I asked Prospectus authors if they thought there would be a strike and if there would be playoffs this year. Everyone said there would be playoffs, and a few thought there wouldn’t be a strike. Consensus among the strike-heads seems to be it’ll be short and sharp, a 7 day 1985-style strike. I could use…
DO WE REALLY KNOW THAT HIGH PITCH COUNTS ARE BAD? "It’s an absolute shock. He has never even had a twinge in his shoulder or elbow." —Jeff Torborg, Marlins manager, on A.J. Burnett‘s "acute bone bruise" that may sideline him for the season "We didn’t see this coming. He has been a workhorse all year….
There are many who have wailed in the press and on television, saying that major league baseball will suffer catastrophic public reaction and possibly be destroyed entirely if a labor action means there’s no baseball on September 11th. Does baseball owe it to us to play on that day, and is it appropriate for us…
SPEAK FROM THE MOUNTAIN "I heard some woman on the television the other day talking about everyone in the big leagues making at least $2 million a year. I mean there are a lot of guys that are barely making one tenth of that but because this woman says that on TV a lot of…
Baseball has an obligation to do revenue sharing the right way. According to Mike Jones’ market-size research, Kansas City is the smallest market with a major-league team. Jones pegs it as the 39th-largest market in the country, based largely on information from Nielsen. Using the latest data from the Census Bureau (which operates one of…
People complain that it’s unfair to some teams chasing the wild card. Perhaps, but with “natural rivalries” and bizarre interleague schedules, fairness has already been tossed out the window.
The unbalanced schedule rules. People complain that it’s unfair to some teams chasing the wild card. Perhaps, but with "natural rivalries" and bizarre interleague schedules, fairness has already been tossed out the window. At least divisional play can make for great matchups, unlike, say, the thrilling mid-week sweep of the Brewers by the A’s in…
“Geez, what are you guys all doing here? I thought I traded all of you guys.” — Allard Baird, Royals GM, joking while walking through the clubhouse just after the trading deadline
MONKEYS EQUALS WINNING
“You have to respect the monkey, that’s for sure. Every time he peeks his little head out, something happens for them. You got to respect him or kidnap him, one or the other.”
–Desi Relaford, Mariners infielder, on playing at Edison Field
Last week in this space, I talked about how baseball teams should knock it off with the Obey-o-Tron and build their fan base with the kind of cheer clubs you see in soccer. Here’s the cool part: it’s already happening. I got e-mail from readers all week long.
THIS WEEK’S MOST-SUBMITTED SET OF QUOTES
“Whack it. Hack it. Stay aggressive.”
–Bruce Kimm, Cubs manager, on his hitting philosophy
“I want my big boys swinging. If they feel comfortable swinging at first pitches, I want ’em hacking, because they’re the guys who can do the damage.”
–Kimm
A month later, despite Bud Selig and Bob DuPuy’s continued Thelma and Louise-style drive towards a cliff–which probably includes hand-holding–I’m still thinking of something I saw during the World Cup. Baseball doesn’t need to borrow much from other sports (oh, the good announcer/bad announcer from wrestling, sure), but it should steal the "cheer clubs" from…
“Unfortunately, as of this date, it looks as if, quite frankly, it’s possible that I made a bad decision here and there.”
HOT IN HERE, NELLY "I take full responsibility for everything that goes on in regards to the clubs, and if the club fails, I failed." —Kenny Williams, White Sox GM "Unfortunately, as of this date, it looks as if, quite frankly, it’s possible that I made a bad decision here and there." –Williams "I can’t…
It just goes to prove anybody with a bat in his hand at this level is dangerous, even Hideo Nomo.