilson (WI '05) was 1-for-3 with a triple.
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05) was 0-for-3

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, the Waikiki BeachBoys were off on Monday.

Tuesday's Schedule:
Peoria Saguaros at Peoria Javelinas 6:05pm CST
North Shore at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Baseball History -- November 6

Complete entry for November 6 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

2001
Major league owners vote to eliminate two teams before the start of next season. Minnesota, Montreal, Florida, and Tampa Bay are the teams under consideration.

I'm pretty sure this was the last time anyone talked about contraction. Well, except when some smart guy points out that the Twins were on the chopping block and look what's happened to them since.

1996
In Chicago, the ML owners decisively reject a proposed labor agreement that would have ended a 3-year stalemate. The 18-12 vote threatens to plunge baseball back into full-fledged hostilities between the owners and players' union.

But, it didn't. Did it?

1974
The Dodgers Mike Marshall becomes the first relief pitcher to win the Cy Young Award. Ironman Marshall set ML records with 106 appearances and 208 innings in relief.

106 appearances for Marshall in 1974. 57 appearances in 1975. 30 in 1976. 24 for the Braves in 1977. 4 for the Braves and twelve for the Rangers in 1978. By 1979, Marshall was back up to 90 games for the Twins.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

The Peoria Javelinas had Sunday off in the Arizona Fall League.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat Honolulu 4-2. Ex-Rattlers in the game for Waikiki:

Jeff Clement (WI '05) was 0-for-1
Joe Woerman (WI '06) pitched two hitless innings, but allowed a run on three walks with a strikeout.

Rattler Farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-3.

Monday's Schedule:
Phoenix at Peoria Javelinas 2:00pm CST
Waikiki -- Off Day

Midwest League Year in Review

Also from our friends at MILB.com, there is a month-by-month review of the Midwest League season. Click on the month and relive the memories.

April

May

June

July

August-September

Also, for some reason, there are highlights from Timber Rattler broadcasts. Just go to July and August-September for a flashback of the ramblings of a Timber Rattler radio broadcaster on a Chris Minaker single or a Curt Ledbetter game winning homer to break up a no-hitter. Or, click on a different link to hear how good some of the other guys in the league are.

Rattlers in Other Places

Through MILB.com, I found this at the Mariner site. It was posted on Friday, November 3.

Fruto making most of time in Venezuela

The 22-year-old, who was signed by the Mariners at age 17, is 1-0 with three saves and a 2.35 ERA in six games with the Cardenales de Lara of the Venezuela Winter League.

He has struck out 10 and walked three in 7 2/3 innings. The 6-foot-3 righty has not allowed a run over three games since Oct. 17. His best outing was Saturday, when he allowed one hit and one walk while fanning three to earn the save.

It is just a brief story on Fruto, a Rattler from 2002. But the rest of the article has brief recaps on how Mariner farmhands are doing in Hawaii Winter Baseball, Arizona Fall League, Venezuelan Winter League, and Mexican Pacific League.

If you have been checking out this site during the off-season, you know who is in HWB and in the AFL. But, checking in on ex-Rattlers in Venezuela:

LHP Jose Escalona (WI '06): The native Venezuelan has appeared in two games for the Cardenales. On Oct. 19, he allowed one run on a hit and one walk in two-thirds of an inning. On Sunday, the 20-year-old fanned one in a perfect inning. The 5-foor-11 lefty went 7-12 with a 4.06 ERA in 26 starts for the Class A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

RHP Rich Dorman (WI '03): Dorman is 1-1 with a 3.14 ERA in four games, three of which were starts. He has fanned 12 and walked seven in 14 1/3 innings, and opponents have batted .259 against him. The 28-year-old was 7-7 with one save and a 4.55 ERA in 31 games for the Rainiers.

RHP Ivan Blanco (WI '05): The 23-year-old is 1-0 with a 0.93 ERA in four games. The native Venezuelan has fanned nine in 9 2/3 innings, while opponents have hit a paltry .065 against him. Blanco was 5-3 with a save and a 3.66 ERA in 20 games for the 66ers. He struck out 50 in 71 1/3 innings, and opponents batted just .218 against him.

RHP Cibney Bello (WI '05): The 24-year-old has appeared in three games for the Cardenales. On Oct. 15, he yielded two hits over 1 2/3 scoreless innings, and Monday, he allowed one hit and struck out two over two scoreless innings. Bello was 6-10 with a 3.94 ERA in 29 games for the 66ers.

2B Luis Valbuena (WI '06): The 20-year-old scored a run but did not have an official at-bat in his only game for the Cardenales on Oct. 13. He batted .286 with three home runs, 45 runs and 38 RBIs in 89 games for the Timber Rattlers, and he hit .252 with two homers, 18 runs and 10 RBIs in 43 games for the 66ers.

SS Oswaldo Navarro (WI '05): The 22-year-old is off to a hot start, batting .353 with two RBIs and two runs scored. He has two multi-hit games in his first five games. Oswaldo batted .267 with one home run, 27 runs, 24 RBIs and seven stolen bases in 79 games for the Missions. He hit .246 with two home runs, 21 RBIs and 15 runs in 55 games for the Rainiers.

1B Jon Nelson (WI '03): The 26-year-old is mired in a deep slump to start the season. He went 4-for-25 (.160) in the first seven games for the Aguilas. The Provo native has not homered and has just two RBIs and two runs. He hit .245 with five home runs, 23 runs and 18 RBIs in 45 games for the Missions. Nelson batted .284 with 14 homers, 46 RBIs and 43 runs in 74 games for the Rainiers.

C Luis Oliveros (WI '02): The 23-year-old is 1-for-7 with one homer and four RBIs in his two games with the Tiburones. The undrafted free agent batted .248 with one homer, 17 RBIs and 12 runs in 42 games with the 66ers. Oliveros struggled with the Missions, batting just .176 with eight runs and five RBIs. He did not homer in 46 games.

And in the Mexican Pacific League:

1B Bryan LaHair (WI '04): LaHair is off to a slow start in his first 17 games for the Caneros. The Worcester native is batting .246 with two home runs, 10 runs and nine RBIs. His best game of the season to date was Oct. 19 when he went 4-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and three runs. He batted .293 with six home runs, 30 RBIs and 22 runs in 60 games with the Missions. The 23-year-old also put up some very good numbers for the Rainiers. He hit .327 with 10 home runs, 44 RBIs and 36 runs in 54 games.

Baseball History -- November 5

Complete Entry for November 5 is at BaseballLibrary.com HERE.

Highlighted entries today are:

1997
In what Bud Selig says is Phase one of a realignment of the major leagues, his Milwaukee Brewers move from the American League to the National League.

They took that thing National! Remember the rest of the realignment that happened? About the only detailed plan that I can find on-line is from and ELItorial in an April 2000 edition of the Yale Herald.

When the 30 MLB owners meet in Houston, the realignment of leagues and divisions will be at the top of their agenda. Selig, whose daughter owns the Brewers, will present his realignment plan to the owners, delighting a few and alienating several others. Under the plan, the Diamondbacks and the Devil Rays would switch leagues, much to the chagrin of Arizona, which has proven very successful in the NL. The NL would contain four divisions of four teams each, eliminating the Wild Card from the playoff picture. Even though the AL would keep its three divisions, there would now be two divisions of four teams each, and one of six teams.

To casual baseball fans, this realignment might seem minor, a slight adjustment that would not have a tangible effect on the game. On the contrary, Selig's crackpot plan will send baseball spiraling back down the pit it dug itself into during the '94 strike. The key to increasing baseball's popularity is keeping fans' interest alive late in the season and maintaining key regional rivalries. Realignment will eliminate much of baseball's appeal in September and create small, lackluster divisions that send mediocre teams to the playoffs.

Like the NL Central Champion St. Louis Cardinals....Oops. Well, that was written almost seven years ago.

The words "crazy" and "insane" are also used by the writer, Laurie Randell. But nothing could top "spiraling back down the pit of despair" line. That's gold, Jerry. Gold!

Also from 1997

Davey Johnson resigns as manager of the Orioles just hours before he is named the American League Manager of the Year. Baltimore owner Peter Angelos had refused to give Johnson a vote of confidence after saying earlier that Johnson would be back in 1998.

And how have the Orioles done since then? I'm seeing a lot of fourth place finishes and no playoffs. Same kind of thing happened with Johnson in Cincinnati. The Reds made the playoffs in 1995 with Johnson as the manager. But, Marge Schott decided that she wanted Ray Knight to be the manager for 1996. The Reds finished 81-81 in 'that season and Knight lost the managerial job with a record of 43-56 99 games into the 1997 season. But, the Reds have bounced back to at least make the playoffs since Johnson left. Not the Orioles though.

1976
New American League franchises in Seattle and Toronto fill up their rosters by selecting 30 players apiece from unprotected players on other AL rosters. OF Ruppert Jones (Seattle) and IF-OF Bob Bailor (Toronto) are the first choices.

Some of the other players taken by the Mariners in that expansion draft included: Pete Broberg from Milwaukee, Glenn Abbott from Oakland, Steve Braun from Minnesota, and Julio Cruz from California.

Some of the other players taken by the Blue Jays in that expansion draft included: Garth Iorg for the Yankees, Pete Vukovich from the White Sox, Jim Clancy from the Rangers, and Rico Carty from the Indians.

Just over a month later the Blue Jays traded Carty back to the Indians for Jon Lowenstein and Rick Cerone. Then, on March 29, 1977, Toronto traded Lowenstein back to Cleveland and got Hector Torres.

Also from 1976

The Pirates trade C Manny Sanguillen and an estimated $100,000 to the A's for manager Chuck Tanner.

Let's see how that trade worked out. Sanguillen played 152 games for the A's in 1977. Oakland missed the playoffs that year. Oakland traded Sanguillen back to Pittsburgh on April 4, 1978 for Migule Dilone, Elias Sosa, and Mike Edwards.

Tanner, who had managed the A's for one season and led them to a second place finish in the AL West, went to Pittsburgh and finished in second place in the NL East 1977 and 1978. Then, in 1979 the Pirates won the East, the NL pennant, and the World Series. He would spend seven more seasons in Pittsburgh.

Pirates 1, Oakland 0.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas were shutout 6-0 by Phoenix. The Javelinas managed just three hits. Neither ex-Rattler in the lineup had a hit.

Mike Wilson (WI '05) was 0-for-3
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05) was 0-for-3 with three strikeouts

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki got shutout by Honolulu 3-0. The BeachBoys had four hits in the loss and the one ex-Rattler in the lineup did not have a hit.

Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) was 0-for-4

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 1-for-4 for Waikiki

No ex-Rattler pitchers got into either game.
No boxscore for the HWB game.
No game today for the Javelinas.

SUNDAY'S SCHEDULE:
Peoria Javelinas -- OFF DAY
Honolulu at Waikiki 3:00pm Hawaii Time

Player to Be Named Now

Player to Be Named Now, Wiseguy Season One, Episode Fifteen. According to TV.com it first aired on January 25, 1988.

HERE is the Wikipedia Entry. A quick background of the show.

Ken Wahl plays Vinnie Terranova, a deep-cover agent for the OCB, a part of the FBI. He did some prison time to help with his cover. Terranova uses his cover to gain the confidence of big-time mobsters and criminals to help bring them down from the inside.

This show was the first that I remember using arcs within the show. Terranova would spend half the season going after one organization, spend a couple episodes regrouping, and use the second half of the season to go after another organization or crime boss.

Player to Be Named Now was from the second half of season one and is early in the Mel Profitt arc. Profitt, the bad guy, was played by Kevin Spacey. He played Mel as a manic-depressive/paranoid/crazed criminal genius with his hands in drugs, guns, and just about everything else.

This episode showed Mel Profitt at his highest high and his lowest low and baseball was what did it to him.

The show opens with Vinnie and Roger Lococco (played by William Russ) searching the lower decks of Mel's yacht for a bomb. Roger tells Vinnie that Mel orders him to search the boat for bombs, but nothing ever turns up...until tonight. A suspicious package turns out to be just an empty box with a note in it from Mel about adrenaline being the nectar of the gods.

Vinnie is back at his hotel room at 4am and there is a knock at the door. It is Mel wearing a Yankee hat, carrying a ball and two baseball bats, and asks Vinnie if he wants to go hit a few at a cage he knows. In response to the excuse that it's 4am and the place is closed Mel answers that he bribed a guy $10,000 for the cage to be open.

The cage turns out to be BC Place in Vancouver. I'd post pictures of Vinnie and Mel in the most horrible baseball uniforms this side of the SWING of the Quad Cities, but I can't figure out how to do that from the DVD to the computer.

Vinnie hits a few out of the park, impresses Mel's sister, and reveals that he was a catcher for his American Legion team. Mel admits that he didn't get to play organized ball and his swing shows it. Mel is either not making contact or fouling the ball into the top of the cage.

Susan, Mel's sister (who is played by Joan Severance), heads to the car to wait and this is when Mel springs the surprise on Vinnie. He is buying an American League expansion baseball team from a business partner. The expansion team is supposed to go into Sacramento, but Mel is going to buy BC Place and move the Sacramento team to Vancouver. The real reason Mel wants to but the team is that he thinks he will get to play.

Think Mel would like to do the radio, too? I wouldn't stand in his way, especially after he tears up his hotel room with a baseball bat after catching Vinnie and Susan together.

Vinnie meets with the FBI to figure out if the owner of Sacramento (Jon Polito as Eddie Van Platt) is dirty and how they can get him to turn on Mel.

Later in the episode, Mel is sketching on a pad while going over how to get the team away from Van Platt and he snaps about treachery and selfishness. His mood lightens as he receives and inside stock tip and shows off his designs for the uniforms of his team. Susan likes the pinstripes. So does Mel. Then, Mel asks and answers the following question, "Do you know why the Yankees wear them [pinstripes]?" "Because Babe Ruth got fat! The owner knew that if you put a fat man in pinstripes he's gonna look thinner." I'll have to remember to ask for pinstriped staff shirts for the 2007 season.

Baseball takes a backseat for a bit, but Roger has one of the best lines in the episode. He solves a Rubik's Cube; looks at his watch; screams out, "Eight minutes, Forty Seconds! PATHETIC!" and breaks the cube by throwing it hard on the table.

After a little arson of a Van Platt property with Roger, Vinnie is back at Mel's as Mel is modeling the latest pinstripe uniforms of the Sacramento American League franchise. Why is it Sacramento. If he is moving the team to Vancouver, shouldn't it have, you know, Vancouver on the front? Then, Mel throws out the idea of having spring training in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I'm beginning to think that Mel Profitt would not make a very good baseball owner.

Vinnie learns that Van Platt either used to own or still owns a baseball team in Mexico. Somehow, Van Platt used the team to smuggle Mel's cocaine into the US. (How? Don't ask. It's TV.) There was a falling out between Mel and Van Platt and that business relationship ended. Now, Mel is going to get revenge on Van Platt.

Van Platt tells Mel that he was smooth with the owners and is going to build the largest domed stadium in the country, 75,000 seats.

Hold it RIGHT THERE! He's going to build a 75,000 seat domed stadium? For baseball? In Sacramento? Sacramento, California. I know that it's only TV, but come on! I don't think the Eddie Van Platt has done the proper market research into what the people of California's capital city want in a baseball stadium.

Next, there is this memorable exchange:

MEL: Are you going to put the dope in the bats like the old days?
VAN PLATT: What? Are you kidding me? This is Major League Baseball. 100% legitimate. At the Winter Meetings, I'm going to be sitting next to Steinbrenner.
MEL: I want it. I want your team. Fill in any number you want, Eddie.
[VAN PLATT writes a figure into a blank check Mel give him]
MEL: $2,400?
VAN PLATT: You just bought yourself two season box seats. See you at the ballpark.

I have GOT to try this at the next sales meeting. Season tickets for the Rattlers would skyrocket!

Later in the episode:

MEL: Did you reconsider my offer for the team? Would $10 million be a fair price?
VAN PLATT: That wouldn't even cover the balls and bats.
MEL: Alright, 20 then.
VAN PLATT: You're wasting your time Mel. The team is not for sale.

Mel tries to sweeten the deal by tossing in a player to be named now, a woman from the party. Can I just say, "Stay classy, Mel Profitt."?

Lifeguard is an important character on Wiseguy. He provides key points of information at crucial times. Like this little nugget that is relayed to Vinnies FBI handlers:

"In the last year and a half, the manager and four players [on Van Platt's team] have been arrested [by Mexican Federales] for transportation [of drugs] with intent."

Don't you think that maybe, three guys, all of whom probably follow baseball and criminals, would have heard about the dope smuggling baseball team before now?

That was more of a time killer in the episode because Van Platt returns from his break and turns down Mel's deal. In fact he feels even less like selling the team now. In fact, Eddie wouldn't sell for $30 million or $50 million. "The last thing I need is your money."

Famous. Last. Words.

Mel now lays out what he has done to financially ruin Van Platt. The arson caused a $3 million loss and the insurance company won't pay; casinos in Las Vegas and Reno are calling in Van Platt's markers -- another $3 million; and the stock tip that he received is about a contract being cancelled for a company that Van Platt is almost exclusively margined with in his portfolio. All of this will result in a loss of $96 million!?!?

WHOA! No diversification? I'm really doubting the intelligence of these criminal masterminds.

Mel is going to make an offer for about $5 million -- maybe $6 million -- for the team. Geez, that won't get you a decent leftfielder nowadays.

So, Mel gets what he wants and now he snaps on the woman he gave to Eddie and demands that Vinnie kill the woman. Mel fires a few shots off from his revolver, misses, and in a dead, toneless voice he says, "I'm tired. I'm very tired. I'm gonna go to sleep now." and leaves the room.

What an exit. Maybe I'll try that at the end of the next sales appointment.

In the show wrap-up, Vinnie's OCB handlers mention that they picked up Van Platt. He can't wait to testify against Mel and is being processed through witness protection. Now, the twist:

"Did you read the sports page? Listen to this. 'International Financier Melvin Profitt bid to purchase the new Sacramento franchise of the American League was rejected by a committee of team owners. Those who could be reached for comment cited Profitt's lifestyle, which they felt might cast doubt on the integrity of the game."

I always thought the end of this episode was one of the great endings of all time. Mel is in bed with the covers up to his head and says this to Susan, "Don't let the light in, Susie. I want it to be dark. I want it to be dark forever."

Then, he pulls the covers all the way over his head.

Fade to black.

Baseball on TV

Not talking about the games on ESPN, FOX, or the local broadcasts. Talking about the other thing that has taken up so much time in my life. Television. Many shows have used baseball to move along a plot or give characters somewhere else to be than their typical locale.

When I did a little research on this, also called sitting around at 4am, there were at least 30 shows that popped into my head that I remember managing to tie in baseball one way or another. There are probably a lot more.

Baseball has been featured in The Greatest American Hero and MacGyver; Highlander and Law & Order. Not enough laughs?

How about episodes of Mr. Ed, The Munsters, and The Beverly Hillbillies with baseball as a main part of the plot? Comedy is Mr. Ed sliding into second base, Ellie Mae knocking Leo Durocher* into the "cement pond" as he is surprised by her fastball, and Mr. C using Hank Aaron in a TV commercial for the hardware store.

Every Saturday for the rest of this off-season, I will pick out one show that used baseball and probably used baseball cruelly. That show will be recapped. I will try to find pictures or at least try to make it interesting. Good time to start.

One note. This won't be a highlight of shows that used baseball exclusively for a background -- like Bay City Blues or Ball Four. Those characters belong in a baseball setting. Agents Mulder and Scully don't belong in a baseball setting, but it just kind of happens.

Anyway. The first show has been picked. The writing of the post will begin shortly. Hope to have it up later tonight.

*-May not have been Durocher. May have been a random scout. Haven't seen this one in a long time.

Just Something I've Been Thinking About

There was this idea for a feature on Rattler Radio that I had when this blog first started. But, that got put on the back burner when the season started and there was a lot to do away from this little side project.

The season is long over. But, during the week, things get busy with trying to help sell wall signs, program ads, and various other sponsorships that allow me to keep doing this and the radio and all that other fun stuff so there are only a couple of posts per day, usually on the morning.

But, I would like to add a feature for the weekends. It goes a little bit beyond an article that I wrote for PLAYBALL!, the gameday publication for Rattler fans, earlier this summer.

The Badgers are playing Penn State in a little bit. But, this new weekly feature will be up later this afternoon. Check back sometime this weekend to see it.

Baseball History -- November 4

Complete entry for November 4 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted Entries:

2001
The Arizona Diamondbacks win the first World Series of their 4-year existence with a come-from-behind 3-2 win over the Yankees. Alfonso Soriano breaks a 1-1 tie with a home run in the 8th inning to give NY the lead, but Arizona comes back with two runs in the bottom half of the 9th off Mariano Rivera to get the win. Luis Gonzalez drives home the winning run while Randy Johnson gets the win in relief. Johnson and Curt Schilling share the World Series MVP award.

Nine Innings From Ground Zero puts baseball and the 2001 World Series into the context it deserves.

1976
The first mass-market free-agent reentry draft is held at New York's Plaza Hotel. Among those available are Reggie Jackson, Joe Rudi, Don Gullett, Gene Tenace, Rollie Fingers, Don Baylor, Bobby Grich, and Willie McCovey. McCovey and Nate Colbert are the only two players not selected, but McCovey will catch on with the Giants in spring training and have a banner year at his old position.

I count three Hall of Famers (Jackson, Fingers, and McCovey), a couple of MVP's, and some World Series heroes.

1889
After a formal meeting of reps from all National League chapters, the Brotherhood issues a "Manifesto" in which it claims that "players have been bought, sold and exchanged as though they were sheep instead of American citizens." This bold statement constitutes a declaration of war between the Brotherhood and ML officials which will soon explode.

Here's a tip. If you name your group "The Brotherhood" and issue a Manifesto, things aren't going to go well for a period of time afterwards.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Peoria Saguaros 9-4.

Ex-Rattlers for the Javelinas:
Mike Wilson (WI '05) 0-for-3 with an RBI
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05) 2-for-4 with a run scored
Stephen Kahn (WI '05) 1.0 IP, 2H, 1R, 1BB
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03) 1.0IP, 1H, 1R, 1K
Craig James (WI '05) 1.0IP, 0H, 0R

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki beat Honolulu 4-0.

Ex-Rattlers for the winning BeachBoys:
Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) drew an intentional walk in his only plate appearance
Jeff Clement (WI '05) struck out in his only plate appearance
Joe Woerman (WI '06) pitched a scoreless eighth inning with a walk and two strikeouts

Saturday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Phoenis 6:05pm CST
Honolulu at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

Just a quick question (UPDATED)

Before the first baseball related post of the day, an aside.

Why is TNT compelled to show Stallone movies at 7am on a Saturday?

Last week, it was Judge Dredd. This week, it is Get Carter. What's next week? The Specialist? Cobra? Rhinestone?

It's almost worth it to wake up on a Saturday now.

UPDATE: Spoke too soon. Driven is on TNT right now. And it is on for another 30 minutes or so.

Plus, I looked at Stallone's imdb.com page.

Rocky Balboa opens December 22 this year. Of course, there's a website and a blog.

Rambo IV: In the Serpent's Eye is in pre-production with a potential 2008 open.

Baseball History -- November 3

Complete entry for November 3 at BaseballLibrar.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

1982
Pete Vuckovich becomes the Brewers' 2nd consecutive American League Cy Young Award winner, edging Jim Palmer. Vuckovich was 18-6 with a 3.34 ERA for the AL champions, and has the highest winning percentage in the majors for the past two seasons.

1981
Brewers Rollie Fingers (28 saves, 1.04 ERA) wins the American League Cy Young Award, collecting 22 of 28 possible first-place votes. The other six go to Oakland's Steve McCatty.

Steve McCatty? Really?

1953
The rules committee restores the 1939 rule, which says a sacrifice fly is not charged as a time at bat. Also, the committee votes for "no gloves on the field rule." Hank Greenberg, who proposed the change, says "Aside from the possibility of hindering the play, gloves on the field look sloppy." The committee also makes a rule that any runner will be called out for deliberating running the bases backwards or even taking a lead off the base in the wrong direction. A new balk rule is instituted which gives the batter an option; if he gets a hit after a balk is called, he has the option of accepting the outcome of the pitch, instead of being limited to the advance of the runner(s). Rule suggestions rejected, as noted by Bob Timmerman, include: the legalization of the spitball, two bases for an intentional walk, and the option of declining ball four.

A pitcher probably suggested the spitball. A hitter probably suggested the declining ball four and the two bases for an intentional walk. What would Hank Greenberg think is sloppy in the major leagues these days?

1928
Voters in Cleveland approve a bond issue to build a giant municipal stadium near the lakefront to attract events for the 1932 Olympics.

Those 1932 Olympics in Cleveland were something else! Remember Babe Didrickson and Eddie Tolan and the pagentry of the games at Municipal Stadium? Right neither do I. Probably because of this fact:

1887
The directors of the Omaha club agree to pay $3,000 per month to manager Frank Selee to bring his team from Oshkosh, where they won the Northwestern League pennant in 1887. Two top stars, outfielders Tommy McCarthy and Dummy Hoy, will spend 1888 in the ML, however, and Selee's Omaha team will finish 4th in the WA race.

Is this bribery or just bad business by the folks in Omaha? This sounds like the end of Slap Shot. Reggie Dunlop says during the victory parade that he was offered a coaching job for the Minnesota Nighthawks and that he was bringing his guys with him. Slap SHot. Based in reality.

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Mesa 8-1.

Mike Wilson (WI '05) homered and drove in two during a 2-for-4 day for the Javelinas.
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03) was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

The Waikiki BeachBoys were off on Thursday.

Friday's Schedule:
Peoria Saguaros at Peoria Javelinas 2:05pm CST
Honolulu at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time

More from the Rattler Home Page

Not really.

MILB.com got around to the Mariners for their 2006 organizational review. There is a link of the rotating banner ads off www.timberrattlers.com. Now there is a link to the story HERE. And a link to the Photo gallery: Seattle prospects

Some of the segments of the story include Five Faves, (Five Faves? Are they serious?). These were five players that MILB.com picked at the start of the 2006 season as players in the Seattle system to watch. They were:

Adam Jones (WI '04)
Shin-Soo Choo (WI '02)
Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05)
Rob Johnson (WI '05)
Travis Blackley

The story says what they thought before the season and how that season turned out. For example:

The Jones train kept on running on the express track in 2006. He didn't turn 21 until August and by that time, he had 47 big-league at-bats under his belt. In his first taste of Triple-A, where he spent most of the year, Jones continued to flash all of his tools, setting career highs in homers (16) and tying his high in steals (13). In his first year of playing the outfield, the Mariners trusted him enough to get some playing time in the big leagues in center, though his at-bats dwindled and he mostly watched in September. He could be ready for a full-time gig next spring.

Breakout Year:
Daniel Santin
Asdrubal Cabrera (WI '05)

Cabrera started the year as the 20-year-old shortstop for Triple-A Tacoma and finished it as the 20-year-old shortstop for Triple-A Buffalo. After hitting .236 through 60 games in the PCL, Cabrera was sent to the Indians (these two teams liked to do business in 2006) in return for Eduardo Perez. He seemed to enjoy the International League more, as he hit .263 in 52 games for Buffalo.

The first five draft picks of the 2006 draft (All pitchers) are recapped...recapped is that a word?

Brandon Morrow
Chris Tillman
Tony Butler (Oak Creek, Wisconsin's own Tony Butler)
Ricky Orta
Nathan Adcock

On Butler:

The tall, lanky lefty (6-foot-7, 205 pounds) taken out of high school in Wisconsin was very impressive in two stops during his first pro year. Between the AZL and the Northwest League, Butler had a 2.72 ERA over 56 1/3 innings. He allowed just 28 hits for a .150 batting average against while striking out 77. His command will have to improve, typical for a young pitcher, as he walked 34 in 14 games.

No word on where any of those picks might end up in 2007.

Final segment was the first five picks of the 2005 draft
Jeff Clement (WI '05)
Justin Thomas (WI '06)
Stephen Kahn (WI '05)

On Clement:

The No. 3 overall pick had a strange first full season with the organization. The lefty-swinging catcher did make it to Triple-A, but injuries resulted in just 304 total at-bats for the season. He hit .263 with six combined homers and 42 RBIs. In 82 games between San Antonio and Tacoma, the USC product had a .334 on-base percentage and .382 slugging percentage. Granted, knee and elbow surgeries clearly slowed him and it was just his first full season. He went to Hawaii to get some extra playing time and struggled in the early going, so next year could be a big one to determine just what kind of prospect he is.

Baseball History -- November 2

Complete entry for November 2 at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries today are:

1995
The Yankees name Joe Torre as their new manager, replacing Buck Showalter.

At the time, Torre had managed three other teams. The Mets from 1977-1981. The Braves from 1982-1984. The Cardinals from 1990-1995. He went to the playoffs once, an NL West title in 1982 with the Braves. None of his teams won more than 90 games in a season.

The Cardinals fired him less than fifty games into the 1995 season. Then, the Yankees called after they lost to the Mariners in the 1995 AL Divisional Series. The rest is history.

1974
The Braves trade Hank Aaron to the Brewers for OF Dave May and a minor league pitcher to be named later. Aaron will finish his ML career in Milwaukee, where he started it in 1954. Meanwhile, Aaron, the home run king of American baseball, and Sadaharu Oh, his Japanese counterpart, square off for a home run contest at Korakuen Stadium. Aaron wins 10–9.

Welcome back, Hank. Also, I seem to remember the home run hitting contest between Aaron and Oh. It was on CBS Sports Spectacular? (that networks answer to ABC's Wide World of Sports). They used a pitching machine instead of a live pitcher? Darn kid. Why didn't you write that down and keep it in an easily accessable place for just this type of situation?

1913
Former St. Louis Browns manager George Stovall is the first ML player to jump to the Federal League, signing to manage Kansas City. With glib salesman Jim Gilmore as its president, and backed by several millionaires, including oil magnate Harry Sinclair and Brooklyn baker Robert Ward, the Feds declare open war two weeks later by announcing they will not honor the ML's reserve clause. It will prove a long, costly struggle, similar to the American League's beginnings, but with more losers than winners.

Federal League, USFL, WHA, ABA, XFL. That is just the short list. Probably more, but I don't have time to research it.

1887
The Athletics are sold to a syndicate headed by Henry C. Pennypacker. The three long time partners, Sharsig, Simmons, and Mason, still hold a sizable block of stock.

One question. Was there ever a more perfect name for a baseball owner than Pennypacker?

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas beat Mesa 6-3.

Matt Tuiasosopo (WI '05) was the only Rattler alum to play for the Javelinas. He was 1-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki lost 4-2 to West Oahu.

At the plate, Jeff Clement (WI '05) was the only ex-Rattler to swing. He went 0-for-4 and left five runners on base.

On the mound, David Asher (WI '06) allowed two runs on three hits with a walk and four strikeouts over two innings. Joe Woerman (WI '06) worked a scoreless inning withy a hit and a strikeout.

Thursday's Schedule:
Peoria Javelinas at Mesa 2:00pm CST
Waikiki -- Off Day

What do you think?

The Cedar Rapids Kernels had one of the neatest logos in the Midwest League. Simple. Uncomplicated. Memorable.

Had being the operative word. Because today, this popped out of nowhere:

Why? Here's why.

“We feel this logo is a good representation of the Kernels and helps to bring home the fun we have here at Veterans Memorial Stadium every game”, said Jack Roeder, Kernels General Manager. “We are very proud of our classic logo but felt as an organization it was time to move forward.”

Nothing says fun like an anthropomorphic bat dressed up as a cob of corn.

I do like the home uniforms though.

Right now, it's a push. The logo will probably grow on me. Maybe eye high by the Fourth of July.

Most stuff taken from www.kernels.com. Except for the old logo. Which is only to be found HERE on their main site.

Rattlers Win

If you get to this site through the main Timber Rattler page, you have probably seen this story. If not, here ya go:

Seattle Mariners Director of Player Development Frank Mattox announced today the organization's 2006 John Ellis Award winners. Pitcher Rich Dorman and outfielder Mike Saunders were honored as the co-individual award winners and the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, the Mariners' Class A affiliate in the Midwest League, were honored for having the top overall team commitment.

Dorman was a Rattler pitcher in the first half of 2003. Saunders was an outfielder with the Rattlers in '06. Both were big with youth camps and participated in more than their share of community programs. Nice job, Rich and Mike.

The Timber Rattlers, honored for their overall team commitment for the second consecutive season, were 54-86 in 2006 under first-year manager Jim Horner. The team and staff were active throughout the Appleton area in several community endeavors and accumulated 264 hours of community service throughout the 2006 season. The Rattlers played one game in pink jerseys to raise money and promote breast cancer awareness. The autographed jerseys were sold through a silent auction to benefit the American Cancer Society and Heavenly Hats. The Rattlers hosted a variety of baseball clinics for local area youth and also a camp for Special Olympic athletes. The team was also active in many speaking appearances in the community and participated in autograph sessions throughout the season.

More than baseball. That is what we try to be about at Fox Cities Stadium.

Midwest League Ballpark News

Here are a couple of stories from Ballparkdigest.com

Beloit ballpark proposal hits snag

Things may be looking grim for a new Snappers stadium.County board members at Thursday's meeting once again shot down an opportunity to run an appraisal of the three pieces of land named in the Mulder Dairy Farm's (MDF) land swap proposal. Without the appraisal, Assistant to the Administrator Phil Boutwell said the chances of the land swap moving forward are now slim to none.

Supervisors Brian Knudson, Sandra Kraft, Lynnette Kepplinger, Hank Brill, William Agnew, Ivan Collins and Mary Mawhinney all voted against the authorization and the vote failed 17 to seven with four absent and one seat vacant.

It gets a little complicated after that. There is a racetrack and some fundraising involved. I don't think snag is appropriate. Roadblock may be more like it.

Wizards set 2008 ballpark goal

The new owners of the local minor league baseball team want to play in a new or improved stadium by the 2008 season.

Fort Wayne officials said a decision on whether to move the Fort Wayne Wizards downtown will be made within 30 days.
...
Hardball Capital, the Atlanta-based group that bought the Fort Wayne Wizards in July, has been lauded by Fort Wayne officials as the perfect owner to move the team downtown with the owners’ experience in urban development. The city’s hope is to use a stadium as the centerpiece for a mixed-use downtown development that includes homes and shopping.

When city officials released the findings of their downtown baseball development report in July, which said a stadium could help spur downtown development, they said it could take several years for a stadium to be built.

The lease between the Wizards and Memorial Stadium ends after the 2007 season, however, providing the city and owners some urgency to get a deal accomplished.

This is going to be an interesting month in Fort Wayne.

Baseball History -- November 1

Complete entry for November 1 is at BaseballLibrary.com is HERE.

Highlighted entries:

2001
In an amazing case of history repeating itself, the Yankees again come from two runs down with two outs in the 9th inning to defeat the Diamondbacks, 3-2 in 12 innings. Byung-Hyun Kim is again victimized, this time by Scott Brosius' 2-run home run in the 9th. Alfonso Soriano's single wins it in the 12th. Steve Finley and Rod Barajas homer in the 5th for Arizona's runs.

And my award for most unlikely place to have watched a World Series game is this one...In a hotel room in Topeka, Kansas.

1994
Plans are announced for the new United League, which plans to compete with the existing major leagues.

That United League, like the Continental League never happened. But this United League has been playing for a few years. Now, they are going to run a Texas Winter League. It is going to statrt in January. January? In Texas? Okay.

1982
At a meeting in Chicago, the ML owners vote not to renew Commissioner Bowie Kuhn's contract, which will expire next August. The American League owners voted in favor of Kuhn 11-3, the National League 7-5. But his 18 votes left him two shy of the three-fourths majority required for reelection. Kuhn will remain on the job until a successor is found.

That successor wasn't found until 1984.

1979
Edward Bennett Williams buys the Orioles from Jerold Hoffberger for a reported $12.3 million.

Hey, that was a lot of money in 1979.

1916
Harry H. Frazee, New York theater owner and producer, and Hugh Ward buy the Red Sox for $675,000 (one report puts the figure at $750,000) from Joseph Lannin. Bill Carrigan announces that he will retire as Red Sox manager to pursue his interests in Lewiston, Maine.

Hey, that was a lot of money in 1916. Also, when the time comes, I will use that "pursue his interests in Lewiston, Maine."

Rattlers in Fall Ball

In the Arizona Fall League, the Peoria Javelinas lost 7-6 to Scottsdale in eleven innings.

Ex-Rattler bats for the Javelinas:
Michael Garciaparra (WI '03) was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Garciaparra is hitting .372 for the Javelinas.
Mike Wilson (WI '05) was 1-for-3 with an RBI.

Ex-Rattler pitchers for the Javelinas:
Bobby Livingston (WI '03) pitched three innings and gave up five runs (four earned) on five hits with a walk and a strikeout.
Ryan Rowland-Smith (WI '03) pitched a scoreless sixth inning with a hit, a walk, and a strikeout.
Craig James (WI '05) pitched a scoreless seventh and allowed one hit.

In Hawaii Winter Baseball, Waikiki BeachBoys beat West Oahu 7-3.

Sebastien Boucher (WI '05) was the only ex-Rattler to play for the BeachBoys. He went 0-for-4.

Mariner farmhand Reed Eastley was 0-for-3 with an RBI for Waikiki.

Wednesday's Scoreboard:
Mesa at Peoria Javelinas 2:05pm CST
West Oahu at Waikiki 7:00pm Hawaii Time