Neil Walker had six plate appearances last night. He had four hits, a HR, six RBIs, and a walk. He’s the MVP of Yesterday.
Standings, as always, after the jump:
MVP of Yesterday (Sept. 23, 2015): Neil Walker
Reply
MVP of Yesterday (Sept. 22, 2015): Jake Arrieta
Why did the Orioles get rid of Jake Arrieta? Why didn’t they let him throw his cutter when he was there? How do you hit against Jake Arrieta? These are all tough questions that may never be answered. The Brewers certainly didn’t answer them last night, as the Cubs pitcher struck out 11 and gave up just 3 hits and a single walk, while getting a hit of his own for good measure. So, he’s the MVP of Yesterday.
Standings, as always, after the jump:
The Greatness and Legacy of Yogi Berra
We may know Yogi Berra by his quotes. That’s how I paid tribute to him on Twitter this morning (I woke up inexplicably briefly at like 4:00 this morning before falling back to sleep, explaining how early some of these tweets are):
“I never said most of the things I said.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I’m not hungry enough to eat six.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“You wouldn’t have won if we’d beaten you.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“Little League baseball is a very good thing because it keeps the parents off the streets.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“We made too many wrong mistakes.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“Nobody goes there anymore. It’s too crowded.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“You can observe a lot by just watching.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“It was impossible to get a conversation going, everybody was talking too much.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“He hits from both sides of the plate. He’s amphibious.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“Even Napoleon had his Watergate.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“It ain’t the heat, it’s the humility.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“I’m not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia. Let them walk to school like I did.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“You don’t have to swing hard to hit a home run. If you got the timing, it’ll go.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“If the world were perfect, it wouldn’t be.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“It ain’t over till it’s over.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
“Love is the most important thing in the world, but baseball is pretty good, too.”
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
But then there is what comes after:
– Peter Lawrence “Yogi” Berra. 1925-2015. 18-time All-Star. 13 time WS Champ. 3 time MVP.
— Dan J. Glickman (@DanJGlickman) September 23, 2015
Those final facts are often the ones forgotten. Lost amongst the legend of his “Yogi-isms” is the fact that he was one of the greatest catchers of all time, as well as a an esteemed coach and manager (three of his WS titles came not as a player, but as a coach with the Mets and Yankees, and he was the manager of the 1964 Yankees team and 1973 Mets teams that lost their World Series).
He was a Forrest Gump of Baseball, seemingly involved in countless major events connected to baseball from the end of WWII (where Yogi served as a gunner’s mate on a navy ship, including during the D-Day invasion) until his death. He was the soul of Casey Stengel’s Yankees. Jackie Robinson played against him and had perhaps his signature moment- the steal of home in the World Series- off of him (to the end, Yogi claimed Jackie was out). When Don Larson had his perfect game, it was famously Yogi who leaped into his arm, leading Larson to say “Damn, Yogi, you’re heavy.” When Bill Mazeroski hit his walk-off home run, it was Yogi who watched it fly over the left-field fence. When Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth’s record, Yogi was on deck. The “Miracle Mets’ had Yogi Berra as a coach.
And, perhaps above all, he was a hell of a player. As Tom Verducci pointed out in his article on Yogi, he never struck out more than 40 times in a season. He and Joe DiMaggio are the only players in history to have 350 home runs or more with fewer than 500 strikeouts. He was by most accounts a defensive catcher and pitch-caller of fine quality- at one point he held the record for consecutive games behind the plate without an error. One does not become a All-Star so many times being merely average.
In the end, perhaps Casey Stengel summed up Berra the best (it’s included in Yogi’s obituary), even though it was 1949 when he said it, very early in Yogi’s career:
“Mr. Berra,” Casey Stengel said, “is a very strange fellow of very remarkable abilities.”
MVP of Yesterday (September 21, 2015): Jeff Samardzija
The MVP of Yesterday was Jeff Samardzija. He pitched arguably the best non-no-hitter of the year, giving up just one hit, no walks and struck out six Tigers in a 88 pitch complete-game win (a Maddux!).
Standings, as always, after the jump:
Over at @HOVG: A Wisdom and Links look at extreme ballparks!
Aside
Over at Hall of Very Good, the latest Wisdom and Links looks at the most geographically extreme baseball fields, and more! Check it out!
MVPs of the Weekend (Sept. 18, 19 and 20, 2015)
The MVPs of the weekend were, in order: Starlin Castro, Cole Hamels, and Kendrys Morales.
Standings, as always, after the jump:
Breaking OOTP, Episode 1: PITCHERS vs. HITTERS
When my previous computer died, I lost the International Baseball Competition. I will try again next year. I might still have the original starting files to go on, and if I can find them, I will put them up so that you can do the IBC.
However, from the ashes of the 2015 IBC, there has risen…
BREAKING OOTP!
Yes, Out of the Park Baseball tasks me, so I must have it! I will force it to do things that it was not made to do, things that mankind was not meant to see simulated. Some will answer questions, some will settle scores, and some will push Out Of The Park Baseball to it’s very limits, to see if I can literally cause the game engine to beg for mercy.
(And, yes, this is basically Breaking Madden in OOTP form, you have a problem with that? Oh, and CLICK PICTURES TO MAKE THEM BIGGER.)
TODAY:
PITCHERS
vs.
HITTERS
Yes, for all time, the pitchers have waged war with those at the plate. But now, it is time to finally settle it once and for all, as a team made up entirely of pitchers will play a team made entirely up of hitters. And at the end of the day, ONLY ONE SHALL BE LEFT STANDING…. AFTER THE JUMP:
MVP of Yesterday (September 17, 2015): Mike Trout
Mike Trout had two home runs, one of them a grand slam, and he walked THRICE as well. He’s the MVP of Yesterday!
Standings, as always, after the jump:
MVP of Yesterday (September 16, 2015): Prince Fielder
Prince Fielder hit two dingers yesterday in the Rangers win over the Astros. He’s the MVP of Yesterday.
Standings, as always, after the jump:
Rochester Red Wings Programs of the Past: “Summer Fun in ’81” (and misspelling Cal Ripken’s name)
In this recurring piece, I look at the programs and yearbooks of my hometown Rochester Red Wings. This is the first part of the series.
In 1981, the Rochester Red Wings were, if nothing else, notable. They played in the longest game in baseball history- a 33-inning loss against Pawtucket that was begun in April and finished in June. Cal Ripken played his last full season in the minor leagues for Rochester. Future All-Star and Gold-Glover Mike Boddicker also played for Rochester that season.
So it’s as good a place as any to begin our look back at Rochester Red Wings programs/yearbooks.
(GO BELOW THE JUMP TO SEE)
The Baseball Continuum 