April 2011
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So Meta
Via this tweet from Sam Fuld:
I know Sam Fuld is a level 12 genius, but isn’t it bad luck for a baseball player to:
Read…
a book…
about the executive decisions of a baseball club…
that you currently play for?
We have clearly gone down the rabbit hole. What’s next? A professional athlete that both reads and writes his own autobiography? There are rules in...
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Jason Marquis And the Essence of Pitching
Last week I made a tongue-in-cheek post after Jason Marquis had pitched another solid game and picked up two hits because I didn’t think it could last. But after last night’s performance, I must now admit that perhaps Jason Marquis, using Livan Hernandez as a guide and spiritual mentor, has tapped into some pitching essence: a life force that creates darting fastballs, killer breaking...
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Don't Trust The Stadium Gun
I already figured that stadium guns were a little off, though I usually thought it was because they were wrongly calibrated. At worst I thought the teams would have them run a little hot to get the crowd into the action. Instead, Kevin Towers reveals that he is the pitching version of a Bond villain.
When discussing Brad Penny, Towers said:
“We used to dial it down,” said a...
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MLB suspends Ozzie two games for Twitter tirade,... →
jerkasaurus:
FREE OZZIE!!
Jack Moore at NotGraphs lists a few suspensions that equal Ozzie’s, and needless to say, the punishment does not fit the crime. MLB is essentially equating Ozzie Guillen tweeting after a game with Francisco Rodriguez punching his girlfriend’s father while at CitiField.
Something doesn’t add up here.
battingcleanup asked: So, according to Wikipedia (reliable source, I know) George Hendrick is who we have to blame for the lack of stirrup socks.
However, he once rocked a nifty handlebar mustache: http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkf1i4pgSQ1qbl67ao1_500.jpg
Now I'm torn between hating and loving him.
However, he once rocked a nifty handlebar mustache: http://28.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lkf1i4pgSQ1qbl67ao1_500.jpg
Now I'm torn between hating and loving him.
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Derek Lowe Arrested, Charged With DUI, Reckless... →
jerkasaurus:
The report says that Lowe was pulled over in Atlanta, and the officer “detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage.” Lowe was given a field sobriety test but refused to take a breathalyzer test.
Dear baseball men that I like:
You can afford a cab. Enough with the drinking and driving already.
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“If I had my choice between watching the Royal wedding on television, or watching...”
– Bob Brenly on the Royal wedding.
But what about the pageantry, Bob? What about the pageantry?
(via Rob Neyer)
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The Fantastic Voyage: 4/28/11
Giants 5, Pirates 2 - How often do teams commit four errors and win? Unfortunately, I couldn’t figure out how to calculate that using Play Index so perhaps we’ll never know. I’m going to guess its not very often. Ryan Vogelsong had his revenge on his former team, striking out 8 over 5.2 innings and getting his first win of the season. I can honestly say that I never thought...
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Things I Learned Today
(Photo by dbadair)
1. The Zorilla is a an actual, real life animal. (It is a striped polecat.)
2. Ben Zobrist still carries a mean baseball bat.
The Rays moved to two games above .500 as they absolutely obliterated the Twins for the second day in a row, this time by the score of 15-3. Johnny Damon and Matt Joyce each had three hits, but the real star was Zobrist who went 4-6 with a home run,...
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Engel Beltre Suspended 15 Games for Throwing Trash...
Man, if I was suspended everytime that I threw garbage at people, we’d have a real problem on our hands.
Plus, Beltre taught the crowd an important lesson in recycling.
noncromulant asked: "The fact that both of Chippers legs remained attached to his legs"?
I know the guy is old and injury prone and can't run for shit, but ... what tells me you skipped on the coffee this morning?
I know the guy is old and injury prone and can't run for shit, but ... what tells me you skipped on the coffee this morning?
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Joe Maddon, the Red Meat Fanatic
From the AP recap:
“Maddon was on the prowl for a good burger before the game. His eyes lit up when he was alerted to the presence of a Five Guys near the University of Minnesota campus, and said he may seek that out Thursday between games.”
I don’t know why he’s going to a Five Guys when there is a Best Burger Ever in Waite Park. They couldn’t name it that if it...
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13.2 Seconds
Chipper Jones’ time on his triple from yesterday, his first since June 7, 2009. Now, I don’t know what the league average is, but I’m going to bet that it’s lower than 13.2 seconds.
For comparison’s sake, Jason Bourgeois’ triple from last night was accomplished in 10.4 seconds and Prince Fielder’s from April 24th took 12.7 seconds.
Still, the fact that...
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The Fantastic Voyage: 4/27/11
Dodgers 5, Marlins 4 (10 innings) – Andre Ethier extended his hitting streak to 24 games and hit the game-winning home run in the top of the 10th. Vincente Padilla earned the save. Not a bad win for the Dodgers.
Reds 7, Brewers 6 (10 innings) – A Drew Stubbs homer in the top of the 10th was the difference in this one. Aroldis Chapman came into the game in the bottom of the 8th and got Ryan Braun...
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Sleeping with the Enemy
Just to revisit the Don Orsillo, Rick Dempsey dynamic:
Dempsey: “This reminds me of that movie Sleeping with the Enemy.”
Orsillo: “Which one of us is Julia Roberts?”
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...could this be the year?
Jeff “The Rancor” Francoeur hit his fifth home run of the season and picked up his 19th RBI off of Josh Tomlin. Sadly, he did not go back-to-back with Mike Aviles, who homered two batters later.
On a side note: I will never get tired of Jeff Francoeur stories, or about the Indians playing the Royals this season. Besides the home runs, Tomlin tossed 6 decent frames.
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Rick Dempsey: Expert Announcer
Former major leaguer Rick Dempsey has partnered up with Red Sox play by play man Don Orsillo tonight. It’s interesting because the Sox are playing the Orioles, where Dempsey spent ten seasons. Fun fact: Dempsey was named World Series MVP in 1983, joining Gene Tenace, Johnny Bench, Steve Yeager, Darrel Porter, and Pat Borders as the only other catchers to win the award.
He seems to be a nice...
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Andre Ethier has hit safely in 24 games
Andre Ethier has had a great start to the year, tallying a 380/.451/.560 line. He’s also riding a hitting streak that he extended to 24 games against the Marlins this afternoon. Ethier singled in the 4th and came around to score on a Rod Barajas home run. The real heroics came in the Top of the 10th, when he took Brian Sanches deep for what turned out to be the game-winning run.
Also to note:...
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Hi All
Hi everyone. Mike’s introduction was rather gracious. I’d say I project as more of a AAAA-type, always the September call-up, never the Ichiro. I’m happy to be here at Old Time Family Baseball. At the same time, I realize I know how much people have come to expect out of this blog. I also believe that wearing high socks makes someone a better pitcher.
For the last few years, especially as I’ve...
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My New Platoon Partner
Old Time Family Baseball is growing! Because of my woeful inability to hit southpaws and play everyday, my good friend Will Hall will now be taking on Wednesday night postings. He’s a good guy and a fantastic writer, and though I personally believe he could fold his ballcap brims better, he’s a damn good baseball fan.
Starting tonight and moving forward, any posts after 7 ET on...
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Roger McDowell Accused of Making Gay Slurs
Today is really not a good day for baseball news as Roger McDowell has been accused of some really revolting behavior.
From TMZ:
Mega-attorney Gloria Allred announced the allegations moments ago in a news conference — representing a family of four (including two 9-year-old girls) who claim they watched McDowell make the homophobic remark and then use a baseball bat to simulate gay sex. ...
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Livan Hernandez Target of FBI Money Laundering...
(Photo by NDWas)
Hoo boy, apparently Livan Hernandez has skills other than pitching 200+ innings of 80 mph fastballs. He can also launder money for the drug trafficker Angel Ayala Vazquez, otherwise known as “The Buster.” (I hope he’s changed his name since Arrested Development.)
From Vocero.com and translated by the Free Republic:
“During Ayala’s trial, U.S....
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Things I Never Needed to Know
Like how sausage is made and the story of one’s conception, there are some things that I’m fine with having swept under the rug. Which is why I didn’t care if Don Mattingly grew a goatee because the Dodgers were winning or because he felt like he needed a change or if he just hated how his face looked. The cover story was fine as is.
But today, Dylan Hernandez had to pull back...
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The Fantastic Voyage: 4/26/11
Orioles 4, Red Sox 1 - I know I expected a correction to Clay Bucholz’s ERA from last season, but not quite this dramatically. Bucholz gave up 12 hits while surrendering four runs in 6.2 innings as his ERA climbed to 5.33. Zach Britton got his fourth victory on the season and Guerrero had three hits in this one.
White Sox 3, Yankees 2 - Thanks to social media, Brent Lillibridge is...
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The Lillibridge Troll
Lillibridge Troll -[lil-e-brij-trohl]
1. Noun - Like the common bridge troll, the Lillibridge Troll spends most of his time hiding under benches. Occasionally, like in the ninth inning of ball games, the Lillibridge Troll will emerge from his hiding place and refuse to let oversized foes muscle balls passed him without answering his questions three. In last night’s game against the...
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Are They Saying "Boo" or "Boo-Urns"?
From the AP recap of the Reds-Brewers game:
“Leake had earned a win in his previous start, three days after getting arrested for shoplifting from a Cincinnati department store. The caustic signs in his first start at home in Cincinnati didn’t follow him to Milwaukee.
There was only a small chant of “thief, thief, thief” when Leake batted in the eighth, but it sounded like “Leake, Leake,...
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Ryan Raburn Should Take Up Hockey
Because he would at least be credited with an assist.
Miguel Olivo now has half a home run on the season.
(gif via Baseball Nation, Sam Miller)
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Lenny Dykstra Has No Limits
Within the past two months Dykstra has already been interviewed while drunk and arrested for bankruptcy fraud, and, not surprisingly, Charlie Sheen has come to his rescue. Sheen put up $22,500 to bail Dykstra out of jail, saying this in the process:
“The rendition guilty trolls that kidnapped my dear friend Nails clearly forgot that he’s a fellow Vatican assassin and his best pal is...
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Pirates Claim Xavier Paul
With this pickup and the Brandon Wood claim from earlier this week, The Pirates have now officially become the Major League’s little brother, taking on players that other teams have outgrown or never liked.
They totally can’t wait for the Braves to outgrow their sweet vintage concert tees.
noncromulant asked: How much do you think Blue Jays hitting coach Dwayne Murphy has to do with Bautista's surreal turn around? It seems a little too coincidental that the Jays started bombing balls out of the park when Gene Tenace retired and Murphy took over the job.
Murphy himself wasn't all that great a player until a few years into his career and then he started hitting the long ball more...
Murphy himself wasn't all that great a player until a few years into his career and then he started hitting the long ball more...
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“Baseball, after all, is a game of failure. It beats men down. And as I grow...”
– Navin Vaswani’s reaction to Paul Konerko saying that “the game might only get one crack at me.”
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The Fantastic Voyage Through Baseball: 4/25/11
White Sox 2, Yankees 0 - Philip Humber may finally be making good on that Johan Santana trade, going six and a third no-hit innings against the Yankees. While the White Sox finally won, it wasn’t even all that inspiring as they managed only three hits off of AJ Burnett. Either Burnett is back, rendering all that preseason worrying moot (3.52 ERA) or the White Sox offense has a lot to...
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Philip Humber Will Break Your Heart
David Schoenfield passes along this quote from Philip Humber which, like Toy Story 3, will instantly make you burst into tears:
“When I was young I had big dreams. I thought I was going to go out there and dominate every time. It hasn’t worked out that way to this point.”
I have made my fair share of jokes at Humber’s expense, mostly because he has failed to live up...
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When Is It Too Early to Start Talking About a...
Last night the internet came alive when Philip Humber went six and a third no-hit innings before surrendering the first hit of the evening to Alex Rodriguez. While the fact that the 28 year-old Humber, owner of five previous career starts, was doing it against America’s biggest team certainly helped his viral case, it did bring up the question of when is it too early to start talking about...
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Gotta Bathe My Schnauzer: 4/16/11 Dodgers Vs....
(This late post is brought to you by my inability to locate things like my scorebook, the basic reason for writing this.)
Thanks to my good friends Kelly and Gemma, I was able to make my first pilgrimage to Dodger Stadium last weekend to see Clayton Kershaw take on Kyle McClellan. It also gave me an excuse to wear my ‘42 Pelicans jersey and test out my Eephus League scorebook while sitting...