Vida Blue was awesome, RIP. Loved hearing him talk too.
― brimstead, Sunday, 7 May 2023 16:49 (one year ago) link
There's a decent argument for him being in the HOF and sometimes I think briefer peak value types like him really belong. That's more in line with what the NBA and NFL halls do. I know the MLB HOF loves longevity though.
― omar little, Sunday, 7 May 2023 16:53 (one year ago) link
The other thing he has going against him besides what I mentioned was pitching in a pitcher's era--not to the degree the '60s were, but his old-school stats only leave him with 45 bWAR after adjustments. Plus he's surrounded on all sides by 300-game winners like Seaver, Carlton, Perry, Niekro, and Sutton, and also legends like Gibson, Marichal, Palmer, and others.
― clemenza, Sunday, 7 May 2023 16:58 (one year ago) link
Looking at his '71 game log is amazing:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.fcgi?id=bluevi01&t=p&year=1971
He made a DeGrom like run at Gibson that year (without going down). His ERA was 1.03 after his May 23 start (12th), and he was still at 1.37 as late as July 25. He tailed off a bit after that and ended up with 1.82.
Lots of other eye-opening stuff in there, like six consecutive CG more than once.
― clemenza, Sunday, 7 May 2023 17:08 (one year ago) link
Thought he moved around more than he actually did: only three teams (two stints in San Francisco). That's not many in the free-agent era. (His '72 holdout, where--surprise--Finley railroaded him into coming back should get more credit than it does in ending the reserve clause.)
― clemenza, Sunday, 7 May 2023 17:46 (one year ago) link
Posnanski on Vida, with a nice tweet from Fergie Jenkins:
https://open.substack.com/pub/joeposnanski/p/blue-monday?r=1jtu0&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
Reminded me of how close his career numbers were to Catfish Hunter's.
― clemenza, Monday, 8 May 2023 16:11 (one year ago) link
roger craig, 93
― mookieproof, Monday, 5 June 2023 02:08 (eleven months ago) link
Last words, as he sat at home watching the A's: "Can't anybody here play this game?"
― clemenza, Monday, 5 June 2023 02:26 (eleven months ago) link
People you thought were 80 years old already when his team humiliated yours in the 1989 NLCS
― omar little, Monday, 5 June 2023 02:34 (eleven months ago) link
He had been in ill health for some time aiui
― Its big ball chunky time (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Monday, 5 June 2023 02:52 (eleven months ago) link
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/419Yf4Bi7WL._AC_UL600_SR600,600_.jpg
Enjoyed this book as a young Tigers fan. (Shout-out to scott pl.)
― Andy K, Monday, 5 June 2023 12:05 (eleven months ago) link
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/F1mlG0PXgAIHZDF.jpg:small
― mookieproof, Saturday, 22 July 2023 03:12 (nine months ago) link
We mourn the passing of Jim Price, a treasured member of the Tigers organization for decades.He spent all five years of his playing career wearing the Olde English ‘D’, including the 1968 World Series championship season.— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) August 8, 2023
― Andy K, Wednesday, 9 August 2023 02:25 (nine months ago) link
A Statement from the Robinson Family and the Orioles:“We are deeply saddened to share the news of the passing of Brooks Robinson. An integral part of our Orioles Family since 1955, he will continue to leave a lasting impact on our club, our community, and the sport of…— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) September 26, 2023
― j.q higgins, Tuesday, 26 September 2023 21:59 (seven months ago) link
Ah happy trails
― Its big ball chunky time (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Tuesday, 26 September 2023 22:04 (seven months ago) link
Just heard that. He was something else in the '70 Series.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e_XHZbhR9qc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6FkSuRWZtA
― clemenza, Tuesday, 26 September 2023 22:05 (seven months ago) link
Apparently he was left-handed, and did everything left-handed, except bat and throw
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 26 September 2023 23:17 (seven months ago) link
Jim Palmer said Brooks "never had a bad day in his life"
Thanks for the videos, clemenza. Wild to see video of that time. Great play
― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 26 September 2023 23:18 (seven months ago) link
Jim Palmer reflects on the legacy of Brooks Robinson. pic.twitter.com/2UlvMt5gBd— Orioles on MASN (@masnOrioles) September 26, 2023
― mookieproof, Wednesday, 27 September 2023 00:55 (seven months ago) link
Nice clip. I'm going by memory here--and will feel silly if I'm wrong (can't seem to find confirmation online)--but I think Ken Burns used "Theme from Shaft" for the segment on Robinson and the '70s Series. He cheated by a year, but it was great. Clemente and Santana's "Oye Como Va" for the '71 Series was a perfect match; Robinson and "Shaft" was a brilliant contrast.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 27 September 2023 02:01 (seven months ago) link
jim palmer is in awfully good shape for a guy who'll turn 78 in a couple weeks
― mookieproof, Wednesday, 27 September 2023 02:33 (seven months ago) link
Sorry, forgot this thread existed for a moment.
Our hearts are broken with the loss of Tim Wakefield.Wake embodied true goodness; a devoted husband, father, and teammate, beloved broadcaster, and the ultimate community leader. He gave so much to the game and all of Red Sox Nation.Our deepest love and thoughts are with… pic.twitter.com/ah5kV2Yt8j— Red Sox (@RedSox) October 1, 2023
― I’m going to get fined for being right, again (gyac), Sunday, 1 October 2023 18:35 (seven months ago) link
Highly recommend Knuckleball, about his quest for his 200th win but really about this small fraternity of four or five people who account for almost everyone in the world who knows how to throw that pitch well. They golf together, keep in touch, and mentor Wakefield.
― clemenza, Sunday, 1 October 2023 18:44 (seven months ago) link
rip The Young Knuckleballer
went to see him do a rehab start for the carolina mudcats in 1993, but he ended up being scratched. andy van slyke was there rehabbing tho
classic pirates move to waive a guy who would win 186 games and put up 33 bWAR elsewhere. always rooted for him ;_;
― mookieproof, Sunday, 1 October 2023 18:49 (seven months ago) link
Tim Wakefield, Knuckleballer Extraordinaire pic.twitter.com/QElTCrnSMT— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) October 1, 2023
― mookieproof, Sunday, 1 October 2023 20:18 (seven months ago) link
For those that didn’t notice, George Kirby threw a first-pitch knuckleball to Corey Seager for a swing and miss. Statcast had it as a splitter, but Kirby has been threatening to throw his knuckleball once in a game.— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) October 1, 2023
― I’m going to get fined for being right, again (gyac), Sunday, 1 October 2023 20:19 (seven months ago) link
This Mike Timlin-Tim Wakefield video from the 2007 World Series resonates even more now. Seemed like the absolute best teammate you could have. pic.twitter.com/4A3hx6nEIi— Mike Cole (@MikeColeNESN) October 1, 2023
― mookieproof, Sunday, 1 October 2023 20:20 (seven months ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZf9UeZa4uA
― mookieproof, Sunday, 1 October 2023 21:08 (seven months ago) link
I'm sure many of you have read this before, but it's well worth a re-read in the aftermath of Wakefield's death. By my lights this is the best oral history about any baseball event ever: The Doug Mirabelli trade.
https://tht.fangraphs.com/the-doug-mirabelli-trade-an-oral-history/
― Tracer Hand, Monday, 2 October 2023 12:31 (seven months ago) link
baseball writer jim caple, who i used to enjoy reading back in the espn page 2 days and again years later at the athletic
― is he disgruntled adrian? (voodoo chili), Monday, 2 October 2023 19:36 (seven months ago) link
thanks for posting that, tracer hand!
― brimstead, Monday, 2 October 2023 20:18 (seven months ago) link
Great read.
Loved watching (and imitating) him.
― Andy K, Monday, 2 October 2023 21:11 (seven months ago) link
Hondo, one of the legendary guys from my youth:
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/mlb/article-12690331/Frank-Howard-Washington-Senators-dies-87-MLB.html
It's not so much how many HR he hit--under 400 for his career, reached 40+ three times--as when he hit them: 44 in '68 (with a slugging pct. of .552), when pitchers dominated like no year since the 1910s, and 48 in '69, which was wasn't as extreme but still pitching-dominated. And he was huge (standing next to Mantle here).
https://ladodgertalk.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/gettyimages-52909635-612x612-1.jpg
― clemenza, Monday, 30 October 2023 21:04 (six months ago) link
"His coming-out party came in May 1968, when, during a stretch of 20 at-bats, Howard blasted 10 home runs. It still stands as the record for most home runs hit in one week."
https://www.mlb.com/news/frank-howard-dies
― clemenza, Monday, 30 October 2023 21:43 (six months ago) link
Little bit in Posnanski's post today about how much Ted Williams brought Frank Howard around as a hitter.
Then in 1969, the team hired their new manager, a guy named Ted Williams, and it’s utterly REMARKABLE how much that changed Frank Howard as a hitter. Up to that point, he was a wild free swinger with a .336 lifetime on-base percentage. Under Williams, he immediately cut down the strikeouts and doubled the walks; that year he hit .296/.402/.574 with those career-high 48 homers. The next year, he led the league with 132 walks. Ted Williams was a famously ineffective manager for many reasons, but Frank Howard would always say he made him a great hitter and he would lament not playing for Ted when he was young.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 1 November 2023 02:37 (six months ago) link
Peter Seidler, grandson of Wally O'Malley, owner/controlling partner of SDP from 2012-2023.
― citation needed (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 19:27 (six months ago) link
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/padres/story/2023-11-14/padres-chairman-peter-seidler-passes-away
― citation needed (Steve Shasta), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 19:28 (six months ago) link
Whoa
― reggae mike love (polyphonic), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 20:30 (six months ago) link
The Padres are super fucked, jeez
― reggae mike love (polyphonic), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 20:31 (six months ago) link
Werehavingafiresale.gif
― Its big ball chunky time (Jimmy The Mod Awaits The Return Of His Beloved), Tuesday, 14 November 2023 20:31 (six months ago) link
Willie Hernandez, 1984 CY and MVP winner.
― NoTimeBeforeTime, Thursday, 23 November 2023 07:03 (five months ago) link
Wow. One of the great then vs. now seasons when tracing historical attitudes towards closers and how they're used. His '84 vs. Felix Bautista's 2023:
WH - 140.1 IP, 1.92 ERA, 3.1 WAR, Cy Young + MVPFB - 61 IP, 1.48 ERA, 3.0 WAR, 11th-place for the Cy (one 5th-place vote), 0 MVP votes
(Weirdly enough, similar W-L records: Hernandez 9-3, Bautista 8-2.)
― clemenza, Thursday, 23 November 2023 14:09 (five months ago) link
Like one of those Academy Award tributes: 2023 in memoriam.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JarNaBC2Y4
― clemenza, Friday, 15 December 2023 18:03 (five months ago) link
Meant to say that there's a Seattle Pilot in there: Wayne Comer.
― clemenza, Friday, 15 December 2023 20:38 (five months ago) link
How did we miss this?
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/39286514/bud-harrelson-scrappy-mets-ss-fought-pete-rose-dies-79
I didn't know about the Alzheimer's. Only won one GG, surprisingly--his defensive reputation was up there with almost anyone's through the '70s. (Usually lost out to Concepcion.) Got an MVP vote in '73 for playing 106 games and hitting .258--his career high till he hit .282/.272 his final two seasons. Immortal, of course, for this (Monday afternoon game, so I was probably sitting in Mr. Gudgeon's grade 8 class and missed it).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8xKLnO4hOs
Rose in 2008: "You had Seaver, who was the greatest pitcher I ever saw, and you had great hitters like Cleon Jones and Tommie Agee, and later Rusty and Milner. But the heart and soul of that team — ask anyone who played against them — was Bud Harrelson."
― clemenza, Friday, 12 January 2024 17:29 (four months ago) link
(Note to Thermo: if there was ever a player who was going to have "scrappy" in his obit headline, Harrelson's the guy.)
― clemenza, Friday, 12 January 2024 19:25 (four months ago) link
A member of the @Mets extended family has passed away. (Okay, REALLY extended family). Joyce Randolph, who played Trixie Norton on “The Honeymooners” was 99 years old. Her grandnephew Tim Redding pitched for the Mets 15 years ago. TV, if not necessarily Mets royalty. RIP. pic.twitter.com/PlbXqMy0ws— Howie Rose (@HowieRose) January 14, 2024
― mookieproof, Monday, 15 January 2024 04:09 (four months ago) link
Steve Staggs, 72. Not sure if Facebook links to a public group work here:
https://www.facebook.com/TorontoBlueJaysBaseballFans/posts/pfbid0yWgxshR6QWTC1C8d8DFFvAWci77arNW12vSUDmwtvgRHtmWnahK9RbAvRRL2tXa5l
I don't remember him at all, even though he was the Jays' leadoff hitter for half their first season. Looks a lot like Wade Boggs here:
https://i.postimg.cc/9fhb6xDH/staggs.jpg
― clemenza, Wednesday, 24 January 2024 17:58 (three months ago) link
Jimy Williams (if he'd been a character in Goodfellas, he would have been Jimy One-M).
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/baseball/mlb/former-blue-jays-manager-jimy-williams-dead-at-80-1.7098047
1) Had the difficult task of taking over from Bobby Cox in 1986, after the Jays' first divisional title.
2) Manger when they collapsed in '87. After play on Sept. 26, the Jays were 96-59, the best record in baseball by 4-1/2 games. They proceeded to lose their final seven games, the last three by one run to the Tigers, the team that overtook them for the A.L. East title.
3) In the middle of probably the most memorable player-manager confrontation in team history:
https://mopupduty.com/a-memorable-blue-jays-opening-day-041117/
The Jays started the '89 season 12-24, Williams was fired and replaced by Cito Gaston, and it went from there.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 30 January 2024 00:22 (three months ago) link