Bending the Rules

I loved going to Reds games growing up.  I enjoyed getting to the game early, watching batting practice, and seeing Johnny Bench throw bullets to the bases during fielding practice. As the groundskeepers readied the diamond for the game, I marveled at how carefully they would chalk the batter’s box.  When the Reds came up in the bottom half of the first, leadoff hitter Pete Rose would walk to the plate and erase the back line of the batter’s box so he had more time to react to pitches. He did it every time, home and on the road. I remember asking my Dad why would the umpires let him do that. Isn’t that cheating? The answer was that he was just bending the rules. What exactly can you do to bend the rules? Let’s take a look. 

Elrod Hendriks, Orioles’ catcher, bent the rules unintentionally in the 1970 World Series. The first game in Cincinnati was tied 3-3 in the sixth inning when Reds pinch hitter, Ty Cline, hit a high chopper in front of the plate. Bernie Carbo charged home from third. Unfortunately the play surprised home plate umpire Ken Burkhardt as he positioned himself between the sliding Carbo and Hendriks. Burkhardt raised his right hand signaling out, even though Hendriks’ tag on Carbo was with his mitt while the ball stayed in Elrod’s hand. Baseball rules clearly provide that a fielder cannot apply a tag with an open glove. Burkhardt never saw it.

Catchers can only use their masks for protection, not to field a ball. In 2021 Giants’ catcher Curt Casali used his mask to stop a ball. Arizona baserunners were awarded an extra base. In a game at Fenway three years prior, Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez scooped up an errant pitch with his mask. Confused by the incident when the umpires awarded runners an extra base, the Red Sox broadcasting team deemed it a “catcher’s balk”.  Find that one in the rule book.  The actual rule is called the detached equipment rule, and it was correctly applied in both instances.

Fielders also can’t throw their gloves at batted balls.  Two incidents with pitchers stand out. In 2013 in a game in Colorado, Rockies’ batter Josh Rutledge laid down a bunt that rolled between the pitcher’s mound and first base line.  Trying to stop the ball, Clayton Kershaw threw his glove at it. Fortunately, he missed. If the glove had made contact with the ball, the batter and baserunners would have been awarded two or even three bases.  Dodgers’ pitcher Duaner Sanchez in a 2005 game vs. the Diamondbacks tried to field a soft pop up over his head by throwing his glove at it.  He did make contact and Arizona hitter Luis Terrero was awarded third base.  Stiff penalties! Keep your glove on your hand.

Also, keep your helmet on your head!  A little over a week ago Cubs’ rookie Pete Crow-Armstrong doubled into the right field corner in a game vs. the Mets.  For whatever reason, Pete took his helmet off as he ran toward second base. He beat the throw, but attempted to stay on the base by holding his helmet on the bag.  New York second baseman Joey Wendle applied a late tag, and umpire Carlos Torres motioned that Crow-Armstrong was still safe. The Mets did not appeal the play, but if they had it was clearly an out. Know the rules when they are trying to be bent!

The most notorious attempt to bend the rules is the hidden ball trick.  It’s when an infielder tries to confuse a baserunner on the location of the baseball, resulting in the fielder tagging out the runner. One important caveat to the trick is that the ball must be in play, meaning that time hasn’t been called.  Most often players call time after a play ends so that it is nearly impossible for the play to happen.  The use of a hidden ball trick in MLB is pretty rare.  Often, you see infielders try and deke runners into believing the ball is somewhere else. Former Giants’ third baseman Matt Williams on two occasions successfully asked a runner to step off the base so that he could sweep off the dirt from the bag, then applied the tag. Pretty clever.

My favorite tale is that of Rockies former first baseman Todd Helton, who will be inducted into the Hall of Fame this summer.  In mid September 2013 Helton announced his retirement after a 17-year career with Colorado.  A few days later he decided to do a little trickery on the way out. Rockies pitcher Roy Oswalt attempted unsuccessfully to pick the Cardinals Matt Carpenter off of first base. Helton then faked a throw back to the mound, and when Carpenter began to take his lead, Helton applied the tag.  Gotcha! The veteran Helton said after the game: “I’ve been wanting to do that for 17 seasons. Now I can cross that off my bucket list.” Maybe Helton will mention his trickery in his Cooperstown address this July.

Most every Little Leaguer growing up in Cincinnati tried to emulate Pete Rose -- maybe it was your swing, running to first base on a walk, or attempting a head first slide.  As for me, I sometimes tried to bend the rules.  I remember attempting my own hidden ball trick in a game against a heated rival.  It was at first ruled successful then the other manager pointed out that time had been called. Foiled!  I was successful, unknowingly of course, in a game that I caught and a third strike was tipped back at me.  I looked around and the ball didn’t land in my mitt, but rather was lodged in my chest protector.  I pulled it out and the 15-year old umpire signaled out. It’s okay to bend the rules if the umpires say okay.  Be like Pete!

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Shohei, It Ain't So!

(Note: The historical section below was taken from a Baseball Bench Coach article “Our Heroes” last year.)

In March the 2024 MLB season started out with a bang, but maybe not the bang Commissioner Manfred had hoped for. The Dodgers, the team that had made the biggest offseason splash ever in signing superstar Shohei Ohtani to a record 10-year, $700 million contract, were set to play the Padres in the showcase “Seoul Series”, a week prior to Opening Day of the season. As the teams prepared for the two games in South Korea, a scandal shook the baseball world. Reports came out that Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s interpreter, had used millions of dollars from Ohtani’s bank account to satisfy gambling debts.

Mizuhara had served as Ohtani’s interpreter since Shohei arrived to MLB in 2018. The early reports about the scandal were conflicting. On March 19 Mizuhara told ESPN that Ohtani paid his gambling debts at the interpreter’s request. At first there was much confusion and dismay out of the Dodger camp. Shohei and the Dodgers quickly recovered at a news conference on March 25 at Dodger Stadium. He told the media present that he never bet on sports or knowingly paid the gambling debts of Mizuhara. Shohei, it ain’t so!

In the early part of the 20th century, reports of gambling on baseball were almost commonplace. The 1919 World Series will forever be remembered by the Black Sox Scandal.  Shoeless Joe Jackson and seven other Sox players were accused of throwing the Series by accepting bribes and indicted for a conspiracy to defraud the public.  While the players were eventually acquitted, they were suspended for life by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis.

Prior to the 1947 season Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was suspended for one year for associating with gambling figures.  You remember the 1947 season -- Dodger great Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Durocher was a huge supporter of Robinson but couldn’t be there for him. A decade later, two other New York baseball legends were introduced, the New York Giants’ Willie Mays and the Yankees’ Mickey Mantle.  Both were the epitome of five-tool players, and their career numbers demonstrated it.  Yet, after both players had been inducted into the Hall of Fame, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn gave them life bans from baseball for essentially hanging out at casinos.  Peter Ueberroth lifted the bans as one of his first acts as Commissioner.

Gambling took center stage at the end of Pete Rose’s great career.  MLB’s all-time hit leader returned to the Reds in 1984 as player manager and retired from the playing field two years later.  In August 1989 a story broke that Rose gambled on baseball games while he played for and managed the Reds. He was placed on the permanent ineligibility list.  In 1991, the Hall of Fame voted to ban players on the permanent ineligibility list from induction. 

The Rose scandal hit me hard.  I idolized Pete growing up, a player from my side of town in Cincinnati who willed himself to become one of the best ever.  I recall Marty Brennaman, Reds’ longtime radio announcer, defending Rose on the airwaves. I so hoped that Brenneman was correct and the allegations were not true.  After twenty years of denial, Rose admitted in 2004 to gambling on baseball and on his Reds.  And unfortunately, we most likely never will see his plaque in the Hall of Fame.

The Mizuhara scandal came out of an IRS criminal investigation of an alleged illegal bookmaker. MLB soon opened a separate investigation, and MIzuhara was immediately fired by the Dodgers. He has now been charged with federal bank crimes involving payments of more than $16 million appropriated from Ohtani’s bank account for gambling debts. U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada declared last month that there is no evidence that Ohtani was aware of any of Mizuhara’s dealings. Estrada also maintained that Shohei has cooperated fully with the federal investigation. MLB has officially suspended its investigation pending the federal matter.

While Ohtani’s first month with the Dodgers has been marred by these off field concerns, Ohtani and the Dodgers have performed on the field. Although Shohei got off to a slow start at the plate, he currently wields a batting average of .364 with 10 HRs and 25 RBIs. At week’s end, his Dodgers lead the NL West by 5 1/2 games. I’m sure there’s hope in a couple executive offices on both coasts, New York and Los Angeles, that this matter quietly goes away. Shohei, it ain’t so!

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Wait 'Til Next Year

A warm childhood memory is watching the NBC Game of the Week on Saturday afternoons with my Dad. Since we were in an NL city, it was the only opportunity to see the American League teams play during the regular season. Most of the AL games I recall were hosted by Boston at Fenway Park.  One Saturday my Dad and I watched Frank Howard and the Washington Senators play the Red Sox. I had read in the newspaper that Howard, all 6 foot 7 of him, was one of the most feared hitters in baseball. I remember being totally unimpressed, the only image of the game being big Frank stumble in the outfield trying to catch a fly ball.

Frank Howard was indeed a fearsome hitter. A 4-time MLB All-Star known as the “Washington Monument”, he twice led the AL in home runs and total bases. His career totals include 382 HRs and 1,119 RBIs. Unfortunately, he starred on a Senators team that stumbled a lot themselves. It is the same Senators team portrayed as hapless in the Broadway hit, “Damn Yankees”. You had to have a lot of “heart” to be a fan of this franchise.

The Senators set the standard for losing in the American League beginning in the early 1900s. The 1904 team lost 113 games. A columnist joked: “Washington: First in war, first in peace, and last in the American League.” From 1911 to 1933, the franchise did have success behind such stars as Joe Cronin and Walter Johnson. Bad fortunes returned in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1960 the franchise relocated to Minnesota; an expansion franchise named the Senators returned to D.C. in the 1960s. The new Senators would become the Texas Rangers in 1972.

The National League had its own team of futility during this time, the 1962 New York Mets. That season was the Mets first one, but boy did they set some lasts. Team batting average, team ERA, and team field percentage were all last in the NL, the ultimate trifecta. The Mets starting pitchers recorded a new (and still standing) record of just 23 wins during the season. The Mets’ 120 losses (record of 40-120) are the all-time worst in MLB history. Crazily, just six seasons later, the 1969 “Amazin’ Mets” captured the World Series. The franchise of severe ups and downs continued most recently with 101 wins in 2022 and a losing record last year.

The 2024 White Sox are on pace to break the season record of 120 losses. This year’s Southside squad has a record of 6-22 at week’s end. The trade of star pitcher Dylan prior to the season start shook the starting staff. Not one starter remains from its core the past few years.  The Sox have suffered injuries to key everyday players, such as Eloy Jiminez, Yoan Moncada, and the young superstar, Luis Robert. It’s a long season, but Chicago will find it very difficult to recover from its April start.

The Baltimore Orioles in 1988 had the worst start in modern day baseball, going 0-21.  It wasn’t until April 29 that the Orioles could post a “W”, a win against the White Sox at old Comiskey Park. Because of the poor start, Baltimore manager Cal Ripken, Sr. was replaced by Frank Robinson. While Robinson tried to rally the troops, the club finished 54-107 for the season. It marked only the second time in franchise history that Baltimore had over 100 losses, the first one in 1954, its inaugural season.

Another proud AL franchise, the Tigers, had its comeuppance in 2003.  Detroit lost 119 games that season, the most in American League history. The previous record was set all the way back in 1916 by the Philadelphia Athletics. Some startling numbers from the ’03 Tigers include being outscored by 337 runs during the season and a team ERA of 5.30. Detroit finished 47 games behind division winning Minnesota and was eliminated from playoff contention on August 22. There was no tiger in the tank of this squad.

We often hear the term “lovable losers” to describe sports teams that are not successful on the field.  The Cubs were branded with that term until of course, 2016, when Chicago won the World Series. It was the club’s first world championship in 108 years. Their opponent in that Series was the Cleveland Indians, the AL team with the longest active, world championship drought.  Cleveland has not been able to raise a World Series winning banner since 1948.

Don’t look now, but the 2024 Clevelanders, now named the Guardians, may be able to break that streak.  At week’s end the Guardians lead the AL Central with a record of 19-9. They are off to the franchise’s best start in 25 years. For me, my AL eyes this season will be on Cleveland to see some winning, rather than on the southside of Chicago where “wait until next year” will be heard even before the All-Star break.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

All Around

This past week Andrew McCutchen of the Pirates hit his 300th home run. He became the 13th player in MLB history to have 2,000 hits, 400 doubles, 45 triples, 300 home runs, and 200 stolen bases. He also received a Gold Glove for his defensive prowess in 2012. Bottom line, Andrew has been an “all around” great baseball player. In recognition of his achievements, I thought I would provide my list of the top eight all around MLB players of all-time:

Willie Mays.  The list has to begin with the “Say Hey Kid”.  Mays could do it all -- power, hit for average, speed, and defense.  The numbers tell the story – 660 HRs, lifetime batting average of .302, led the NL in stolen bases four times, and 12 Gold Gloves! His over the shoulder catch of a fly ball hit to deep centerfield in the 1954 World Series remains one of the most exciting plays in MLB history. No one has ever played every aspect of the game better than Willie.

Ken Griffey Jr. Junior comes pretty close. In his first ten years with Seattle, he became must watch baseball whether the Mariners were at the plate or on the field. His streaks as a hitter resounded throughout baseball. “The Kid” is tied for the most consecutive games with a home run (8), and left the game with a total of 630.  Junior gracefully played his centerfield position, robbing many hitters of HRs with leaping catches at the wall and garnering 10 career Gold Gloves.

Barry Bonds. It’s difficult to sort out the real Barry Bonds, the athletic outfielder of the Pirates in his early years or the powerful slugger with the Giants. Both versions were pretty dynamic. You know his power numbers – single season record of HRs (73) and most career in a career (762). He also maintained a career batting average of .298. What the casual baseball observer might not know is that he stole 514 bases in his career. Barry is the only 500 + HRs and 500 + SBs in MLB history.

Roberto Clemente. There’s so much to talk about in the “Great One’s” career. He maintained a career .317 batting average, was a four-time NL batting champion, won twelve Gold Gloves, and got his 3,000 hit on the last day of the 1972 regular season. Who knows what his career numbers might have been if he hadn’t lost his life tragically on Christmas Eve 1972. For me though, one play stands out. His fielding a hit down the right field line in the 1971 World Series, pirouetting, and rifling a throw to third base nailing an Oriole runner.

Mickey Mantle. In the summer of 1963 the Yankees were in Cleveland playing the Indians, and I got to tag along with my dad, uncle, and brother. All I remember about that night as a four-year old was everyone saying “Mickey Mantle is here”.  His accomplishments were also remarkable across the board – 536 career HRs while batting over .300 ten times in his career.  He is the only player in MLB history to hit 150 + HRs from both sides of the plate. Early in his career he was also a prolific base stealer and defensive centerfielder.  His career was cut short too due to knee injuries.

Ernie Banks. You need to smile broadly when you think of “Mr. Cub”.  Remarkably, he was the NL MVP in 1958 and 1959 on last place teams. Many think of Banks as a slugging first baseman with 512 career HRs. What you might not know is that Ernie was one of the best defensive shortstops in the game for the first eight years of his career. He gave his beloved Friendly Confines and other NL ballparks some wonderful moments. Let’s Play Two!

Rickey Henderson.  Rickey could do it all.  He is highly regarded as the best leadoff hitter and baserunner in MLB history.  Yes, he holds the single season (130 in 1982) and career (1,406) records for stolen bases. Henderson also attained 3,055 hits along the way. The stat that really stands out is 297 home runs for a player one doesn’t think of as having power.  Rickey was also a skillful outfielder, setting the all time record for outfield putouts and total chances.

Ty Cobb.  You could place Cobb in any of the 1-8 spots here, but legend only goes so far. His career spanned 24 years from 1905 to 1928. During his career he set 90 MLB records, a couple of which stand today (4,065 runs scored and 1,944 RBIs). Cobb’s batting statistics are overwhelming -- .366 batting average, 4,189 hits, and 897 stolen bases. Telling of the era he played in he actually stole home 54 times!

So readers, now it is your turn.  What do you think about the list? Who did I miss?  I want your “all around” feedback.

Until next Monday,

 your Baseball Bench Coach

Moonshot

While we were all entranced by the Total Eclipse last Monday, baseball fans had another reason to celebrate – April 8 marked the 50th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run breaking the longtime record held by Babe Ruth.  My first memory of Hank Aaron is on Opening Day, April 4, 1974. I was an ecstatic 15-year old that afternoon as my teacher rolled a television set into our ninth grade classroom so my classmates and I could watch our Reds face off against the Braves at Cincinnati’s Riverfront Stadium. We watched as Aaron came to the plate in the first inning and hit Reds pitcher Jack Billingham’s first pitch over the left field wall.  It was Hank’s 714th career home run, tying Ruth’s all-time mark.  Aaron would go on to break the record four nights later with a home run off Al Downing of the Dodgers before Hank’s home Atlanta fans and a national television audience.

What I knew about Hank Aaron when I was 15 was his baseball greatness.  He was a true hitter and slugger, and certainly his career totals reflect that – 755 HRs (ranked 2); 2,297 RBIs (1), 6,856 total bases (1), 3,771 hits (3), and 1,477 extra-base hits (1).  What I didn’t realize then was how much Aaron suffered personally while setting the records.  His life growing up in Mobile, Alabama, was one of poverty and segregation. He saw baseball as a way out, and in many ways it failed him. His minor league career was marred by the constant threat of racial slurs and death threats. In 1954 when he joined the Milwaukee Braves as a big leaguer, MLB was struggling in its attempt to introduce black players into the game. The personal ridicule continued. In fact, prior to that first week of the 1974 season when he broke the Ruth record, he had spent the offseason as a recipient of racial epitaphs and death threats. He broke Ruth’s record in 1974 not only as a great home run hitter, but as a survivor.

The long ball in baseball has an interesting history.  Most of the early home runs were inside the park because ballparks had very large outfields. When fences were built and dimensions became reasonable, the rule was that the ball had to land in the bleachers beyond the fence in fair territory or still be visibly fair when last seen. MLB called it “fair when last seen” by the umpires. Indeed, Babe Ruth’s record-setting 60th home run in 1927 was somewhat controversial since it barely landed in fair territory in the bleachers. Bill Jenkinson, author of “The Year Babe Ruth  Hit 104 Home Runs” maintains in his book that the Babe lost somewhere between 50 and 80 home runs during his career because of this rule.

The era of home runs began with Babe Ruth joining the Yankees in 1919. Prior to that, he also starred as a pitcher with the Red Sox. In fact, he won two World Series games on the mound for Boston in 1918 when he was unceremoniously sold to New York for $100,000 in that offseason. Ruth wanted to play every day as an outfielder. He left the pitching rubber after the 1918 season with a record of 94-46 and an ERA of 2.28.  In 1919 Ruth broke the MLB single-season home run record.  It was the beginning of a string of 15 years with the Yankees where he led the New Yorkers to seven AL pennants and four world championships.  Ruth’s lifetime hitting totals include a .342 batting average, 714 HRs, and 2,873 RBIs.

A big part of the Ruth legend is the famous “Called Shot” in the 1932 World Series.  In the third game of the Series, at Wrigley Field, Charlie Root was on the mound for the Cubs as Ruth stepped into the batter’s box in the fifth inning. Ruth took two strikes, and then stepped out of the box, gesturing toward the outfield fence.  He stepped back in and launched a 490 foot home run into temporary seating beyond the centerfield bleachers. Root, one of the Cubs winningest all-time pitchers, would throw only one more pitch in the game, a home run ball to Lou Gehrig, who batted cleanup in the game’s box score.  The Ruth-Gehrig twosome formed the core of the “Murderer’s Row” of Yankee baseball in that era.

Ruth’s 60 dingers during the 1927 season was a longstanding record until another Yankee, Roger Maris, began launching HRs in the early 1960s. Maris accomplished much in his eleven year career -- the AL MVP in 1960 and 1961, a four-time All-Star, and an AL Gold Glover in 1960. On the last regular season game in 1961, Maris hit #61, breaking Ruth’s season record.  It was a little controversial though since it came during the 162nd game of the season.  When Ruth set the record, teams played only 154 games during a season. Until the Maris record was shattered in 1998 by Mark McGwire, many baseball experts opined that Ruth still held the record.

I remember the 1998 home run chase well. You could not turn on ESPN without seeing Mark McGwire of the Cardinals or the Cubs’ Sammy Sosa at the plate trying to launch another tater. McGwire eventually broke Maris’ 61 with a 70 HR season while Sosa did too with 66.  Big Mac went on to record 583 career HRs and an exceptional .394 on-base percentage. Slammin’ Sammy bettered McGwire with 609 career HRs. Both careers though were damaged by charges of using performance-enhancing drugs. Interestingly, how they been received post-baseball seems to turn on a simple sorry. McGwire in 2010 admitted to use; Sosa never has.

Of course the subsequent breakings of both the single season and career HR marks by Barry Bonds are similarly tarnished.  In 2001 Barry set the season record with an incredible 73 goners. When he retired in 2007, Bonds had tallied the all-time home run number of 762.  Aside from his power at the plate, Bonds was an outstanding player – eight Gold Gloves; 514 stolen bases; and a career batting average of .298. It’s unfortunate that all of his stardom will be forever scarred by his role in baseball’s steroids scandal.

You might have noticed that there were references throughout this piece on the different names for home runs – long ball; tater; goner; and dinger. Since we celebrated Hammerin’ Hank’s 715th on the day of the Total Eclipse last Monday, the one I leave you with is Moonshot! May the 2024 season continue to have some memorable Moonshots!

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Bring Them Home Now!

I mostly saw the 60’s through the eyes of my older brother and cousins -- a time of campus unrest, Woodstock, hippies, and many other forms of self-expression and challenging the norm. In sports, those themes were demonstrated by Cassius Clay, the heavyweight boxing champion, who converted to Islam in 1962. In a controversial move in 1964, one of the most famous athletes the world has ever known changed his name to Muhammed Ali and soon became a leading advocate for social change. With the possible exception of Curt Flood’s challenge to the reserve clause, it is difficult to find an “activist” in baseball history.

Instead, baseball has always emphasized conformity. The Oakland Athletics won the World Series in 1972 in a flamboyant style with many players sporting mustaches and longer hair.  As a result, the Yankees adopted an actual policy in 1973 that players must have their hair cut above the collar of their baseball jersey and no beards were permitted.  The original policy was established under the late George Steinbrenner because he wanted the players to adopt a “corporate attitude”. The policy remains in effect today, much to the dismay of many MLB players.  The Reds, until 1999, were the only other team to prohibit beards but it was more of an unwritten rule than an actual policy.

25 years later another form of self-expression relating to the Reds is in the news.  Alon Leichman, the Reds assistant pitching coach and proud Israeli, had his Opening Day glove adorned with an Israeli flag and the phrase “Bring Them Home Now!” stitched on the side. Leichman grew up in a kibbutz between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem and learned to play baseball in a country that had very little facilities to support his interest. He pitched for Team Israel in international tournaments as a teenager and against Team USA in the 2020 Olympics. His coaching career began in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He soon found himself in the U.S. as a pitching instructor at many levels of the minor leagues.  In December 2022, Leichman became the first Israeli in MLB history. Alon’s expressed support for Israelis still being held in Gaza is commendable.

What is acceptable conduct or self-expression seems to burden baseball. There are so-called unwritten rules, a set of unspoken rules in baseball that managers and players are to follow, all of which concern play on the field.  These rules have included numerous, prohibited acts, such as do not show up the pitcher by standing at the plate and admiring a home run or flipping your bat. When it comes to outside the field of play and taking individual stands on societal issues, I don’t think of baseball players as taking a leading role. My thoughts turn to the NBA, or maybe to a lesser extent, the NFL. MLB seems to trail behind. Maybe part of it is that baseball’s fan base trends toward an older crowd.

In today’s game bat flips after hitting a home run are now accepted. Yet, a bat flip in the 2015 AL playoffs by Toronto star Jose Bautista brought the old school vs. new generation conflict in full focus. Goose Gossage, Hall of Fame pitcher, told ESPN that Bautista was “a disgrace to the game”. He also admonished Bryce Harper for his showboating antics and claimed Harper had no respect for the game. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred seemed to settle the dispute by stating: “Goose and his peers developed a set of unwritten understandings of what was acceptable on the field when he played the game, and I think the generation of players that are on the field are going to do the same thing.”  A few years later, Tim Anderson’s famous bat flip in 2019 was deemed by HOF’er Johnny Bench as now just part of the game.

Self-expression in baseball has indeed changed over the past ten years.  Players use social media to connect with fans and express themselves off the field. Just in the first week of the 2024 season baseball writers featured stories of customized gear and personalized walk-up songs. Rangers’ star outfielder Adolis Garcia sported some very colorful Adidas Afterburner 9 cleats, a big change from the all black cleats of the past. New Cubs pitcher Shoto Imanaga was said to have chosen “Chelsea Dagger” as his walk up song.  Apparently, Shoto had been to a Blackhawks hockey game recently, saw how the crowd reacted to the song, and wanted to just fit in with Chicago fans. 

I must admit that the new ritual in baseball where hitters after reaching base give celebratory acknowledgements to their teammates in the dugout brought the traditionalist out of me last year. I found myself grimacing instead of smiling. But then I thought about what’s important for baseball. We need to welcome new generations of players and fans enjoying the game in any way they see fit. We also need players and coaches to express themselves in all respects. Not to minimize in any way the importance of Alon Leichman’s “Bring Them Home Now!” statement, but baseball should continue to find new avenues of bringing the game home to all.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Board Games

April baseball is here, finally! Playing games in northern cities is always iffy this time of year. You know the saying, April showers bring May flowers (but often rain delays as well).  One used to hear stories of clubhouse ping pong and board games during those delays. Today, it’s more likely headphones and video games. This offseason we witnessed a hot stove that, with some exception, was a little lukewarm.  Nevertheless, some general managers were indeed able to bring out the old board games and make some key moves.  Here are my top eight:

MONOPOLY. Do you remember that feeling when your opponent acquired Boardwalk and Park Place?  The rest of the National League had that same sinking feeling when the Dodgers signed Shohei Ohtani in December to a 10-year, $700 million deal. The LA lineup was already loaded with stalwarts Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts, and now they have the Babe Ruth of today’s generation. Since the Dodgers found that their achilles heel was on the mound during the 2023 playoffs, they also loaded up there with the signing of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow, and the return of Walker Buehler. I see the hotels stacking up on Boardwalk and Park Place in 2024.

CHUTES AND LADDERS. Over the past few years San Diego has tried to keep up with the Dodger stars by having a few of their own, namely Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts, and Fernando Tatis, Jr. This offseason was one of ups and downs for the Padres, as they lost Juan Soto, Josh Hader, and most recently, Blake Snell. Yet, the Padres’ president A.J. Preller may have jumped up the pitching mound ladder a bit with the acquisitions of starters Michael King in the Soto trade with the Yankees and stellar righthander Dylan Cease of the White Sox. Pitching wins, so hope the Padres.

STRATEGO. Staying in the very competitive NL West, the Giants made an assortment of strategic moves during the offseason. They shored up their lineup with Jung Hoo Lee now manning centerfield, Jorge Soler providing power, and Matt Chapman stabilizing the infield at the hot corner. On the mound they first landed Robbie Ray who is coming back from Tommy John surgery, but then made the big splash with signing lefty Blake Snell. Maybe the best move was in the dugout by signing Bob Melvin, a 3-time Manager of the Year.

CHESS. If you want to dominate the chess board, you lead with a high-powered piece like Craig Counsell as your new skipper. You also need to show a little patience as Cubs president Jed Hoyer demonstrated with the signing of Cody Bellinger in late February. Chicago also added some key pieces, including Shota Imanaga to the rotation, Michael Busch to the infield, and Hector Neris to the bullpen. The Cubbies are looking for a checkmate in early October.

CONNECT FOUR. The Reds hope to put the pieces together in the NL Central as well.  Last year Cincinnati surprised baseball with its rookie starred lineup, including Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand. Reds GM Nick Krall decided to bolster the pitching staff with four key pieces in red: Frankie Montas and Nick Martinez to the starting five, and righty Emilio Pagan and lefty Brent Suter to the bullpen. Cincinnati hopes this group connects on all cylinders in 2024.

RISK.  Both the Braves and Astros are now perennial winners and every prognosticator’s division favorites in 2024.  The key for both teams is if they can dominate the table in October.  To do so, you need to take an offseason risk.  Atlanta gambled on the return of Chris Sale to be in good health and lead its starting staff at the top of the rotation. Houston bet on the back side of the pitching staff, nabbing a closer, Josh Hader, who has a history of dominance or misfortune. Will both risks pay off?

TICKET TO RIDE.  Everyone seems to forget that the Orioles led the American League last year in wins before falling off in the playoffs.  Baltimore didn’t have an ace, like Palmer, McNally, or Cuellar, to lean on.  They made though the biggest offseason splash, next to Ohtani, in the acquisition of former Brewer, Corbin Burnes.  This 2021 NL Cy Young winner is lights out when he’s on, and he’s definitely on most of the time. The Orioles hope Burnes is their ticket to ride in the 2024 playoffs.

CHECKERS. The reality for most small market teams like the Royals is that you have to play checkers most of the time and watch the other teams engage in the high stakes games. I love how Kansas City improved its team this offseason. Of course it started from within by extending the contract of star shortstop, Bobby Witt, Jr.  KC landed Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo to its young, starting staff, and brought in some hitting help in the likes of Hunter Renfroe and Adam Frazier. King me, Kansas City!

So, how did you like the moves made this offseason by your favorite MLB team? Did your GM roll the right dice in getting your team past the Jail space and into the promised land?  Your thoughts are appreciated in the Comments section below.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Playoff "Predictions"

Playoff predictions. Everyone makes them. How often do you go back and check to see who was right?  I’m guilty as well. This year I won’t bore you with predictions on the upcoming series but will offer you a new angle.  I’ve decided to feature what is NOT going to happen.  Whether you view the games on the large television set in your family room, the laptop on your desk, or on your iPhone, here are some things that happened in playoff past that we are NOT going to see this October.

Growing up in the 60s and 70s, I was a fan of those television series that you may now find on the TV Land channel, especially “The Andy Griffith Show”.  My favorite episode was when Mayberry and Mt. Pilot played in the little league championship.  Who else but the uncompromisable Sheriff Andy Taylor would umpire the game?  Unfortunately, his son Opie clearly slid safely into home on the final play only to have Andy call him out.  The play reminds me of the first game of the 1970 World Series when the Reds’ Bernie Carbo slid into home as the Orioles’ catcher Elrod Hendricks applied the tag with his mitt but the baseball was in his other hand. Umpire Ken Burkhardt made the same mistake as Sheriff Taylor and held up his right fist signaling out. Only a post-game photo captured the mistake. Today, we have replay cameras and challenges to correct a run-scoring call.

My early memory of watching World Series play was when my Dad would take weekday afternoons off for vacation and come home and watch the games with me. I clearly remember his telling me in the fifth game of the 1968 Series that once Lou Brock was thrown out stealing in the fifth game, the tide had turned for Detroit. (Boy, was he right!) We would watch together every inning of every game since the games were played during the day, way before my bedtime.  In 1971 the first World Series game was played under the lights at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. The advertising world soon win out, as now all World Series games since Game 6 of the 1987 Series have been played at night.  You (and for many of you, your grandchildren) won’t see a World Series game during the day this October; you may never see one again.

You also won’t see a pitcher coming to the plate with a bat in hand. The universal designated hitter rule became effective April, 2022, so no longer will pitchers hit in the NL playoff games or in the home games of the National League in the World Series.  There’s reason to miss that. How fun was it to see Oakland’s Ken Holtzman hit a home run in the 1974 World Series! And how about the two home runs each hit by Bob Gibson and Dave McNally in World Series play before that! Never, say never, though.  With the Phillies in the playoffs, pitcher Michael Lorenzen, an excellent hitting pitcher, may indeed get an at-bat in the late innings of a game.

We won’t also see a starting pitcher dominate a baseball playoff game for nine innings anymore.  Of course there have been some once in a lifetime games in our playoff past.  It is doubtful that Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series or Roy Halladay’s no-hitter for the Phillies in the 2010 NL playoffs will ever be replicated.  Why not?  It’s called pitch counts and bullpens.  Just last year, the Astros painfully threw the first “combined” no-hitter. Cristian Javier pitched six innings of no-hit ball and was followed by Houston relievers the rest of the way.  For me, it was just bad history in the making.

The kicker is that we won’t see a solo pitcher hurl a shutout or even a complete game.  It just doesn’t happen anymore.  Madison Bumgarner threw the last shutout in the MLB playoffs, a 2014 Wild Card game between his Giants and Pittsburgh. In the Astros’ 2017 ALCS Game 2 win over the Yankees, Justin Verlander pitched the last complete game in playoff history. Indeed, telling statistics over the past twenty years of playoff baseball include:  (1) the American League’s starting pitchers averaged 5.94 innings in 2000 and just 3.75 innings in 2021; and (2) the National League average dropped from 5.46 to 4.44 during the same timeframe. A majority of MLB playoff innings are now pitched by the bullpens!

There is though one sure thing “prediction” for my readers.  The Baseball Bench Coach will be back next spring for its sixth season! Thank you for reading the blog and for your love of baseball.  I would enjoy seeing some of your own predictions in the comment section below.

Until next season,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Big Deal

This past week Adam Wainwright achieved 200 wins as a pitcher in the MLB. I watched Wainwright’s slow crawl to 200 wins this season from afar.  Mostly I felt kind of sorry for the great St. Louis starter.  Why were the Cardinals embarrassing him by keeping him in the rotation with four wins in 20 starts and an ERA of just under 8?  I also thought, what is the “big deal” with 200 wins from Adam’s perspective?  Is it worth damaging his reputation by achieving this mark?  After doing some research and looking into it further, it is a Big Deal.  Here’s why.

Wainwright may indeed be the last MLB pitcher to reach the 200-win mark.  There are only four other active pitchers who have at least 200 wins – Justin Verlander (255), Zack Greinke (224), Max Scherzer (214), and Clayton Kershaw (209), all in the twilight of their careers.  The Yankees’ Gerrit Cole is the closest active pitcher to the mark, but he has just 143 and he is 33 years old.  Yes, Wainwright became the 99th pitcher in MLB history to achieve 200 wins, but will there indeed be a 100th?  Most of the pitchers on the list played decades and decades ago.

Getting a “W” as a starting pitcher has really become difficult.  Each team has an army of 95+ mph relievers in the bullpen ready to take the ball early in the game.  By rule a starter has to complete five innings to get a win. Check the box scores – starting pitchers go less than 5 innings in more games than not.  Batters are going deeper in the count, and it is a rare outing where a pitcher reaches 100 pitches. And frankly, a starting pitcher’s value is not determined nowadays by the number of games he wins. Just last year, the Braves’ Kyle Wright won 20 games.  He came in 10th in the Cy Young voting!

Let’s take a look at the “win clubs”.  It starts with the 500 club and its only member, Cy Young, with 511 career wins over 100 years ago (1890-1911).  In addition to most wins ever, Young holds the record for most losses (315), innings pitched, games started, and complete games.  Not just his 511 wins, but all of these records, will never be broken.  After he passed away in late 1955, MLB began to honor the best pitcher in baseball with the ”Cy Young Award”. Subsequently, both the NL and AL bestow the award to the best pitcher in each league. 

The 400-win club also has a sole member, Walter Johnson, the “Big Train”, who pitched for the Washington Senators from 1907 to 1927.  His career record was 417-279 with an incredible 2.17 lifetime ERA. Johnson is synonymous with strikeouts, compiling 3,508 Ks, breaking Christie Mathewson’s mark of 2,507, and holding the career mark until 1983, when Nolan Ryan, Steve Carlton, and Gaylord Perry all passed the number.  Walter Johnson was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1936 as one of the first five inaugural members. 

The 300 club has more occupants, but only 24.  Most of the group achieved the mark in the first 25 years of the last century, including Grover Cleveland Alexander.  Between 1924 and 1982, only Lefty Grove, Warren Spahn, and Early Wynn became 300-game winners.  Over the next eight years through 1990, six pitchers achieved the mark – Gaylord Perry, Phil Niekro, Steve Carlton, Nolan Ryan, Don Sutton, and Tom Seaver.  Some view the expansion from a 154-game schedule to 162, as well as the large increase of the number of MLB teams, to be reasons for the sudden surge.

I was surprised to find that the greatest Cardinals pitcher of all time, Bob Gibson, to be absent from the 300 club.  Gibby was 251-174 in his seventeen-year career with a 2.91 ERA and 3,117 strikeouts.  In the 1960s when I first became fascinated with Major League baseball, Gibson and Sandy Koufax were the focus of my and baseball’s attention, garnering five NL Cy Young awards.  While I recall the Koufax shoulder injury shortening his career, I didn’t realize that after Gibson pitched a no-hitter in 1971, he struggled with knee pain for the last 4 years of his career. Gibson stands atop my list of the 200 club.

Entering the 200 club earlier this year was another great Dodger hurler, Clayton Kershaw.  In his sixteen-year career to date, Kershaw has won the NL Cy Young three times, been named the NL Most Valuable Player in 2014, and was crowned a World Champion in 2020.  Among his standout numbers is a career 2.48 ERA and two remarkable records based on nine innings pitched – 1.00 walks and 6.82 hits allowed.  Injuries have slowed him in the past years, but check out his 2023 statistics, a 13-4 record and a 2.42 ERA!

In the 2006 NLCS Adam Wainwright became a household name when he threw a wicked curveball to strike out slugger Carlos Beltran to win the series for St. Louis.  The Cardinals would go on to win the 2006 World Series, the first of Adam’s two World Championships (the other in 2011). It was a storybook opening to his career, bested only by a storybook ending. Out of nowhere last week Wainwright threw seven Innings of four hit, scoreless baseball, against Milwaukee in a 1-0 win.  Brewers outfielder Mark Canha described it in apt fashion: “Man, this dude’s a movie tonight.”  It was #200 and indeed a Big Deal.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Wild Card

Yes, I’m one of those.  During the September stretch run, every night I watch two or three baseball games at the same time on television while checking the scores of other games on my phone.  I love pennant races!  While this year some division races have been long decided, the new Wild Card format allows for many playoff spots to be still up for grabs.  The hunt for October remains for many teams to experience playoff baseball!

Why do we say “pennant race”?  In baseball it starts with Wrigley Field.  Flying flags and pennants have played a large part in its history.  P.K. Wrigley, who owned the Cubs from 1932 to 1977, brought his family’s love of sailing to the ballpark.  White or blue flags were used to show wins and losses.  The Friendly Confines also have long kept the National League standings with team pennants flying atop the manual scoreboard. That is how the term “pennant race” was coined. Today, the practice at Wrigley Field  and other NL ballparks is to show the updated standings in each division race with team flags flying.  The ballpark operators are fortunate this year not to have to include the Wild Card races since positions change daily.

When MLB went to three divisions in each league in 1994, one Wild Card team for each league was added.  Beginning in 1998, the team with the best record in the league would face the Wild Card entrant unless both teams were from the same division.  In 2012 a second Wild Card team for each league emerged so that two Wild Card teams would face off in a single elimination before entering the Division Series.  In 2022 MLB modified the structure again, adding a third Wild Card team in each league. The new format is that the two teams with the best winning records in each league get a first round bye, while the third division winner (seed #3) plays the third Wild Card team (seed #6) and the first and second Wild Card entrants (seed #s 4 and 5) square off. Both series are best of three with all games at the home of the better seed.

The Phillies took full advantage of the new format last year.  Philadelphia began the 2022 season with a dismal 21-29 record.  After changing managers (Joe Girardi passed the baton to Rob Thomson), the Phils closed 66-46 to reach the playoffs as the sixth NL seed. Behind the play of Bryce Harper, a formidable lineup, and a strong, starting pitching staff, Philly dominated the NL playoffs – taking the Cardinals down in a 2-game sweep; upsetting the Braves in four games in the NLDS; and defeating the Padres in the NLCS 4 games to 1.  It marked the first time in League Championship Series play that two Wild Card teams met.  The Astros burst the Philadelphia bubble though in the 2022 World Series, taking it in five games.

The Marlins and the Wild Card are synonomous. Miami has never won a division title in its 30-year history.  All three of its postseason appearances, the fewest of any MLB team, have been through a Wild Card appearance.  They did though make the most of two of them, winning the World Series in 1997 and 2003. It’s definitely a make or break franchise.  The Marlins have the lowest, overall winning percentage (.460) of any MLB team in existence.  This year Miami is knocking on the Wild Card playoff door in the National League.  Is an October run on the horizon again for the Marlins?  Anything is possible in playoff baseball.

We’ve witnessed two World Series where both participating teams started their playoff runs as a Wild Card.  In 2002, the Angels and the Giants, two teams that finished second in their respective league divisions (AL West and NL West) met in the World Series for the battle of California.  The “Anaheim” Angels won the Series in seven games, the first and only world title for the Angels.  Twelve years later, the Wild Card Giants were at it again as they met the Royals in the 2014 World Series. It was the only World Series ever played in a non-strike season between two teams with less than 90 wins in the regular season (San Francisco, 88-74, and Kansas City, 89-73).  The Giants captured their third world championship in five seasons.

Based on the success of Wild Card teams in the playoffs, the Nike mantra for MLB has to be “Just Get In”.  If your team gets hot at the plate and especially on the mound, it has a shot no matter what playoff seed it is.  The 2019 Washington Nationals are also an example.  Entering the playoffs as a Wild Card, the Nationals went on a tear led by the starting staff of Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin.  They defeated the Brewers in the Wild Card game, knocked off the 106-game winning Dodgers in the NLDS, swept the Cardinals in the NLCS, and won the World Series in seven games over the Astros.  Just get in.

This year the Wild Card slogan might be “just get the #4 seed”.  It’s the only Wild Card seed that gets to entertain home games.  The American League #4 seed will be either the Orioles or the Rays, depending on which team is the runner-up in the AL East.   The Astros, Rangers, and Mariners are battling for the AL West title, and the two runners-up will try to fend off the Blue Jays for the #s 5 and 6 seeds.  The National League Wild Card fight is more interesting. It seems as if the Phillies will get the #4 seed, while five teams, the Cubs, Reds, Diamondbacks, Giants, and Mariners, are trying to secure the last two seeds.  With just two weeks left in the season, the five teams are separated by just three games.

Enjoy the pennant races of September, Wild Card style! If you are at the ballpark in the next two weeks, maybe don’t look at the flags flying at the very top but think about the possibilities of those pennants one or even two rungs below.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

911

On this day, September 11, 2023, it’s difficult to write, much less think, about anything other than the events that transpired 22 years ago today. I’m sure you remember where you were when you heard the tragic news.  I know I do.  I recall the shock, the terror of safety for my family, and the sadness of what we as a country were going through. This past week I attended three sporting events – an independent league baseball game, an MLB game, and a college football game.  There were common threads, the playing of the National Anthem before each game, the joy of those in attendance, and the getaway from life that sports can bring to us.  I wrote the following piece, “Baseball and Tradition”, two years ago.  It seems fitting today to share the same thoughts:

“So often I hear people say that watching baseball from home in High Definition television is better than attending a game in person.  For me, I’ll take going to the ballpark any day. There’s     always been so much more to it than baseball when I go to the game.  I particularly love the quiet time, a chance to catch up with a friend.  When my Dad took me to Crosley Field in Cincinnati when I was a little boy, he used it as a time to not only teach me about the game but become aware of patriotism.  I learned how to honor America by taking off my baseball cap during the National Anthem, and soon I even learned the words to the song.  Yeah, I was one of those kids who always asked “why”.  Why do we sing the National Anthem?  How come we stand and sing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during the seventh inning?  Let’s take a look at these traditions.

The “Star Spangled Banner”, our country’s National Anthem, first was played at a sporting event during the Civil War, in 1862, at a baseball game. The tradition of playing it took off during the 1918 World Series between the Cubs and the Red Sox.  The country was at war, World War I, and in the throes of a pandemic, the Spanish flu.  In a game in Chicago, a military band played the National Anthem during the seventh inning stretch.  Players quickly put their hands over their hearts and fans joined in and sang.  When the Series returned to Boston, the Red Sox owner, Harry Frazee, one-upped the Cubs by having the National Anthem played before the game.  The pregame tradition did not catch on immediately for regular season games since most ballparks didn’t have great sound systems and teams couldn’t afford a band.  It was not until the 1940s when the National Anthem was played before all MLB games.

When the seventh inning stretch began is disputed.  Some baseball historians point to the Cincinnati Red Stockings in 1869 and a letter written by Harry Wright who managed the club.  He described the fans’ behavior at the ballpark in this way:  “The spectators all arise between halves of the seventh inning, extend their legs and arms and sometimes walk about.”  The most popular story around its origin points to Opening Day in 1910 when President William Howard Taft attended a game between the Washington Senators and the Philadelphia Athletics.  A quite burly man, President Taft stood up to stretch in the seventh inning.  The fans soon stood as well, feeling obligated to join the President.

During the seventh inning stretch we now rejoice in the singing of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”, the official anthem of major league baseball. The song was played for the first time in 1934 at a high school baseball game in Los Angeles, and then during the fourth game of the World Series that year.  There are a couple tweaks to the original song at MLB ballparks, including replacing the words “home team” with the actual name of your home team.  I sometimes catch myself singing “and it’s root, root for the Redlegs”, in memory of my late parents.  That doesn’t play well in Chicago, where fans have reveled in “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” since the days of Harry Caray singing to the crowd at Comiskey Park in the 1970s.  Caray brought the tradition to the north side in 1982 as he entertained the fans at Wrigley for the next sixteen years until his passing.  The Cubs have maintained the tradition by having guest singers since then, including my personal favorite, actor and comedian Bill Murray.

Many MLB teams enhance the “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” seventh inning stretch by also playing a fan favorite tune.  In Baltimore’s Camden Yards, the crowd is treated to a rousing rendition of John Denver’s “Thank God I’m a Country Boy”.  Atlanta fans share that experience at their home ballpark.  St. Louis has always celebrated around their home town brew, Budweiser.  When the Cardinals were under ownership by Anheuser-Busch, the crowd would be treated to a little “Here Comes the King” jingle during the seventh inning stretch. Nowadays, the organist plays the tune at the top of the eighth inning.  Indeed, often the MLB ballpark singing extends to the eighth inning.  The Dodgers and the Tigers both like to blast Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin”.  That finally worked last year for Los Angeles but minus the crowd.

The Red Sox fans take singing to a whole different level at Fenway Park with their ballpark anthem, Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline”.  The crowd rejoices in the song during the eighth inning.  The tradition started in 1997 when a ballpark attendant in charge of the music had a good friend who just gave birth to a little girl named Caroline.  In 2007, Neil Diamond revealed that the 1969 song was written about New England’s Caroline Kennedy.  Other than that, the lyrics actually have nothing to do with Boston. It’s all about having fun at the old ballpark.

The playing of the National Anthem at sporting events became a focus of attention during the protests of the Vietnam War in the 1960’s.  NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle invoked a policy that players stand in line on the sideline during the anthem with their helmets off and tucked under their arms.  As to MLB, singer Jose Feliciano was invited by Detroit to sing the National Anthem at Tiger Stadium before Game 5 of the 1968 World Series.  His slow, Latin jazz performance on acoustic guitar was highly controversial.  Many deemed the rendition a slight to patriotism. In 2006, Feliciano told an NPR audience that he was quite proud to be the one to open the door for other music artists to express themselves while performing the National Anthem.  During the past few years, of course, we’ve seen the expression of individualism during the National Anthem through players, most particularly in the NBA and NFL.

Baseball’s most patriotic response to our nation’s troubling times came twenty years ago in the aftermath of 9/11.  Both the Yankees and Mets players and personnel came to Ground Zero and helped in the relief efforts.  Then Yankees manager Joe Torre simply said:  “We’re just baseball players, and this is the game of life.”  I’ll never forget watching on television the first game played in New York after the attacks, a night game between the Mets and Braves at Shea Stadium.  As the American flag was draped across the turf and the National Anthem was played, there was an overwhelming sense of pride that our country would endure this tragedy.  The World Series was played in NYC the next month as the Yankees and Diamondbacks competed for the world championship.  President Bush threw out the ceremonial first pitch in Game 3. 

In my lifetime though the most patriotic act on the playing field took place in a regular season game on April 25, 1976, between the Cubs and the Dodgers in Los Angeles.  In the bottom of the fourth inning, two fans ran into the outfield attempting to set fire to an American flag.  Fortunately, their initial attempts to light the matches went awry and Cubs centerfielder Rick Monday sprinted in and snatched the flag from them.  Early last month I attended the Cubs “Reopening Day” at Wrigley Field.  One of my friends had the honor of running on the field with others to unveil an American flag that spanned the entire outfield playing surface.  He mused afterward that he didn’t want to be the one who might trip and cause the flag to fall.  In baseball, the American flag always flies proudly.”

Just like my Dad taught me to do about sixty years ago, I removed my cap during the playing of the National Anthem at all three sporting events this past week. May we always sing and rejoice about our country, life, and sports.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Golden Players

I am writing this blog post on the day we laid to rest our beloved dog.  She too was a baseball fan. I guess she had to be. Many mornings on our walks I would listen to baseball commentary and update her.  She would smile and sniff every blade of grass, just glad to be with me. Most summer nights after dinner she would beat me to the family room in anticipation of the baseball game we would watch together. She was always there for me – loyal, dependable, the ultimate team player in life. In baseball terms, she was not the star player, but rather the utility player, the underrated player, or simply a wonderful teammate.  I asked some of the blog followers to offer names of underrated players on their favorite teams.  We came up with a Top Five:

Cesar Geronimo, Cincinnati Reds.  This centerfielder for the Big Red Machine was the least known of that formidable lineup, but truly valuable.  Cesar came to the Reds in 1972 as part of the Joe Morgan trade with the Astros.  Geronimo’s defensive skills were phenomenal – speed, range, and an outstanding arm.  Known as the “Chief”, he won four consecutive Gold Gloves (1974-1977).  In 1976, his best offensive year, he batted over .300 with 149 hits in the eighth spot in the Cincinnati lineup.  My favorite image of Geronimo was his catch of Carl Yastremski’s fly ball as the final out in Game 7 of the 1975 World Series.  Hail to the Chief!

Glenn Beckert, Chicago Cubs. I remember as a young boy watching Cubs games and their star players like Banks, Williams, Santo, and Jenkins.  My favorite player was Beckert, Chicago’s second baseman for nine years, 1965-1973.  Beckert was consistent on the field and at the plate. In his rookie year, he led the National League in assists and in 1968 captured his only Gold Glove.  He was a tough out, leading the NL five times in fewest strikeouts per at bats.  While he led the league in runs scored in 1968, his best offensive year by far was in 1971 when he hit a remarkable .342 and finished third in the batting race. Kessinger to Beckert to Banks!

Jose Oquendo, St. Louis Cardinals. Oquendo played in the shadows of some of the great Cardinals stars in the 1980s – Ozzie Smith, Hendrick, Herr, and Coleman. Deemed the “Secret Weapon” by manager Whitey Herzog, Jose filled the gaps at the key infield positions.  Indeed, he made at least one appearance at every position during his MLB career. Oquendo still maintains the second-highest career fielding percentage for second basemen at 99.19%.  After his playing career, he served a long tenure (2000-2015) as the St. Louis third base coach, helping the club achieve 11 playoff appearances and two World Series titles (2006 and 2011).

Wilbur Wood, Chicago White Sox.  While Wood also pitched for the Red Sox and the Pirates early in his 17-year MLB career, I think of him as the workhorse for the Sox (1967-1978).  His career took off as a Sox pitcher when Hoyt Wilhelm taught him the knuckleball. In 1968, he was named the American League Fireman of the Year with 88 games pitched.  In a starting role, he led the AL in games started from 1972 to 1975. In 1972 alone, he started 49 games and pitched in 376 innings. He won 20 games in all four years.  And in 1973, he became the first pitcher since Walter Johnson in 1916 to win 20 and lose 20 in the same year. Talk about Mr. Dependable!

Hal Lanier, San Francisco Giants.  I recall as a boy getting duplicates of Hal Lanier baseball cards. I placed them in the spokes of my bicycle tires so I sounded like a motor racer. What I didn’t know then was the role Lanier played for those Giants teams of the 1960s with marquee players like Mays, McCovey,  Marichal, and Perry. Lanier was the steady, defensive specialist on the team. In 1968, he led NL shortstops in putouts and fielding percentage. With a lifetime batting average of .228, he wasn’t much of a hitter, but he was definitely a heady player. Mays called him the captain of the infield.  Lanier took that steadiness to the managerial ranks, as he was named the 1986 NL Manager of the Year in his first season at the helm of the Astros.

I’ll never forget my golden retriever sunning in our yard, swimming in the park, relaxing in our home, and enjoying life. She loved being with people, especially her family but truly anyone she met.  Everyone wanted her to be on their team in life.  She made everyone better. I miss you girl. This blog post is dedicated to you.

Until next Monday, 

your Baseball Bench Coach

Our Heroes

I had breakfast recently with two of my oldest and closest friends.  The conversation turned to baseball and our being thankful for growing up in Cincinnati during the Big Red Machine era.  We talked about meeting some of those Reds stars in person, mostly good but a couple bad experiences.  My one friend reflected on advice given to him by his father years ago: “Don’t idolize them for anything other than their play on the field. You just never know what their personal lives might be like.”  With the news of Wander Franco being placed on administrative leave this past week, that remains sound advice.  Let’s take a look at some events in baseball history that put our baseball idols into hot water.

In the early part of the 20th century, scandals surrounded a couple of the all-time greatest baseball players.  The 1919 World Series will forever be remembered by the Black Sox Scandal.  Shoeless Joe Jackson and seven other Sox players were accused of throwing the Series by accepting bribes and indicted for a conspiracy to defraud the public.  While the players were eventually acquitted, they were suspended for life by Commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis.  Ty Cobb, who clearly is in the top five of baseball greats, had his legacy marred by allegations of racism and violence, much of which has been discredited.  Yet, most every accounting of Cobb’s contributions to baseball ends on that sour note.

Prior to the 1947 season Brooklyn Dodgers manager Leo Durocher was suspended for one year for associating with gambling figures.  You remember the 1947 season -- Dodger great Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. Durocher was a huge supporter of Robinson but couldn’t be there for him. A decade later, two other New York baseball legends were introduced, the New York Giants’ Willie Mays and the Yankees’ Mickey Mantle.  Both were the epitome of five-tool players, and their career numbers demonstrated it.  Yet, after both players had been inducted into the Hall of Fame, Commissioner Bowie Kuhn gave them life bans from baseball for essentially hanging out at casinos.  Peter Ueberroth lifted the bans as one of his first acts as Commissioner.

Gambling took center stage at the end of Pete Rose’s great career.  MLB’s all-time hit leader returned to the Reds in 1984 as player manager and retired from the playing field two years later.  In August 1989 a story broke that Rose gambled on baseball games while he played for and managed the Reds. He was placed on the permanent ineligibility list.  In 1991, the Hall of Fame voted to ban players on the permanent ineligibility list from induction. 

This particular scandal hit me hard.  I idolized Pete growing up, a player from my side of town in Cincinnati who willed himself to become one of the best ever.  I recall Marty Brennaman, Reds’ longtime radio announcer, defending Rose on the airwaves. I so hoped that Brenneman was correct and the allegations were not true.  After twenty years of denial, Rose admitted in 2004 to gambling on baseball and on his Reds.  And unfortunately, we most likely never will see his plaque in the Hall of Fame. 

In the 1990s I recall driving to work each morning and listening to radio reports of the top ten home runs hit the night before.  I knew something was up, but couldn’t imagine the extent of steroid use by players at that time.  As a baseball fan or anyone following sports, it is impossible to forget the 1998 home run race between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa or the record-shattering year by Barry Bonds in 2001.  In 2007, United States Senator George Mitchell issued a lengthy report on baseball’s so-called “Steroid Era”, putting the names of McGwire, Sosa, Bonds, Roger Clemens, and many more in a light that forever dims their careers.

More recently, the 2017 World Series will always have a black eye due to the Astros’ cheating scandal.  In 2019 The Athletic disclosed an investigation that Houston had used a camera to steal signs from opponents at home games during the 2017 season.  More and more information about the cheating came out, including my favorite, Astros players banging on trash cans to signal their teammates about pitches.  While Commissioner Manfred suspended GM Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Linch for one year, not a single player was disciplined.  I don’t know about you, but I’ll never forgive the players involved.  Their reputations are severely damaged.

On August 14 Tampa Rays star Wander Franco was placed on the restricted list as MLB launched an investigation into social media reports that he was in a relationship with a minor.  After a week of inquiry, MLB placed him on administrative leave indefinitely.  The reports are that prosecutors in the Dominican Republic are investigating Franco under a division specializing in minors and gender violence.  It is very sad for all involved – the victim of the alleged act, Franco, the Rays, Rays fans, and baseball.

Having baseball idols is a fun part of life.  When they shatter their images, you have to remember the advice of my friend’s dad -- separate the baseball and personal lives.  When I was about twelve, I purchased Ball Four, a book written by Yankees pitcher Jim Bouton giving an inside look at baseball players at the time.  It was pretty scandalous, detailing obscene jokes and routine drug use.  About halfway through my read, the book disappeared from my room.  I asked my Dad about it, and he said he would give it back to me when I was ready for it.  The book was never returned.  Perhaps my own Dad’s advice was the same as my friend’s dad, maybe you just don’t want to know.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

West Side Stories

There’s nothing like neighborhood sports rivalries.  I’m sure everyone has been a part of one — little league, high school sports, club sports, to name a few.  You tend to get sky high when you play your rival. It’s not that you want to say “see there, we won”, but rather you don’t want to hear your rival say “we’re better than you”.  Is it ever okay to cross the rivalry line and root for your rival’s success when they play others? I must say that I remember a lot more baseball games than musical productions, but the plot line of “West Side Story” comes to mind.  Maybe the love story of Tony and Maria suggests that rivals like the Jets and the Sharks can co-exist. Let’s take a look at some of baseball’s city rivalries.

When people first meet in Chicago you often hear the question, “Cubs or Sox?”  I admit to asking that way too much. Typically, the answer is geographical.  “North Siders” tend to align with the Cubbies, while the Sox faithful are mostly on the South Side.  Indeed, the White Sox introduced their MLB City Connect uniforms to their fans last year with the script “South Siders” across the front of their jerseys. Sometimes though Chicago baseball fans cross the geographical boundaries. If your family has always been a fan of one of the teams, you stay loyal to that team. And of course, there are transplants to the Chicago area who may have baseball roots in either the National or American League and find it easier to relate to the NL Cubs or the AL Sox.

This past week the Cubs hosted the White Sox at Wrigley Field in the final two games of the 2023 Crosstown Classic.  The rivalry goes back to 1902 when the American League was formed.  Charles Comiskey brought his St. Paul Saints to Chicago as one of the original AL teams.  He renamed them the White Stockings, which happened to be the original name of the Cubs from 1876 to 1889. From 1903 to 1942, the Cubs and White Stockings played each other in a best of seven post season City Series. The only thing at stake was bragging rights in Chicago. Indeed, the only time the two teams met each other in World Series play was in 1906, when the White Sox “Hitless Wonders” defeated the Cubs in six games.

Games between the two teams stalled until 1985 when the clubs began to play in an annual exhibition game deemed the “Windy City Classic”. One such game in 1994 was particularly noteworthy when the White Sox invited a fairly well known basketball player, Michael Jordan, to play right field for the Sox at Wrigley. You see, Jordan had taken some time off from his NBA career to try his hand at baseball with White Sox affiliate, AA Birmingham Bulls.  MLB interleague play began in 1997, starting a new era of Cubs vs. Sox annual series of games. In 2010 the Crosstown Trophy was introduced for the first time. The winner of the season series would take possession of the trophy. On Wednesday night this past week the trophy moved back to the North Side as the Cubs won in walk off fashion, capping a 4-3 win and a 3-1 2023 series victory.

A city rivalry with a little less history is in Los Angeles, the Freeway Series between the Dodgers and the Angels. The Santa Ana Freeway (Interstate 5) links these two teams’ ballparks, the third (Dodger Stadium) and fourth (Anaheim Stadium) oldest ballparks in baseball. You might be curious why the Angels have gone by different names, first the California Angels, then the Anaheim Angels, and now the Los Angeles Angels. The answer is that the Dodgers have always opposed the use of “LA” for any other team.  Resentment remains today.

The ”LA” teams have never met in the World Series, mostly because the Angels’ playoff appearances have been few and far between. The Angels have appeared in one World Series, the 2002 Fall Classic.  Many describe it as the “Dodgers Nightmare Series”, since the Angels faced off against the Dodgers’ bitter rivals, the Giants.  The Anaheim team took that Series in seven games.  Most recently, the LA teams are defined by some of the great players in the game. In 2014, the Angels’ Mike Trout and the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw won their respective league’s MVP awards, and Trout and the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger repeated that in 2019.  The Angels’ Shohei Ohtani stands today as the best player in the game, maybe ever. It would be the “Angels Worst Nightmare” if Ohtani signs with the Dodgers as a free agent this offseason.

Another City series dating back to the early 1960s but with much deeper roots is in New York, the Yankees vs. Mets.  New York has had a long love affair with baseball, having teams since 1903 representing three buroughs, Dodgers (Brooklyn), Giants (Manhattan), and the Yankees (Bronx).  When the NL Dodgers and Giants left for California in 1958, MLB quickly gave New York a new National League team, the Mets in 1962.  The Mets hoped to capture the New Yorkers who supported the Dodgers and Giants by adopting the Giants’ NY insignia in orange against a cap of Dodger blue.  From 1963 to 1983 the teams played in the Mayor’s Trophy Game, an in-season exhibition game.

1997 brought interleague regular season play to the teams. The year 2000 stepped the rivalry up a notch.  On July 8, the teams played a day night doubleheader, the day game at Shea Stadium and the nightcap at Yankee Stadium.  The Yanks won both games by a score of 4-2.  Both teams won their league pennants that season, the Yanks’ fourth AL title in five years and the Mets first NL pennant since 1986.  The Yankees took the Series in five games. This rivalry was not the fancy of the rest of baseball, as the 2000 Subway Series received the lowest television ratings in decades.  Most recently, these two franchises moved into new ballparks in the very same year, 2009, the Mets at Citi Field and the Yanks in new Yankee Stadium.

As a transplant to Chicago, I must say that I love hearing the stories of Cubs and Sox fans who despise the other team. While for me it’s “Go Cubs Go” when the teams meet, I enjoy following the Sox too (well, maybe not so much this year).  What I love is seeing the game of baseball any chance I get. The Jets and the Sharks can truly co-exist.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

There's No Fightin' in Baseball?

It’s finally time to confess.  I jinxed the 1973 Cincinnati Reds. In early October 1973, the Reds were headed to the playoffs for the third time in four years. The Big Red Machine had captured the NL pennant in 1970 and 1972, but had come up short both years in the World Series. As a ninth grader in my junior high school, I was asked to read the morning announcements on the intercom. I stepped to the microphone and went a little off-script on the “Thought for the Day”.  I proudly exclaimed, “The Reds will win the playoffs and World Series!”  It was an easy call.  The Reds had dominated the National League in 1973 and were facing a Mets team that had won just 83 games to win the NL East.  I left the school office and walked toward my first bell Health class.  My teacher was there to greet me: “You just jinxed them.”

Yes, I did.  The entire city of Cincinnati was waiting for the Reds to bring home its first world title in over 30 years and I blew it.  The Mets won the 5-game NLCS in one of the big upsets in playoff history.  What most remember though about that playoff series is the Game 3 fight.  The Reds powerful lineup faced New York aces Tom Seaver and Jon Matlack in Games 1 and 2 and Cincinnati’s bats were pretty silent.  Prior to Game 3, Mets weak-hitting shortstop Bud Harrelson proclaimed, “The Reds look like me hitting.”  In the fifth inning, Pete Rose slid hard into second base resulting in punches thrown, a tackle of Harrelson by Rose, and a dugout and bullpen clearing brawl.  It was one of the great fights in MLB playoff history.

Fights in baseball are somewhat rare.  When they do occur, you typically don’t see punches thrown or much physical contact other than pushing. It’s mostly a lot of milling around to show support of teammates. More often than not, a baseball fight is the result of knockdown pitches during a game or series when a batter finally says enough and charges the mound.  We also see them caused by aggressive baserunning, a hard slide into a base like the 1973 Rose-Harrelson scuffle.

Last weekend in Cleveland a baserunning incident resulted in full out fisticuffs.  Jose Ramirez of the Guardians slid through the legs of White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson on a play at second base.  Anderson looked down at Ramirez who actually held up his hand thinking that Anderson would help him up.  Instead, as Ramirez reported, “He said he wanted to fight and I had to defend myself.” The two squared off. Ramirez landed a punch that knocked down Anderson. The dugouts and bullpens emptied, and the fight between the teams went on for several minutes. The managers, Chicago’s Pedro Grifol, and Cleveland’s Terry Francona, were ejected, as well as Anderson, Ramirez, and the Guardians’ coach Mike Sarbaugh and pitcher Emmanuel Clase. It wasn’t a  good look for baseball or either team.

What’s odd about baseball fights is that it’s the only major sport when leaving the bench to participate in the fight doesn’t result in ejection.  You see, in baseball, the team on the field always has a numerical advantage when the fight starts.  It’s only fair that members of the hitting team can equalize the numbers game by leaving the dugout and bullpen. Another awful moment in Cleveland baseball history is the famous Ten Cent Beer Night in 1974. Drunken fans stormed the field that night and the hometown Indians left their dugout to defend their opponents, the Texas Rangers.  Crazy, but true!

Some of the more famous baseball fights involved mismatched combatants.  I remember watching in amazement during the 2003 ALCS when Red Sox pitcher, Pedro Martinez, literally threw Yankees coach Don Zimmer to the ground in a fight prompted by knockdown pitches by both teams.  Or how about the 1993 scuffle between future Hall of Famers Nolan Ryan and Robin Ventura? After Ryan hit Ventura with a pitch, Ventura charged the mound.  Ryan placed Ventura in a headlock and landed several punches. Ouch! And for the oldtimers, you might recall the August, 1965 Giants vs. Dodgers game featuring the pitching matchup of Juan Marichal and Sandy Koufax. With Marichal batting, he thought LA catcher Johnny Roseboro intentionally tried to hit him with a throw back to the mound.  Marichal turned and struck Roseboro with his bat.  That’s certainly not a fair fight.

The most epic baseball fight happened in a 1984 game between the Padres and the Braves.  The war of words, hit batsmen, and fights started in the first inning and erupted throughout most of the game.  The umpires simply lost control of it.  In the eighth inning an absolute brawl ensued after another batter was hit by a pitch.  Fans got involved, punches were thrown, players were ejected, and still no end to it.  Padres star reliever Goose Gossage beaned Atlanta’s Donnie Moore in the ninth inning to close the curtain on one of baseball’s saddest nights.

Earlier this week MLB handed down suspensions for the August 5 White Sox vs. Guardians brawl.  Tim Anderson received a six-game suspension and Jose Ramirez got three games. Anderson is awaiting the result of his appeal, while after appeal the Ramirez suspension was reduced to two games. Others received one-game suspensions, including the respective managers, Grifol and Francona.  Managers cannot appeal suspensions arising from on-field fights.  In my view, MLB was way too light on the suspensions.  They need to be more meaningful. There truly shouldn’t be fighting in baseball.

I was only “in” one fight in my life, and it happened to be a baseball scuffle in a summer league game.  I was that guy who stood in the back, milling about, and hoping it would be over.  After last week’s fight in Cleveland, Guardians’ manager Terry Francona said: “It’s not funny, but boys will be boys”.  Maybe a better cliché to have used was “there’s no fightin’ in baseball.”

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Backseat Driver

My younger grandson likes to give me driving instructions from his car seat in the back.  I sometimes embarrassingly hear, “Keep both hands on the wheel.”  More often, he is on top of the traffic lights situation, “Red means stop, and green means go.” As fans, we have been backseat drivers for the last month as the August 1st Trade Deadline approached.  If our team looked to be contending, we wanted our general manager to be a buyer and go for a trade to put our team into the playoffs this season (and dare we say, win the World Series!).  Here are the top buyers over the past week:

Texas Rangers.  General Manager Chris Young saw his surprising Rangers surge to the AL West lead in the first half of the season.  Before this season his big signings were hitters – Corey Seager and Marcus Semien. Now it was time to shore up the mound in a big way, landing Mets’ ace Max Scherzer, as well as Cardinals’ starter Jordan Montgomery and right-handed reliever Chris Stratton.  While Scherzer, a 3-time Cy Young winner, has struggled a bit this season by his standards, he gives his new team an ace with plenty of playoff experience. Montgomery was one of the best pitchers on the market, sporting a 3.09 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 21 starts.  The price for Scherzer was a steep one, prized prospect Luisangel Acuna, Ronald’s brother.  Now it’s time for the best manager in baseball, Bruce Bochy, to put the magic together on the field.

Los Angeles Angels.  The Angels’ best move of the Trading Deadline was a non-move, their decision to take Shohei Ohtani off the market and make a playoff run.  Ohtani is a free agent at the end of the season and perhaps would have landed the biggest prospect haul in Trade Deadline history for LA.  Once that decision was made, it was time to be buyers!  The first deal landed pitching ace Lucas Giolito from the White Sox.  Giolito has a 3.79 ERA this season, pitching in 121 innings and striking out 131.  He fits in nicely as the #2 starter behind Ohtani. LA then looked to the Rockies for some hitting help, landing first baseman C.J. Cron, an All-Star last season, and outfielder Randal Grichuk.  The lineup will be packed with talent once Mike Trout returns.  The Angels and Ohtani are on the move for a 2023 playoff run.

Houston Astros. The 2022 World Champions couldn’t resist taking a another shot at the title, and made the biggest move on the day of the Trade Deadline.  Houston acquired the other Mets’ ace, Justin Verlander, for a return engagement.  Verlander threw his third career no-hitter and won two World titles in his prior stint with the Astros, 2017-2022.  The Astros also added another former pitcher, Kendall Graveman, from the White Sox to bolster its bullpen.  While the Astros are certainly in line to make a deep playoff push, the Mets may have been the big winners in the Verlander trade in acquiring Houston’s #1 prospect, outfielder Drew Gilbert, as well as #4, Ryan Clifford.

Los Angeles Dodgers.  If you are like me, you’ve been watching the 2023 Dodgers pitching with some joy, a team ERA of 4.47, 21st in the MLB, not the Dodgers we are accustomed to seeing. Of course they were the first NL team at the Trade Deadline to improve their mound performance, adding Lance Lynn and Joe Kelly of the White Sox. Lynn’s 2023 ERA is a disappointing 6.47 but he has dominated on the mound with strikeouts – 10.8 Ks/9 innings ratio. Kelly’s engagement in LA is a return one.  The Dodgers also took a flyer on the Guardians’ Amed Rosario, who brings great versatility to the Dodgers in the field and at the dish. Can this LA team make another run?

Chicago Cubs.  If you would have asked a Cubbies’ backseat driver two weeks ago whether they would be sellers, it would have been a resounding YES, especially since 2023 free agents Cody Bellinger and Marcus Stroman might land some top prospects in trades. GM Jed Hoyer then witnessed his team rack up a season long 8 straight wins, and decided to buy instead. Hoyer may have landed the best hitter on the market, former Cub Jeimer Candelario, from the Nationals.  Candelario comes to the club with a .342 on-base percentage and much power in 96 games, mostly at third base. While Jeimer is expected to play a little third and DH as a Cub, he is mostly on board to play first. This past week in his first game back with the team, he had four hits and manned first base, albeit with catcher Miguel Amaya’s first baseman mitt.

Baltimore Orioles.  Tampa Bay came marching out of the 2023 gates with an amazing start, but the upstart Orioles have taken the lead in the tough AL East during the last couple weeks.  To help its playoff push, Baltimore traded for the Cardinals’ quality starter, Jack Flaherty.  Flaherty, just 27, was once the #2 prospect in all of baseball and placed fourth in the NL Cy Young race just four years ago. He was clearly a bright spot on the St. Louis starting staff during this difficult season, as the Cards went 13-7 when he pitched and 34-53 when he didn’t.  The Orioles were able to get Flaherty without yielding any of their top 15 prospects.  Watch out for Baltimore in October!

Toronto Blue Jays.  Another Cardinal flew away to an AL East contender, as the Blue Jays obtained St. Louis shortstop Paul DeJong on Trade Deadline Day.  Not in my wildest imagination would I have thought before the season that the Cardinals would be such a frequent seller at the Deadline.  DeJong, just 29, was an All-Star in 2019 when he hit a career best 30 HRs.  He plays a steady shortstop defensively, so much so that Toronto can breathe a big sigh of relief as Bo Bichette recovers from knee soreness.

Tampa Bay Rays.  Another AL East contender not named the Red Sox or the Yankees gets the final slot for the top buyers in 2023.  The Rays starting staff has been devastated with injuries over much of the last 40 games.  In a quiet, yet strong move, Tampa obtained Cleveland starter Aaron Civale.  Civale is 28 and has allowed two or fewer runs in 10 of his last starts.  In addition, Civale will remain under team control through 2025.  It’s a huge plus for Tampa, but a big “what’s going on?” for Cleveland.  At the time of the trade, the Guardians were just one game out of the AL Central lead.  Anything can happen once you get into the playoffs.  The backseat Cleveland drivers need to remind their GM of that.

For the above teams, you will know in the next few months as October playoff baseball approaches if they were wise buyers at the Trade Deadline. For those backseat drivers of the non-contending teams who were sellers at the Trade Deadline, patience is the word.  You probably won’t know if your sales paid dividends for a few years. Sometimes it is better in my grandson’s words to approach a yellow light and “just go slow”.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Pizza Boxes

The 2023 MLB rule changes have been a huge success.  The headliner is that the new pitch clock has reduced the average time of games in a big way, about 30 minutes from last year.  What is often overlooked is that other changes, including the restrictions on pickoff attempts and the larger bases (affectionately labeled “pizza boxes”), have increased the running game.  We’ve finally gotten away from station-to-station baseball and saved the stolen base from being a lost art.  Let’s steal away for a bit and explore stolen bases.

In the early days of baseball “stealing the base” was used when runners took an extra base on a hit by another teammate. Baseball historians give Philadelphia Keystone’s Ned Cuthbert the nod for the first stealing of a base on a pitch when the ball was not hit. It wasn’t until 1898 when “stolen base” as we know it became popular.  Ty Cobb (1905-1928) is the best known of the early base stealers, totaling 897 in his 24-year career.  In 1915 he set a single season record of stolen bases with 96. Babe Ruth began a lengthy era where the long ball dominated baseball.  Indeed, in 1955, Joe DiMaggio’s brother Dom led the Major Leagues with just 15 stolen bases. 

This past week though did mark the 93rd anniversary of the “double triple steal”. On July 25, 1930, the Philadelphia Athletics loaded the bases in the first inning of a game against the Cleveland Indians. On a pitch the runner on third broke for the plate and slid in successfully while the other runners stole third and second.  The Athletics pulled the same trick in the fourth inning. The kicker is that, as a team, the Athletics stole only 48 bases the entire year, second last in the American League.

Maury Wills, who played primarily for the Dodgers over his 14-year career (1959-1972), is known for reviving the stolen base as part of baseball strategy.  In winning the NL MVP award in 1962, he broke Ty Cobb’s single season stolen base record with 104 stolen bases.  Lou Brock, a Hall of Fame St. Louis Cardinal, broke Wills’ single season record with 118 stolen bases of his own in 1974, while also breaking Cobb’s career record by snatching 938 total stolen bases during his 18-year career.  Then there’s Rickey Henderson who obliterated both records.  The Oakland A’s great was nicknamed the “Man of Steal”. In 1982 he set the current single season record of 130.  When Henderson retired in 2003, he had amassed 1,406 career steals, setting a standard that looks to be in the record books for a very long time.

In an article written in 2009 for the “Bleacher Report”, Cliff Eastham offered some objective data comparisons in career stolen base percentage.  Without looking at the numbers, my immediate thoughts turned to Cobb, Wills, Brock, or Henderson.  However, Richie Ashburn, the Phillies’ Hall of Famer with a 15-year career spanning from 1948 through 1962, is the all-time leader according to Eastham’s work.  Ashburn is one of the most beloved sports figures in Philadelphia and has the career numbers to support it -- .308 batting average, 2,574 hits, and an all-time best stolen base percentage of 86%. 

During the last 25 years of the game, beginning with the Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa home run race in 1998, baseball slowed to a halt. The game developed into power pitching, home runs, strikeouts, and walks. Barry Bonds broke season (73) and career (762) home run records long admired by baseball traditionalists.  While it took too long to recognize the problem, MLB began to address the running game the last few years by experimenting with rule changes at the Minor League level.  Pitchers in AAA, AA, and Single A were limited to two pickoff attempts per batter with runners on base.  Stolen base attempts went up from 2.23 per game in 2019 to 2.81 last year with an improved success rate of 78% from 68%.

Enter the 2023 MLB rule changes designed to revive the running game in the Major Leagues. Pitchers can check baserunners by throwing over to the bag twice but the third time becomes an alarm. If the third pickoff attempt is not successful, the runner is awarded the next base. Since runners now know how many pickoff attempts are allowed, they are emboldened to take the risk of stealing a base. First, second, and third bases are now 18 square inches in size, up from 15 square inches which was the dimension for over 100 years. It reduces the distance between the bases by 4 ½ inches.  Think of all those close plays where those inches matter.

Baseball in 2023 has been deemed the “Year of the Stolen Base”. Stealing attempts per game are up to a level not seen for over thirty years, and the current success rate is around 80%. Three teams in baseball this year are averaging more than one successful stolen base per game, Cincinnati (1.14), Tampa (1.11), and Arizona (1.01), all three of whom have seen the importance of the running game to the win-loss column. Earlier in July the Reds rookie sensation, Elly De La Cruz, became the first player in the past 50 years to steal three bases in a single plate appearance.  Even more incredibly, he did so on just two pitches.  Now that’s excitement!

I love the new speed of the game, not just the shorter game times but the way baseball is now being played.  The next time you get a large, thin crust, half cheese, and half bacon, delivered to your home, take a moment to reflect on how important that pizza box is to today’s game.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Cubs vs. Cards

There’s no better way to spend a summer afternoon in Chicago than to be at Wrigley Field.  This past Friday was especially wonderful since the Cardinals were in town, and more importantly, my 7-year old grandson was with me.  He is at the stage of life that he is playing the game, but also wanting to soak in all of the details.  I couldn’t ask for a better partner to share this afternoon.

We parked the car in one of the nearby neighborhoods.  I explained to him that Wrigley is a little different than most ballparks since it is nestled into an area of Chicago with little parking but a variety of restaurants and things to do pre-game.  You could feel the excitement as we entered into Gallagher Way where Cubs and Cardinals fans alike played games and shared stories.  We stopped at the Cubs Team Store to get him a Wrigleyville jersey.  It was Friday, City Connect Day, a day the Cubs and other home teams in the MLB celebrate their local heritage. Before getting to our seats, we grabbed some hamburgers, fries, and soda (and of course, Cracker Jack). 

Our seats today were between home plate and first base in the 300 level.  I told him we needed to be alert since it was prime foul ball area (the one that came closest landed in the row below us about five seats over).  Wrigley, built in 1914, is one of many ballparks constructed in the form of a “jewel box”, meaning straight up since steel structures in the lower bowl support the upper grandstand.  Fenway Park (Boston), Ebbets Field (Brooklyn), Comiskey Park (Chicago), and Crosley Field (Cincinnati) were some of the others.  Only Fenway and Wrigley remain, and for my money the best seats are in the lower levels of the upper grandstand.  Our seats were right on top of the action.

With the advent of balance scheduling this series between the Cubs and Cardinals is the second and final one at Wrigley this season. The rivalry goes all the way back to 1885 when the Cubs (then called the White Stockings) faced the Cardinals (known then as the Browns) in games played in Chicago, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati.  While the Cubs hold a 1,261 – 1,212 advantage all-time, the Cardinals own more World Series championships (11 to 3). 

One of the great memories of the rivalry is the June 23, 1984, Saturday afternoon game on an NBC national telecast.  It’s known as the “Sandberg Game”.  The Cubs trailed 9-8 in the bottom of the ninth inning and faced former Cub and future Hall of Famer, Bruce Sutter, on the mound.  Ryne Sandberg tied the game with a home run, the Cardinals put two more runs on the board in the 10th inning, and Sandberg tied it again with a two-run shot in the bottom of the tenth inning.  The Cubs won the game in the 11th as broadcaster Bob Costas exclaimed, “Do you believe it?”  Oh yes, anything can happen in this rivalry. 

Fourteen years later, in 1998, a home run race between a Cardinal, Mark McGwire, and a Cub, Sammy Sosa, is said to have revitalized baseball in the aftermath of the players’ strike in 1994.  Prior to the season Roger Maris held the all-time season home run record of 61.  Both McGwire (70 HRs) and Sosa (66 HRs) shattered the record in 1998. In August and September that year, ESPN followed both players’ every at-bats on national television.  One of the biggest moments was in early September before a sold-out Busch Stadium crowd in St. Louis.  McGwire broke the record with #62 off Cubs pitcher, Steve Trachsel.  With a great display of sportsmanship, Sosa hugged his rival after McGwire trotted around the bases.

The Cubs vs. Cards rivalry is one that MLB cherishes.  When the NL split into two divisions in 1969 and three divisions in 1994, the rivalry tradition continued as they remained in the same division.  Although the teams have played around 2,500 games against each other, they have met in the playoffs only once, the 2015 National League Division Series.  The Cubs won that series 3-1 before losing in the NLCS to the Mets.  In the clinching Game 4, Kyle Schwarber hit a majestic home run that most thought left the park. The next morning a helicopter spotted the ball on the right field Budweiser roof. The Cubs preserved the ball there until 2019 when it was returned to Schwarber as his new team, the Nationals, visited.

Both teams this year are under .500 as the August 1st Trade Deadline looms.  This coming week may determine whether each is a buyer or seller. Almost 60 years ago the two clubs engaged in a mid-season trade to remember. Lou Brock and Ernie Broglio were the principal players exchanged in a six player deal.  At the time many thought the Cubs got the best of the deal, landing a pitcher like Broglio, who had been a success in St. Louis, for a disappointing young outfielder in Brock. The results were quite the opposite. Brock led the Cardinals to the 1964 World Championship, as well as another title in 1967 and a World Series appearance in 1968. His storied career landed Brock in the Hall of Fame. Unfortunately for Chicago, Broglio pitched in only two seasons for the Cubs, a 4-7 record, 4.07 ERA, and was out of baseball in 1966.

The Cubs won the Friday encounter this weekend in thrilling fashion, 4-3, as my grandson and I watched the “W” flag being raised over the manual scoreboard and sang “Go Cubs Go” together.  The Cubs won the four game set with victories in the last three games.  Cubs vs. Cards games are always fun, and especially so when you watch them with a best buddy.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Shift

Today’s youth begin hitting by batting off a tee.  It’s safe, allows every child to put the ball in play, and importantly, teaches the kids to level their swings. You will also see some of the best MLB hitters in the game hitting from a tee in their pre-game work (Anthony Rizzo is a good example). For the best hitters in the game, it’s a way to get back to the fundamentals of batting. In hitting off a tee, MLB batters can focus on driving the ball up the middle or the other way. Indeed, hitting the ball to the opposite field has become a lost art.  To address the frequency of managers employing shifts, MLB adopted a rule this season that prohibits their use.

What is a shift?  It’s a defensive realignment from the usual positions of fielders to crowd one side of the infield.  Managers use shifts so that fielders are in a better position to handle hard ground balls hit by pull hitters.  Many baseball historians point to the 1940s as the genesis of shifts when Cleveland Indians manager, Lou Boudreau, employed a defensive shift to thwart Red Sox star Ted Williams.  Yet, others trace shifts to another great hitter named Williams, Ty Williams, who played for the Cubs and the Phillies from 1912 to 1930.

Ty Williams was one of the more feared lefthanded hitters of his era.  In fact, in the prime of Bath Ruth’s career, 1923-1928, Williams was only second to Ruth in home runs.  Williams led the National League in home runs in four seasons and totaled 251 in his career.  He was described as a dead pull hitter, so much so that opposing managers would move the entire defense to the right side of the field. 

The other ”Williams Shift”, or perhaps better known as the “Boudreau Shift”, was a brainchild of Cleveland Indians’ manager, Lou Boudreau, between games of a July 14, 1946, doubleheader when the Indians faced Ted Williams’ Red Sox. Boudreau himself played for 15 seasons in the American League and won the 1944 AL batting title.  As player manager, Boudreau would often try to get in the heads of star players in the league.  By using a shift against Ted Williams, he thought he could coax the great hitter into minimizing his power.  In his book, Player-Manager, Boudreau remarked:  “I have always regarded the Boudreau Shift as a psychological, rather than a tactical, victory”.

The most feared MLB left handed hitter in my boyhood was Willie McCovey, the Giants’ Hall of Fame first baseman.  In his 22-year career, McCovey was a three-time NL home run leader, six-time All-Star, and 1969 NL Most Valuable Player.  Known as “Stretch”, he was a line drive pull hitter. Pitching great Bob Gibson of the Cardinals deemed him “the scariest hitter in baseball”.  Managers, such as the Reds’ Sparky Anderson, consistently employed a shift against McCovey. Anderson said this about McCovey: “If you pitch to him, he’ll ruin baseball.  He’d hit 80 home runs.  There’s no comparison between McCovey and anybody else in the league.”

While managers often used shifts since then, it wasn’t until the last decade when they become extremely popular.  In 2016 the highest team shift rate rose to 34% of their opponent’s at bats and in 2022 it skyrocketed to 52.5% of the time. MLB began to address the increased use of shifts on the minor league level.  As part of an agreement with MLB, the independent Atlantic League of Professional Baseball in 2019 restricted the shift and required two infielders to be positioned on either side of second base.   In 2022, shift restrictions were used at the AA and A levels (four players required to be in the infield with two on each side of second).

Per the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement after the 2021 lockout, MLB was given the permission to restrict infield shifts beginning in 2023.  And it did just that!  A new rule was added that requires two infielders to be positioned on either side of second before a pitch is thrown.  If the defensive team violates the rule, the team at the plate can choose to have the pitch awarded as a “ball” or take the outcome of the play.  We have not as yet seen a violation of the switch restriction during the season.

Baseball traditionalists are for the most apart aghast at the restriction.  You often hear the grumblings of don’t help the hitters who can’t adjust their swings to go the other way.  My favorite take on the mindset of a batter facing a shift prior to the rule change is that of former manager Joe Maddon:  “You have three choices: You can try and hit it and beat the shift.  That’s going to give you a single, but now you’re doing something against what you’re best at, so the defense wins.  You can hit into the shift, and the defense wins. Or you can try not to let the infielders catch the batted ball.  No ground balls and no popups.  Try to stand on second base.  That’s Option C.”

I’ll take Option C any day of the week.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach

Batting .400

The All-Star Game festivities culminate tomorrow night with the “big game”.   I don’t know about you, but for me the game has lost its luster over the years.  It used to be a time to see the big name players and other stars who weren’t always in the national spotlight compete hard for the honor of their respective Leagues. Great hitters like Minnesota’s Rod Carew and San Diego’s Tony Gwynn come to mind.  Tomorrow night I must say that I’m excited to see one NL starter in particular who clearly doesn’t get his rightful attention, second baseman Luis Arraez of the Miami Marlins.

Why Arraez?  In case you haven’t checked the batting standings, Arraez, last year’s AL batting champion, is hitting .383 at the All-Star Break, around 50 points better than any player in either League.  He is one of the first players in years who is knocking on the door of the coveted .400 batting average season. Forty-two players in MLB history have reached the mark.  Five players have done it in three separate seasons. But here’s the kicker – Ted Williams in 1941 is the last MLB player to bat over .400! Many say that with the advent of specialized relief pitchers, .400 is an untouchable mark.  There have been a couple players in the last few decades who have come close.  And maybe, just maybe, the remarkable Arreaz can cross the line this season.

You can name almost any batting record and find Ty Cobb at the top or near the top of the list.  He is actually credited with setting 90 MLB records in his 24-year career (1905-1928).  Among them, he has the highest career batting average of .366, attained 4,189 hits, achieved a record 12 batting titles, and stole home for a record 54 times.  In 1999, the Sporting News ranked Cobb third on the list of “Baseball’s Greatest Players”. His three seasons of reaching the .400 mark (1911, 1912, and 1922) might be his most remarkable achievement.  His great baseball career though was tarnished with allegations of racism and violence.

A cloud also hangs over the career of another gifted hitter from that era, Shoeless Joe Jackson.  Jackson will forever be tied to the 1919 Black Sox Scandal, but you must admire his hitting prowess.  He maintained a .356 career batting average, the fourth highest in MLB history. No one has ever made a bigger splash into the Big Leagues as Shoeless Joe.  In 1911, considered his rookie season, he batted .408 for the Cleveland Naps.  Jackson was also named a member of “Baseball’s Greatest Players”.

Most often when I think of .400 hitters, Ted Williams, the last MLB player to do so, is top of mind.  While he too is a controversial figure in MLB history, his numerous records stand out – lifetime .344 batting average; two-time AL MVP award winner; 6-time AL batting champ; and a 19-time All-Star in his 22 year career with the Boston Red Sox.  My Dad would often tell me that Williams’ batting superiority was due to his being able to see the seams of the baseball as it came to the plate.  Willams’ two most prominent achievements include winning the AL Triple Crown in two seasons, and yes of course, his .406 average during the 1941 season.

Some notable, more recent players have flirted with .400 averages but not quite gotten over the top.  One of the best hitters in my lifetime, Tony Gwynn, stands out. In his 20-year career with the Padres (1982-2001), Gwynn won eight batting titles and maintained a career .338 batting average.  Incredibly, he never batted below .309 during a season. Tony came up as more of a spray hitter to the opposite field, but credits a meeting with Ted Williams as a turning point for pulling the ball more and exhibiting more power.  In the strike-shortened season of 1994, Gwynn flirted with .400 most of the campaign before ending the season at .394. So close.

George Brett is another. Brett played for 21 seasons with the Kansas City Royals (1973-1993).  He is the only player in MLB history to win a batting title in three separate decades, and is one of five players to garner 3,000 hits, 300 home runs, and over a .300 career batting average (.305).  Brett might be best known for charging the home plate umpire after he was ruled out for a pine tar violation in a game against the Yankees. I like to think of him as that 1980 AL MVP who batted .390, the modern record for third basemen.  In the 1980 season he was above .400 as late as September 19th, before falling short of the mark.

When I was growing up, only when the Minnesota Twins appeared on the Saturday Afternoon Game of the Week did I get to see second baseman Rod Carew play in the regular season.  I loved every minute. Carew won seven AL batting titles in his 19-year career (1967-1985), second only to Ty Cobb.  He was what we lack in the game today, a pure contact hitter.  Carew put the ball in play, almost every at bat.  In 1977 he led the AL in hits, an eye-popping 239, and brought home the AL MVP award with an oh so close .388 batting average.  In 2016 the AL batting title was renamed the Rod Carew American League Batting Title.

Luis Arraez is the modern day Carew.  He is just 5 feet, 10 inches tall, and plays second base. Last year he too starred for the Twins, and crazily, was traded to the Marlins in the offseason after having won the AL batting championship.  Arraez plays his home games in a near empty Miami ballpark. For the first half of this season, he has gone over and under the .400 mark several times. In June he had three 5-hit games, tieing a mark set by Ty Cobb and two other MLB players.  Do what you can over the next three months to see a Marlins game and Arraez at the plate.  It is a real treat.

Enjoy the All-Star Game tomorrow night.  Let the stars shine, especially Luis Arraez!

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach