Category Archives: Baseball

Picture of the Day: JFK throws out the first ball

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In the days leading up to the Presidential Inauguration, the Baseball Continuum will be posting pictures celebrating the relation between the presidency and baseball. These are not meant to be an endorsement of either side of the political aisle nor the policies of any of the men featured within, merely a celebration of the close connection between America’s leader and America’s game.

Opening Day, 1961- President Kennedy throws out the first ball at Griffith Stadium.

(Oh, LBJ is there too, but he, obviously, was Vice President at the time.)

This photo is from the U.S. National Archives’ Flickr stream, and there are no known copyright restrictions attached to it.

Video of the Undetermined Amount of Time: Celebrating Earl Weaver as he lived

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Earl Weaver passed away this morning somewhere in the Caribbean, with his wife by his side, he was 82.

But what better way to celebrate Weaver, the Earl of Baltimore, than to showcase him as he lived: Fighting with his greatest enemy, the umpires. Note that this video has adult language and probably shouldn’t be watched with little children around.

The Lone Man to play in MLB and the NHL (and other MLB/NHL connections)

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Hockey is back!

(Crickets)

Well, anyway, there have been far fewer two-sport athletes in baseball involving hockey than there are basketball or football. In fact, there has been a grand total of one player who has spent time in the Major Leagues and the NHL. That player is Jim Riley, who spent some brief time with the St. Louis Browns and Washington Senators in the 1920s and spent a brief time with the Chicago Black Hawks (note the space) and Detroit Cougars (not yet the Red Wings) in the 1926-1927 season. Here’s what his top league statistics looked like:

In MLB:

Year Age Tm Lg G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
1921 26 SLB AL 4 12 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 .083 .000 .083 -78 0 0 0 /4
1923 28 WSH AL 2 5 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 .000 .400 .000 .400 13 0 0 0 /3
1931 Did not play in major leagues (Did Not Play)
2 Yrs 6 17 14 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 .000 .176 .000 .176 -52 0 0 0
162 Game Avg. 162 459 378 27 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 81 81 .000 .176 .000 .176 -52 0 0 0
WSH (1 yr) 2 5 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 .000 .400 .000 .400 13 0 0 0
SLB (1 yr) 4 12 11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 .000 .083 .000 .083 -78 0 0 0
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/14/2013.

In the NHL:

Season Age Tm Lg GP G A PTS GC +/- PIM EV PP SH GW S S% TOI ATOI
1926-27 31 TOT NHL 9 0 2 2 1 14
1926-27 31 CBH NHL 3 0 0 0 0 0
1926-27 31 DTC NHL 6 0 2 2 1 14
Career NHL 9 0 2 2 1 14
Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/14/2013.

Of course, Riley also played in the minor leagues in both sports. You can find his baseball minor league stats over at Baseball Reference, and you can find his hockey stats over at hockeydb.com.

Now, although Riley is the lone man to have played in both MLB and the NHL, he is not the only player who played both sports. Not even close. Take a look after the jump for other connections between America’s pastime and Canada’s pastime:

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Picture of the Day: Babe and a future president

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In the days leading up to the Presidential Inauguration, the Baseball Continuum will be posting pictures celebrating the relation between the presidency and baseball. These are not meant to be an endorsement of either side of the political aisle nor the policies of any of the men featured within, merely a celebration of the close connection between America’s leader and America’s game.

You’ve seen the picture before, but it remains a powerful image: An aged Babe Ruth donating a copy of his manuscript to Yale University, with them being received by the captain of Yale’s baseball team: George Herbert Walker Bush.

From the U.S. National Archives flickr account, no known copyright.

WBC Simulation: USA vs. Canada

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On Sunday, March 30, 2013, Team USA and Canada will play the final Pool D game at Chase Field in Phoenix. Canada will technically be the home team. It’s entirely possible that who has advanced in the WBC would already be decided, but the sometimes erratic tie-breaking procedures of the round robin first round make it unlikely that both would be decided, and it is entirely likely that this game would decide the fates of at least one of the teams playing.

So, how might it go down? Well, using Out of the Park Baseball, I am simulating it! Go after the jump for the rest.

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Be sure to check out the Old Time Family Baseball blogathon

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An unrelated note today on one of our friends on the baseball blogosphere: Old Time Family Baseball. It’s a blog much like this one, with no real theme but baseball and great content that is at least vaguely related to it. Take this post, for example. That brought me a good chuckle.

Anyway, this weekend, OTFB will be doing something special. Tomorrow, Saturday the 19th, OTFB writer Michael Clair will be writing a post every half hour for 24 hours (!!), and then, the day after that (Sunday the 20th), others from across the baseball-related internet will take over, having contributed pieces to OTFB for that day. Among those who have contributed a piece? Yours truly.

The reason for this blogathon is to raise money for Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, as it’s known outside of North America), the humanitarian organization that provides medical care in developing nations and in war zones. Last year, they raised over $2,000 in donations, and this year they are aiming for even more, so if you are interested in the blogathon, make sure to head over to OTFB.

Famous for something else: Randy “Macho Man” Savage

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Randy Poffo’s baseball career took a turn for the worst as he was hit by a series of injuries, but he found a second career as Randy “Macho Man” Savage.

Year Age Tm Lg Lev Aff G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB
1971 18 Cardinals GULF Rk STL 35 81 63 10 18 3 2 2 13 2 0 14 16 .286 .420 .492 .912 31 2 0 2
1972 19 Cardinals GULF Rk STL 52 168 46 3 4 3 .274 .393 66
1973 20 2 Teams 2 Lgs A-Rk STL 71 191 177 7 50 14 4 2 11 0 0 13 11 .282 .330 .441 .771 78 0 0 1
1973 20 Red Birds GULF Rk STL 25 75 61 7 21 6 2 0 11 0 0 13 11 .344 .453 .508 .962 31 0 0 1
1973 20 Orangeburg WCRS A 46 116 29 8 2 2 .250 .405 47
1974 21 Tampa FLOR A CIN 131 521 461 36 107 19 6 9 66 3 5 46 85 .232 .304 .358 .662 165 14 5 2 7 4
4 Seasons 289 961 869 53 221 39 16 16 90 5 5 73 112 .254 .314 .391 .705 340 14 7 2 10 4
Rk (3 seasons) Rk 112 324 292 17 85 12 8 5 24 2 0 27 27 .291 .352 .438 .790 128 2 0 3
A (2 seasons) A 177 637 577 36 136 27 8 11 66 3 5 46 85 .236 .294 .367 .662 212 14 5 2 7 4
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/17/2013.

The WBC provisional rosters as they are now

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I was able to find the WBC provisional rosters as they are right now in this PDF file:

2013-World-Baseball-Classic-Provisional-Rosters_011713

You’re welcome.

Quick Impressions of the other 15 WBC rosters (and a link to the US)

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More rosters were revealed at 4 PM, go below the jump for my quick run-down of them. It will be updated as the rosters are revealed on television. Also, note that the rosters (which I will link to when I find a good link) are NOT FINAL and could change.

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WBC Roster Analysis: Team USA

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So, Team USA’s roster has been released, here’s how it looks (they’ve released 27 names, the 28th will be named later):

Jeremy Affeldt – San Francisco Giants – LHP
J.P. Arencibia – Toronto Blue Jays – C
Heath Bell – Arizona Diamondbacks – RHP
Willie Bloomquist – Arizona Diamondbacks – UTL
Mitchell Boggs – St. Louis Cardinals – RHP
Ryan Braun – Milwaukee Brewers – OF
Steve Cishek – Miami Marlins – RHP
Tim Collins – Kansas City Royals – LHP
R.A. Dickey – Toronto Blue Jays – RHP
Luke Gregerson – San Diego Padres – RHP
Derek Holland – Texas Rangers – LHP
Adam Jones – Baltimore Orioles – OF
Craig Kimbrel – Atlanta Braves – RHP
Jonathan Lucroy – Milwaukee Brewers – C
Joe Mauer – Minnesota Twins – C
Kris Medlen – Atlanta Braves – RHP
Glen Perkins – Minnesota Twins – LHP
Chris Perez – Cleveland Indians – RHP
Vinnie Pestano – Cleveland Indians – RHP
Brandon Phillips – Cincinnati Reds – IF
Jimmy Rollins – Philadelphia Phillies – IF
Giancarlo Stanton – Miami Marlins – OF
Mark Teixeira – New York Yankees – IF
Shane Victorino – Boston Red Sox – OF
Ryan Vogelsong – San Francisco Giants – RHP
David Wright – New York Mets – IF
Ben Zobrist – Tampa Bay Rays – UTL

Now, go after the jump for my analysis:

Continue reading →