Who Will Be The Better Pro?

I read this great article on this cool website, www.baseballbeginnings.com, wondering if in the long haul a guy like Arizona State's Mike Leake might be a better pro than San Diego State's Stephen Strasburg. The author doesn't say which is which. It's more of a compare and contrast. Very popular new site. Beginnings is where I practice digital journalism; good ol'Seeds and its Original Six is still the blog.

We'll Always Have Seeds.

Pettyjohn gets first win of 2009

Adam Pettyjohn, SEEDS's favorite LHP, has a long history of warming up come June. After winning 15 games in consecutive Triple-A seasons, culminating in return to the Major Leagues after seven years, he found himself in a swing role in the bullpen.

Pettyjohn finally got a start Tuesday night. The crafty veteran beat Pawtucket, scattering nine hits in 6 1/3 innings with no walks and three strikeouts. He got called for a balk on a pick to first base, which cost him a run. Damn Triple-A umpires. Pettyjohn's got an above-average pick-off move.

He also gave up no home runs.

Wee Willie Keeler scores sweet Brooklyn gig for $600 per montn

"Willie Keeler, who is the Brooklyns' coach and scout, is receiving $600 a month for his valuable services. Keeler and Dahlen, old pals, keep their heads close together. They are trying to make the Brooklyns play some inside ball."

From The Chicago Defender, May 18, 1912

Dahlen is Bill Dahlen, Keeler's homeboy back when. Wonder if Wee Willie would have bitched out the defense last night as Werth ran on them like a high school kid.

Where Strasburg Stands with Other Aces

I'm all for a guy taking a no-hitter where he can get it, even if Stephen Strasburg's Friday night no-hitter against the future fighter pilots and Stealth drivers of the Air Force Academy isn't like throwing a no-hitter against the Washington Nationals.

While on the subject, I was digging through old computer files and came across a list I complied way back in 2001 when Mark Prior was everything Strasburg is now. If there are any mistakes on this list, please retro-date any complaints back to me in 2001. I can dig up my old Juno account if you want.

The thing about this list, which is not meant to be an exhaustive study, is that it does show one thing that always holds true about these big-time college pitchers, especially right-handers. The dark dirty secret is that while the media is godding the kid up, writing columns about his 101 mph fastball, and quoting unnamed scouts, the Nationals will be THRILLED if this guy is a No. 2 or a No. 3 starter.

They'll be pissed if he's not.

Of course they're going to have to pay the No. 1 starter price to find out exactly what he really is, but here's my point. Let's say they sign him. (That's a big "if.") For what they'll have to pay, they'll hope he's a No. 1. But if they get a workhorse RHP that goes 15-10 for the six years before he walks, they'd be thrilled and call that draft pick a winner.

This is what I'm getting at. There's almost like two layers of expectations for guys like this. One layer is media driven, but it's a media that doesn't have any experience around scouting or player development. The other layer is the general expectations a team has when it signs a guy like this. They are excepting him to be a definite, but a 15-game winner is every bit a definite as a 20-game winner in their business.

And that's my point. That's why the Nationals are going to take him even if I've heard several times out on the trail that they have no clue if they can sign him. They'll take him because they know their fan base will kill them if they don't. They'll overpay for him. They'll be thrilled if he's Pedro in his prime but won't be surprised if he's a guy who eats innings wins in double-digits. That's another reason why it's such a safe pick for them. Strasburg doesn't have to be unholy to be a success. He just has to win 12-15 games a year. He should be able to do that. All I'm saying is don't be shocked if he's not the big leaguer that he is as an amateur, and more likely, he's going to get more money than he's worth. You can never predict injuries, either. The list:


Tom Seaver, RHP, USC, 1965
10-2, 2.47 ERA, 105.2 IP, 100 K, 38 BB

Floyd Bannister, LHP, Arizona State , 1976
19-2, 1.45, 186 IP, 213 K, 66 BB

Roger Clemens, RHP, Texas, 1983
13-5, 3.04 ERA, 166 IP, 151 K, 22 BB

Jim Abbott, LHP, Michigan, 1987
11-3, 2.08 ERA, 86.1 IP, 60 K, 39 BB, 3 shutouts

Ben McDonald, RHP, Lousiana State, 1989
14-4, 3.49 ERA, 152.1 IP, 202 K, 40 BB, 3 shutouts

Mike Mussina, RHP, Stanford, 1990
14-5, 3.35 ERA, 149 IP, 111 K, 35 BB

Paul Wilson, RHP, Florida State, 1994
13-5, 2.08 ERA, 143 IP, 161 K, 32 BB

Barry Zito, LHP, USC, 1999
12-3, 3.28, 113 IP, 154 K, 58 BB

Mark Prior, RHP, USC, 2001
13-1, 1.54 ERA, 122.1 IP, 180 K, 19 BB, 4 shutouts

And Strasburg:
11-0, 1.24 ERA, 87 1/3, 48 H, 17 BB, 164 K

What I learned from Jack Coombs

Coach Coombs, I should say.

For a brief primer, Coombs was a right-hander for Connie Mack's Athletics at the turn of the century. He could pitch, boys, he could pitch.

When his career was over, he became an influential college baseball coach at Duke University where he was probably the most influential amateur coach of the first half of the 20th century.

Jack was the man at Duke in the day, he was Coach K before the was a Coach K. He wrote several editions of his own baseball manual which were huge hits and brings me to this blog today.

I ran across the 1949 edition of the book yesterday at a used book store. I passed on it because it was there last year. It will be there six months from now, and I'm not telling The Original Six where it is because I have plans to go make a day out of getting it.

Anyhow, I get the feeling that Coombs was the guy who never called Jack, never called Happy Jack, and if you played for him, you didn't dare spit in this guy's dugout.

What strikes me is reading how baseball philosophy hasn't changed from 1949 until now. For all the technology, all the scouts and GMs cranking numbers and running around with blackberries and radar guns, the game is the same.

Seriously. No matter how many drugs a player takes, you still gotta play right to win. Crank a 3-run jack, ok. Failing to get a bunt down in a 5-3 game in the 5th will cost you, too. Want to boil down a big league baseball game? Here it is: He who makes the first mistake usually loses.

Jack was a micro-manager of a coach, that much I can tell, which means he was smart enough to stay in college rather than try that shtick in OB (Organized Baseball) where his players would have been drunken, gambling, womanizers. Like I said, nothing has changed.

SEEDS had the OctoManny Joke First * We're Proud to Say

It's not very often that Manny's nuts are national news, but today is the day. Maybe my good friend in the video game industry, Nut Job Bob, can run the PR campaign for a new game based on Manny's Nads.

While I'm hanging pretty low here, let me point out that I was a tad prophetic.

Back on March 21, I joked that Manny should be the Nanny for the OctoMom, thus making him the 'OctoManny.'

I remember when I told that joke to the Original Six readers here at SEEDS. Pure crickets. Today, I heard the joke from Jim Rome and Keith Olbermann. It was pretty obvious, but Manny reaps what Manny sows.

That might be another poor joke. I will say that I wrote a column last summer in which I called Manny a great hitter and a poor player. I got RIPPED. Never said he was a bad hitter. Said he was a bad player. Below-average runner, thrower, fielder. His bat and his power were both 75 or 80, depending how high you wanted to grade. I didn't deny that. I just said he didn't do or care to do anything other than hit. I didn't even deride him for it, but I got pretty ravaged in the emails.

Manny was being...well, not the OctoManny. Talk about bad karma. The Dentist needs Novocaine tonight.

Bad humor aside, look, I don't really care what this guy does. Doesn't mean a thing to me.

Again, though, the timing of the leak from the league office is always worth noting.

How long did the league sit on this?

Who were they really trying to screw, Manny or someone else?

The smart bet from me is that Manny is the means to the end. Maybe they wanted to punish Boras for doing his job, no matter what you think of how he does it.

I note that MLB let the Dodgers finish their home-record winning streak. (It is a modern MLB record, but not the overall record, since the modern MLB doesn't count pre-1900 baseball as meaning a damn thing. That's another wonderful example of MLB's institutional incompetence when it comes to knowing its own history.)

I also note that the league didn't dare screw with its playoffs. Because it can make its point with OctoManny and whatever behind-the-scenes crap is going on here. I've said this many times, baseball is a cruel and vindictive sport behind the scenes. It always has been and always will be. No sport, I mean, NO SPORT, takes the same pride in humiliating people it wants to crush for the sake of it. This game is ALL ABOUT settling old scores, on the field and off.

But business is business. Attendance is in the urine cup with the rest of the economy, so for Captain Bud and his Red Tie Police to pull OctoManny from the post-season would be about as smart as Gary Bettman trying to put an NHL team in Riverside. Hey, I would never put it past him.

And let's be fair. Bud is making his point, but he's still kind of slapping a wrist here. I don't think this is a historically significant moment. He got ripped in March when everyone said he didn't take responsibility. So here's Bud, nailing a guy, but doing it in a way that won't take the Division away from the Dodgers and won't take OctoManny from Moctobter, or whatever they want to call it this year.

Baseball. Man, if ever there was a game all about the Nut Shot, this is it.

Johnny Vandermeer's Arm is Falling Off

One of the most enjoyable aspects of researching something is all the obscure stuff you find that has absolutely nothing to do with what you are researching in the first place. Even though SEEDS, the sad little orphan to its younger, stronger and more unique-obsessed Baseball Beginnings, has The Original Six Readers, I cannot yet disclose what I am digging out.

I know, I know, what a tease I am.

But here is the consolation prize.

In 1946, The Reds were playing a Spring Training game against its Triple-A club, Syracuse, at Plant City, Florida. Nothing historical happened, but here's the blog score anyhow, ripped from United Press.

At Plant City, Fla.
Cincinnati (NL) 200 100 010 -- 4 6 4
Syracuse (IL) 040 001 00x -- 5 9 5
Vandermeer and Lamanno; Blackburn and West.

Here's what stunned me: Why is a guy like Johnny Vandermeer pitching a COMPLETE GAME AGAINST A TRIPLE-A TEAM IN SPRING TRAINING???

I know, but imagine this today. Say Brad Penny, for example, walks to Francona in a game against the PawSox and says, "Screw it, skip. Gimme 9 against all the guys who ain't on the 40-man. So what if I have a bunch of medicals. What's one more?"

These are the things that amuse me on SEEDS and probably explains why this blog has six readers. In fairness, Vandermeer missed three years to World War II and maybe needed the innings. Maybe. The other guy, Blackburn, I think must be Jim "Bones" Blackburn who had a few sips of the big league life.

But don't tell me this was a low pitch-count game because of the NINE errors. Why, that's three more errors than SEEDS has readers! Unless this game had the world's most inept scorekeeper (and, lemme tell ya, I've seen some bad ones), then Johnny V and Bones Blackburn probably needed one tub of ice for their beers after the game and one tub of ice for their shoulders. Hey now, that's an experience Penny can relate to.

New York Times debut

These days, I spit very few seeds on this dugout floor, but I assure you I'm writing elsewhere. Like The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/29/sports/baseball/29pitcher.html?hpw

Best Baseball Joke I wrote in The Year 2000

Dodger Honks will remember the great Todd Hundley fight at Wrigley Field.

They will also remember that Hundley couldn't throw worth a lick. Here's what happened when my young mind crafted it into a joke. It's a long story, but I somehow got the late Shav Glick to put it in Morning Briefing and it was then picked up by the Chicago Tribune.

Slow delivery: From comedy writer John Klima: 'Best wishes to former Dodger catcher Todd Hundley, who signed with the Chicago Cubs.

"We'll never forget the fight in Wrigley Field when he threw a punch that took two bounces in the dirt before it hit the guy."

After this, a wise-ass copy editor named Rob Fernas (he was the guy behind the clip-art seer who picked all the football scores on Friday nights, and when he was wrong, poor Eric Sondheimer took the blame) introduced me whenever I came to work as "Comedy Writer John Klima, everybody."

Would Babe Ruth Hit Today?

Babe Ruth was officially listed at 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, which in this day and age, would make him not a giant nor a dwarf, and fairly reasonable instead of titanic compared to his contemporaries. I happened to catch the tail end of a talk radio segment this morning, in which the host suggested that Ruth wouldn't be an impact player, wouldn't be as good of an athlete as modern players are, and might not even be a major league player today.

The radio host arrived at the conclusion because Ruth would be smaller by today's standards, and that a short, fat, non-athletic white guy who never faced black players, Latin players, closers, and lefty-lefty relievers would not be able to complete today. The host argued that Ruth's impact is distorted because baseball writers have a romantic vision of the game.

I'm not in the business of statistical analysis, but I am in the business of common sense.

He is right that Ruth never faced relievers. He did, however, face the best of the best when there were only eight teams in each league. So comparatively speaking, he was facing the best of the best of what talent he was allowed to face. There were some No. 1 starters in the Negro Leagues he missed. I would have liked to have seen him face the left-handed curveball of Willie Foster.

He is right that Ruth never faced black pitchers or Latin defenses. But that doesn't mean he didn't see them in the winter, nor that he couldn't have made an adjustment, just as they would have to him.

He may be right in describing Ruth as non-athletic because he was fat, but I've seen some fat offensive lineman with wonderful footwork and massive strength hold their own in the NFL.

What he cannot say is that he knows for certain that Ruth would not hit today.

We don't know if Ruth could hit in the modern big leagues, but we also cannot sit here and say he wouldn't hit.

You can argue that he wouldn't hit because of the pitching.

I'm rather certain that Ruth would have used a lighter bat today, would have been a better-conditioned athlete, would have ditched pitching long ago because he was a left-handed bat with power.

Hitting is hitting. That has nothing to do with stats. It's a skill and a talent. Would Ruth have done what he did then today? Probably not, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't hit.

You never say for certain that a guy will hit in the major leagues. The best you can say is I see no reason why he should not hit in the major leagues.

Maybe Ruth would have been more Paul McAnalty or Chris Carter, heavy-set left-handed hitters without a position. Maybe he would have been a circle in a square world. But those guys are professionals because somebody thinks they can hit.

You never hear people say that Ted Williams would not hit today. Look at the eras. Ruth's last good offensive year was 1933, or 1934 if you really want to stretch it.

Williams's first big season was his rookie year in 1939. That's a five-year swing. The game had changed from the Dead Ball Era to the Offensive Era from the start of Ruth's career with the Red Sox to the end of it with the Yankees. The players in 1934would certainly argue that they were better than the players of 1916, and they would probably be right.

And Ruth was still hitting. Why? He made adjustments. You can take a hitter out of a generation but you can not take the hitter out of a hitter.

If Ruth had been dominant when Williams was, would radio hosts question what Ruth did?

Williams didn't face black pitchers or Latin defenses until later in his career, and he still hit, didn't he?

So how can you claim that Babe Ruth would not hit today any more than you can claim that Manny Ramirez would not have hit yesterday?

It's not an argument of numbers. It's a question of having a skill. And if Ruth couldn't hit, then why was he head and shoulders above everyone of his generation.

It makes no sense.

I have no idea what kind of offensive numbers Ruth would put up today. I have no clue if he would find and keep a roster spot. But I know he would be able to hit, because a hitter is a hitter.

Would Stan Musial hit today?
Would Willie Mays hit today?
Would Hank Aaron hit today?
Would Mickey Mantle hit day?
Would Johnny Bench hit today?
Would Pete Rose hit today?

A hitter is a hitter.

Circumstances change. Ruth would need the right people. Boras might or might not be his agent.

But all I know is this. A hitter hits.

Babe Ruth could hit.

I should be watering the SEEDS more often, but I have to admit that baseballbeginnings.com is crushing SEEDS.

I swore I would never leave one of these desolate cyberspace monuments, because if you were to come across this, you might think I'm a lazy pile who ran out of things to say.

That's not the case. I do have some things to say on this site, so if you find me, all six of you, I'll still write some stuff that is longer and links to another one of my sites. There are times when I just don't feel like adding another piece of copy to the topic of the day. It bores me. Why do you need to read what I think about what happened today? The market is flooded with voices that cancel each other out. I'm a much better read when it comes to subjects about the past, the future, and things nobody discusses in the moment.

But there's not much of a market for somebody who wants to know why the San Francisco Giants can have statues of Mays, McCovey, Marichal and Cepeda and can't so much as put up a plaque for Alex Pompez on their wall of fame. They can put Greg Minton there. But the guy they got their marquee players from? No. What about George Genovese, the scout who sent the Giants sluggers from Jack Clark to Dave Kingman to Matt Williams? No.

Baseball has the worst institutional knowledge. It's like a damn theme park. The industry leaves it to guys like me to maintain the knowledge. OK, I'll do it, but I warn you: when I find bruises you forgot about, the dirty deals and the crushed spirits (and I do) you'll read about them.

The biggest lesson I learned from SEEDS is that any website has to have a specific focus. I know that sounds like common sense, but let's not forget, I came in from the newspaper business. That's why Beginnings is good for me.

I love to write long and I love to scout. I love the pursuit of looking at a kid and saying, give him five years and he'll be in the big leagues. That's not for everyone. I think this is where my anthropology background comes into play. I like to see how things started, not how they ended. This is what my Mays book is. He didn't just show up in Harlem one day. There was an entire unreported saga behind how he got there and how being born and raised near Birmingham almost crushed our chances of seeing the best baseball player anyone will ever see.

By the way, after much thought, my all-time outfield is Mays in center and Clemente in right. Aaron has to move to left. Sorry, Teddy. You can DH. It's a better fit for you anyhow.

Where I've been keeping myself

www.baseballbeginnings.com

Kershaw Throws the Hammer

Clayton Kershaw turned 21 on Thursday and then told the dwindling Dodger beat writers, “I've actually never had a drink before. Tonight I might try it out.”

I know that if I had worked with Brad Penny and Derek Lowe that there would never be a beer near by locker after a game.

This is just a ridiciously funny quote to me. I’m not saying the kid is a drunk by any stretch, but let’s be realistic. At least kid Kershaw is learning the game well. If a big leaguer’s lips are moving to a reporter, he’s usually lying. Not always, but many times. I'm pretty sure Russell Martin was telling the truth earlier this spring when he described how he got a certain injury. If there's one book most ballplayers have read...

Ah, youth.

While I’m talking about the Dodgers, I need to get this joke out of my head. It is a joke about Manny Ramirez. No, no, I’m not going to go off about what I really think. I just think that I know what would be the PERFECT side job for him. And I know I can say this, because I’ve read my numbers when I talk about him, and he doesn’t drive my morbid ratings here at this For Entertainment Only Purposes Site.

I mean, let’s face it. The economy sucks. We can all use a little extra change. So I suggest Manny work as a Nanny for the OctoMom.

You guessed it, this would make him the “OctoManny.”

Thank you, I needed to get it out of my system.

Notes to My Deprived Readers…All Six of You

…The Reds sent LHP Adam Pettyjohn to minor league camp, as expected. He’ll begin the season at Triple-A Louisville. He’s won 30 games in two years in the minors and hopefully he’ll put up another solid season and get back to the big leagues yet again.

…I hate the WBC. I’m sorry, I just don’t care about it. I can’t get into it, because I know the American players don’t get into it. First of all, this is a High School-style tournament in the middle of spring training. This is, in effect, a great big walking MasterCard commercial for MLB. I’m not going to sit here and state the obvious. The word is CONTRIVED.

…I haven’t forgotten about the 1986 Topps Extended Set. I’m still a few cards away from Bonds in the old school mesh Pirates hat. I have new respect for the guys who go card by card in each set.

…I might write an essay called, “What I have learned by blogging.” Really, SEEDS is my laboratory and will continue to be. It’s fun to see what gets hits and what gets ignored and how easy it is for a blog to get stale.

…As a teaser, I’m building a new website that will bring together a lot of original content and will become my baseball flagship website. I have my author website, which is my flagship for the books. Yes, I know it would be easier if I would just pick one or the other. But I like baseball too damn much.

…Yes, I am in the early stages of the next book. No, it’s not about baseball. Yes, books are HARD.

…I went to a baseball game at Cal State Northridge Tuesday to see BYU. Their coach is former Cubs infielder Vance Law. My question I’d like to ask: what is the real story in how Bing Crosby helped get his father, Vern, signed by the Pirates out of Gonzaga University?

…Shout to my loyal South Bay baseball coaches, in no order: Ollie, Fuj, Grady, Billy: Fuj, may you defeat the realtor. Ollie may you defeat the Yoda. Billy may you beat Gonzo (and I like Gonzo). Grady may you make the playoffs again. I heard the previews were "paint by color."

…Vance Albitz is having a nice college career. Good player for the wrong generation. No love for the little guy. Google him, strangers.

…If the Negro League Baseball Museum in KC is whining about no one serving as a spokesman, here’s a suggestion: PAY SOMEONE. Trust me, Buck wasn’t working for free. Someone was footing the bill for his travel and expenses. (And as a side, for all the times Buck mentioned Satchel Paige, I never heard Satchel Paige mention Buck. Satchel didn't buy bullshit and he spoke his mind, until his dying day.) Don’t ask Willie or Ernie or Hank or Monte to work for free. This is ironic. The mantra of the Negro Leagues was “Follow the Money.” Man, where’d the money go? OUTSTANDING.

Dustin Pedroia WBC quotes, Saturday

Because I know somewhere, there are Red Sox fans who will find this.

(Hey, Sox fans, you could have had Mays! Read about it in Willie's Boys! Link to your right!)

Your friend,
SEEDS

Dustin Pedroia
Q: What you can tell us about what happened and how serious it is?

A: I was hitting extra yesterday and kind of felt some soreness. Started taking flips today and I kind of felt a shooting pain a little bit. Out hitting coach, Reggie Smith, said, “Hey, that’s it. Go get checked out.” Our trainer obviously called the Red Sox and I’ll get checked out by the doctors there. I think it’s more precautionary than anything. Obviously I’m upset. It’s a couple of days and I’ll be back tomorrow after I get checked out. I’ll continue playing. It’s up to the Red Sox. I don’t really have a say in that matter.

Q: Have you ever had any sort of oblique thing before?

A: No, nothing like that. I’ve never really had anything like this which is why it’s frustrating. Obviously I train real hard in the off season to get ready and try to prevent something like this from happening. Maybe I tried a little too hard too fast to get this going. I’ll get it checked out tomorrow.

Q: Yesterday was the first time you had any problems with this?

A: Yeah I was a little sore. Me and David Wright were hitting extra. I kind of told him my oblique was sore. Today, I came out, took a swing and I felt a little pain but hopefully its nothing and I’m back tomorrow.

Q: Did you do anything today to test it or did you know coming in today that you weren’t playing.

A: No, I didn’t really think about it. I just went out there and did my routine and did my tee work. I didn’t really feel it there. I really don’t swing that hard off a tee. Then on my flips, I started swinging hard and that’s when it kind of grabbed a little bit. Hopefully its nothing serious.

Thursday Spring Flings...

Cruising the Spring Training Camps Thursday in SPRING FLINGS….

…Washington right-hander Josh Towers, trying to get his act together on the big league level, took a step backwards Thursday. The former Oriole and Blue Jays starter surrendered three runs and five hits in 1 2/3 innings.

…Craig Monroe hits three home runs for the Pirates. Always the “other” prospect behind Curtis Granderson in Detroit, maybe Monroe is ready for more. I’ll confess that I actually did a double take when I saw Monroe hit three home runs in a game. Who does he think he is, Willie Mays?

…There’s four shutout innings for Josh Beckett today. Red Sox nation waits and holds its breath that Beckett gets off to one of those 10-1 starts in 2009.

…Journeyman Joe Thurston, former Yakima Bear and one time Dodger second baseman of the future, collected three hits for the Cardinals. Thurston always had speed and defense but has never put it together enough offensively to play every day.

…The ageless Gabe Kapler collected two hits for Tampa and probably will get more playing time with wrist injury to Fernando Perez.

…James Shields solid in four innings and a positive scoreless inning for Troy Percival are good signs for the Rays.

…The Jay Gibbons redemption tour continues in Florida, where he hit a home run and knocked in three runs.

…Ian Stewart’s home run off John Lackey is pretty good sign that it’s time for the prospect label to come off.

…Another SEEDS favorite, trusty and gutty veteran infielder Joe Dillon, had a hit for Oakland. We like Underdogs around these parts.

Derek Jeter at World Bud Classic, fresh with HS-athlete quality quotes of his own

"I think, you know, you just understand that it's a short tournament, you know. And with the exception of tonight, where we knew both teams are going to the second round, every game is important. So you have to come out with intensity every game."

This is great. I can't tell if this is Jeter or some kid from Grady Sain's South Torrance Spartans.

Now, Jeter goes all High School football coach on the World:

"It's tough to beat any team twice. I don't think too many people gave them a chance to win, and they went out there and showed what this tournament's all about."

Good things these quotes came out late. I'm half asleep already.

Frankie Rats out the Bum Ankle

FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ, speaking Wednesday night from the World Bud Classic:

"This last year, I don't have, you know, the ankle problem like I did last year. I feel totally different. I feel 100 percent healthy. It's not the velocity. It's not because I was playing against the U.S., you know. I think I worked so hard through winter and trying early in the spring to get where I need to be. Once again, I feel 100 percent healthy. And now I have to go out there with the Mets and keep doing what I'm doing."

Wednesday Spring Flings (After spending Tuesday on the Disabled list)

…Roy Halladay looks ready for opening day, with four strikeouts in four innings Wednesday. So what if they were against the Pirates.

…Homer Bailey is throwing harder, but still hittable, giving up two hits in two scoreless innings for the Reds.

…Twins shortstop prospect Trevor Plouffe is in big-league camp and got a hit Tuesday.

…Brian Burney pitched better than CC Sabathia, for less cash.

…Cody Ransom goes 1-for-3. Poor guy finally gets a crack at a big league starting job…with the Yankees…replacing A-Rod. Proof that sometimes a lucky break is a brutal break.

…Is that Vladimir Nunez in Braves camp, getting two strikeouts for both of his outs? This guy will go from scrap heap to closer one of these days.

…Dex Fowler gets start at CF over Ryan Spilborghs in Rox camp. Gets three more A.B.s as well…hmmm…

…Former Fresno State infielder Casey McGehee goes 3-for-3 for Brewers.

…Two hits for former USC DH Jeff Clement for the Mariners Wednesday.

Pettyjohn Bounces Back

Good news for left-hander Adam Pettyjohn, the DH (Designated Hurler) of SEEDS. After one of those outings that is about as fun as getting hit by a bus, Adam bounced back with a scoreless 1/3 inning Saturday against the Blue Jays. Entering the game with two on and two out, Pettyjohn got a punch out to end the inning. Now I hope that I don’t jinx him because if I am doing damage in Spring Training, then I don’t want to screw his real season up.

Sweet! Indy League Bullpen Catcher! My Dream Job!

Baseball Operations: General Baseball Operations

Bullpen Catcher - Long Island Ducks (Central Islip, NY)


The successful candidate will act as catcher for all side sessions, warm-up sessions (pregame, during games, non-gamedays), and other events on an as needed basis throughout the five month baseball season. Some travel required (Spring training / 1-2 road trips per year). Previous experience as a catcher on the collegiate level at a minimum preferred. The successful applicant must also have their own mode of transportation.

Jack Keefe sends Ring Lardner a Happy Birthday Blog

And now, Jack Keefe sends Ring Lardner a Happy Birthday blog, complete with spelling and grammar goofs. The Busher Keefe was reminded because the Broadcaster Keith (Olbermann) shouted him out on Odd Ball Friday night.

The Busher Blogs it, Hence:

Dear Ring:
The funny man on the TV with the affliction for Mirkle (I punched him out on account of my hummer) sed that it was your b-day t-day back in 1885. I and Florrie wanted to wis you well on this day. She says to me recently, ‘Jack, why don’t you hum a hummer up at that press box where that funny man in the funny hat does his typing work about you?’

I said, ‘Nah, once I tried that but the pitch got away from me and went right down the heart of the plate. The fat man behind the dish sed strike three. I took the punch out on account it was given to me and I own Mirkle and Gleason was telling all the young pitchers how I is an example for young athletes.’

So, anyways, Happy Birthday.

You know me, Ring.

Jack

Willie Mays, circa 1949

Say Hey! It's the Sweet Retro Picture of the Day!

I think the moment it dawned on me that I had actually written a book about Willie Mays is when I was bird dogging at a UCLA baseball game a few weeks ago when the “Say Hey! Say Willie!” song from the Ken Burns Baseball soundtrack was played on the PA system.

I thought, wow. Damn. I have dipped into baseball theology. They don’t write songs about anyone else I have ever written about and that includes feisty shortstop George Genovese.

As an added insight into my own personal neurosis, I was a horrible baseball player. Mays, you understand, was an 80-raw, five-tool guy at age 18, as he is shown here in Birmingham's Rickwood Field in August, 1949. So I'm glad Willie's cleats are over my name. A player like me has no business on a field with him. As a writer...different story.

So without further suspense, here is the book cover art for Willie’s Boys: The 1948 Birmingham Black Barons, the Last Negro League World Series, and the Making of a Baseball Legend, published by John Wiley & Sons and in bookstores nationwide (and hopefully on Mars, too) on August 31, 2009. I'll rig up a link to Amazon. Pre-orders are now being taken! Sweet!


Buy Willie's Boys

The Pettyjohn Chronicles

Check out The Sporting News for Part One of a Three-Part series about the Reds left-hander Adam Pettyhjohn. And no, I didn't write these for a change.

SOLD! To the Only Bidder

There's no business like Manny business like no business I know.

Vintage Pedro Martinez vs. Roger Clemens

I had to go to a dentist today to learn that I need a tooth pulled, which doesn’t strike me as newsworthy, but perhaps such mundane details are relevant in the information age. I noticed something on his walls that indicated he was from Boston, so I asked if he was a Red Sox fan.

There I was reminded of one of baseball’s timeless commandments: Thou Shall Never Ask a Yankees fan if he is a Red Sox fan.

Thankfully, the guy didn’t pull my tooth right then and there.

He did share an anecdote from one of the times Pedro Martinez pitched against Roger Clemens at Fenway Park, May 28, 2000. I’ll let the good doctor take it from here:

“So we’re in Fenway Park before the game and my buddy says to me, ‘Wait until Clemens comes out of the dugout and walks to the bullpen.”

“What am I waiting for?” the doctor asked.

“You’ll see,” his buddy said.

“The second Clemens popped out of the dugout,” the doctor said, “Fenway rose and in unison began chanting, “FUCK-YOU-RO-GER!” (clap five times) “FUCK-YOU-RO-GER!”

Even though the doctor was a Yankee fan, he laughed. At least that’s the story he told. I didn’t check to see if his buddy still had his teeth.

Tick, Tick, Tick, Tick, Manny Ramirez, Tick, Tick, Tick

"Fans, this is Manny Ramirez. I know ya'll want me back. I just gotta tell you the truth. I HATE spring training. Man, do you REALLY THINK I NEED 35 games to get ready?

"Look, I want to get paid. I don't see what the issue is. Want my bat? My bat costs cash. You guys can build a new stadium and you can't pay me? COME ON! Can a spring training park hit 35 HR? True, it may run better than I do, and guys might not get on my case when I don't run out ground balls, but COME ON!

"Ya'll need me. Do you think I really want to go freeze my ass off in San Francisco? Man, I froze my BALLS off in Boston. F-that-S, man."

World Bud Classic (WBC) Update: Yanks beat Yanks

Nothing fires me up like WBC press releases. Give Derek Jeter a two-run single and Roy Oswalt 3 1/3 innings in which he didn't pay attention to the fact that he gave up four hits, one run, walked one and struck out two. Team USA defeats the New York Yankees, 6-5.

Poor Red Smith would be spinning in his grave. He said that rooting for the Yankees was like rooting for US Steal. So, you root for the national team over US Steal?

This is awesome. Was it a baseball game or talk radio?

Wait a minute, the bottom of the release says that "Tuesday’s game was an exhibition for the New York Yankees, and thus, the stats for the game do not count toward their Spring totals."

Man, leave it to U.S. Steel to wiggle out of playing the US team.

They can't all be winners

Aw, crap! I blog once and Pettyjohn gets hit.
Tuesday line: 1/3 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 1 HR

Ok. I feel awful. I feel like I jinxed him. But if I type the good with the bad, then it all has to balance out, right?

SEEDS begins the 2009 Adam Pettyjohn watch

Long story made short: In 2005, I couldn’t figure out why Adam Pettyjohn, a 27-year old left-handed pitcher with big league experience, was pitching for an independent team in Long Beach. I saw him pitch seven innings. Later I did an interview and a story. I shouted him to some scouts. He signed with the Mariners. He almost got released but made Double-A club on the last day of camp. The Mariners released him and he was going to play in Taiwan. The Oakland A’s called. He went back to Triple-A and finished the season. In 2007, he signed with the Brewers and won 15 games in the minors and didn’t get a call-up. In 2008, he signed with the Reds and won 15 more games in Triple-A and received a call-up where he pitched in the big leagues for the first time in seven years.

Pettyjohn re-signed with the Reds and is in big league camp. He pitched a 1-2-3 inning against the Red Sox Saturday night. He’s slated to start the season in Triple-A, but the Reds aren’t exactly loaded with pitching depth. Plus, Edinson Volquez and Johnny Cueto are pitching for the Dominican Republic in the World Bud Classic, so there might be some more innings.

I seem to have a history of writing about left-handed pitchers (I’m talking to you, Paul Pettit), and Pettyjohn is no exception. So here at SEEDS I’m going to institute the Adam Pettyjohn watch. Stay tuned. Same left-handed time! Same left-handed channel!

And rather than me explaining his entire story, the original question I asked (“What the hell is a 27-year old left-handed pitcher with big league experience doing in this league?”) have a look at the archives.

Yahoo story

MLB.com story

Observations from Arizona

Last week I drove to Arizona to chase a handful of freelance writing assignments. I’d like to share a few observations I collected along the way. On Day One I arrived in Glendale and took the unguided tour of the new Dodger and White Sox digs. I walked onto the concourse, lost. The construction workers told me I needed a hard hat. Then they told me I was lost. I said, thank you very much, I’m getting high off the fumes. True story.

So I drove down the side road. I began the long hike, past the catering truck. Parts of the road were paved and some were not. I have no sense of direction. I’m pretty sure I broke some rules, but I tried not to walk on the new grass. I found the minor league side. Dermal Brown almost ran me over, but I’m a smart lad and got out of the way. I did the first interview I came to get.

Over the river and through the nothingness, I found the White Sox side. I’ll give the Dodgers this: they seem to let their fans get closer to the players than the White Sox do. I found my way back to the Dodgers side, walking past the murky lake, which I think has a Pima Indian title that loosely translates into why “Why You Don’t Drink the Tap Water in Arizona.”

I found my way into the offices and the clubhouse. Nice weight room. Did two interviews. Showed the cover of Willie’s Boys. Went back to the hotel and passed out. Woke up a week later and saw what happens to your blog numbers when you go dark for a week.

More Proof Manager Mike Scioscia is the real GM of the Angels

“If we didn’t get Bobby (Abreu), we felt good about our club,” Scioscia said. “But he gives us an added depth. A couple of days before (the Angels got him), I said maybe we’re not as deep this year. But we reacquired some depth with Bobby.”

It’s no secret to anyone who reads my stuff that I like Scioscia. It’s not simply because he wanted to read “Willie’s Boys” months before it came out. It’s because I like watching a Hall of Fame baseball mind in action and hope some of that intellect wears off on me.

It’s also no secret that Arte Moreno trusts Scioscia above all. Look, I’m not throwing loyal organizational foot solider Tony Reagins under the bus. He’s clearly the daily operations guy, the wily point guard who adeptly distributes the ball. To borrow L.A. Lakers terms, Reagins is Fisher and Scioscia is Kobe. Scioscia is always going to be the last man with the ball. If he wants to take the shot, the team will take the shot.

Scioscia has always differed from Tommy Lasorda in the sense that he doesn’t act like he wants all the attention. Scioscia is damn near Mother Teresa when it comes to lauding his peers, and I like that.

But let’s be honest. There will never be a major acquisition shoved down his throat. He’s going to have a hand in who is on the 40-man and who is not. He’s going to be the final call on a minor league call-up. Everyone else is just compiling information and handing him the ball. He’s got more power now than he had in his swing. It's not like every manager has that autonomy.

Yes, Virginia, there is backstabbing in baseball. Managerial history is littered with guys who lost jobs because they had no control over how their teams were assembled. That cemetery is loaded with managers who were asked to win with inferior talent or talent that they could not wrap their minds around.

This is that old school model of Dodger dictatorship again. All points of view will be heard. All matters of information will be considered. In the end, it will be experience and instinct that trumps all as long as Moreno and his silent partner own the team.

Ah, Spring Training…er, Scandal Training

Does anybody else find it strange that baseball scandals almost always seem to happen during Spring Training? This always makes me think that every major league news story isn’t reported as much as it is fed to a reporter. Therefore, wouldn’t it make the most sense to feed your scandals before the season rather than at a time of the year when it might influence revenue streams, like regular season TV games and the playoffs?

This stuff continues to defy logic and makes me believe baseball is pathologically obsessed with wetting its pants. This is the time of the year when you’re supposed to be getting people fired up, not sick of the game before the first pitch.

Conor Jackson's power will come, Blogging Birddog predicts

Conor Jackson avoided arbitration with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday, signing a one-year $3.05 million contract. It’s a nice pay raise from the paltry $419,500 he made in 2008, according to The Associated Press.

The prediction here is that Jackson’s power is going to come. He won’t be 30 for another three years. My reasons for this are based in scouting. Jackson’s traditional two-hand follow through, hard swing and good approach gives him a good set of power tools. Jackson’s power will always be line-drive oriented, but as he matures and continues to add strength, he’s going to be able to continue developing at the big league level.

Jackson’s always had a good handle on the strike zone, but never lost his aggressiveness. That is also important. He maintains his balance and body control and uses his lower half. He’s strong to the point of contact and drives though the ball. There’s room for growth here.

While we wait and see if Jackson proves my scouting is worth a [spit], here’s a piece I wrote last summer.
http://www.klimaink.com/baseballwriting/mlbessays/essay49.html

Why Henry Aaron shouldn’t care if Barry Bonds keeps the home run record

“It belongs to Barry,” Henry Aaron told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “No matter how we look at it, it’s his record, and I held it for a long time.”

Through all the theatrics, court dates, leaked grand jury testimonies, 50, 60 and 70-home run seasons, this is what Barry Bonds got right.

For all the bat flips, intentional walks, bickering with players, fans, coaches and media, this is what Bonds inadvertently did well.

The greatest contribution Bonds made to baseball was removing the all-time home run record from Aaron’s keep.

It was not because Aaron did not deserve the record, but he does not deserve the rancor that will forever accompany the record and the manner by which Bonds surpassed it.
READ THE REST at www.klimaink.com

A-ROD: 'Kids, Don't do drugs, or You May Never hit 50 HR"

Alex Rodriguez is about to become the Nancy Reagan of Major League Baseball. I might suggest puppetry and ventriloquist lessons so that A-Rod can go classroom to classroom with his trusty Muppet to tell the kids the dangers of drugs. “Kids, don’t do drugs, or you may never hit 50 home runs.”

Since I know A-Rod likes to stick to talking points, let me snag the greatest anti-drug line ever.

THIS IS YOUR GAME. THIS IS YOUR GAME ON DRUGS

How Ervin Santana Went From Basket Case to Bargain Ace

Ervin Santana pitched for the fifth starter’s job last Spring Training, coming off such an atrocious 2007 season that the Angels considered trading him and, politely speaking, questioned his maturity and moxie.

One year later, Santana signed a four-year, $30 million contract extension with an option for a fifth year. The Angels avoided arbitration, which was probably a good idea considering how Santana wears his heart on his sleeve. Santana has proven two things in his short major league career: his stuff is explosive and his memory is long.

Read the Rest at SEEDS World HQ, www.klimaink.com

Selig Must Step Up; Accept Responsibility

‘Out of Touch’ has become a pop cultural phrase, a talking point with power. ‘Out of Touch,’ helped get the President elected. ‘Out of Touch,’ is the worst badge that can be placed on a public personality, be it a corporate CEO or a politician.

In the case of Bud Selig, he is both a corporate CEO and a politician ‘Out of Touch’ with what is going on below him. I recently joked that with Selig’s $18.5 million annual salary, he could purchase 300,000 of his favorite red ties. That was last week. This week, he says Alex Rodriguez has ‘shamed the game.’

‘Out of Touch,’ will be Selig’s legacy if he will not allow it to be the accountability he is forcing players to accept.

He has wildly succeeded as a businessman, driving the game to unseen revenue levels, the ultimate owner’s commissioner. One of Selig’s public talking points in recent years has been that Major League Baseball, his MLB, is in a golden age.

But for whom does the Bud toll?

Read the rest at the mothership, Klima Ink on the front page, followed by a jump.

We Now Give You a Breather from All A-Rod, All the Time

I’m going to be profound in the next post, but not right now. Pitchers, catchers and confessed cheaters will soon start reporting to camp. When they do, some will be as giddy as Juan Berenguer was when this spring training snapshot was taken in 1986. The biggest joke in this card can be seen in the background. Take a look at the fuzzy backdrop of all those cheap advertisements on the outfield wall.

Remember when baseball used to be sponsored by Mom and Pop stores? Berenguer is wearing road grays here, so I’m not sure which Cactus League park he was posing in. But I do know this: I don’t see McDonald’s, The Gap, Bank of America, Budweiser, or any of America’s other corporate GIANTS. I see a bunch of little shops that are either out of business or are too poor these days to spend big bucks on outfield walls. I see a bunch of small business that baseball wouldn’t dare do business with in this ‘Golden Age.’

In my next post, I’m going to discuss how baseball is ‘Out of Touch,’ but we’ve got a great example of economic disparity right here. This is only 23 years ago, and the little guys have already been blocked out, something that the often chunky Berenguer’s rather slim gut couldn’t achieve on this fine spring day.

Why Alex Rodriguez Doesn't Matter To Me (And it's not because he doped)

SEEDS reader Husker Bob asks: ‘John, why are you blogging about such random stuff like baseball cards?’

My answer is something that a former career minor league outfielder Brent ‘Cookie’ Cookson once told me. He said this one dreary summer in Triple-A Tucson when he was raking and was blocked yet again at the big-league level. “You gotta have fun or this game will bury you,” Cookson told me.

And that’s why there’s a picture of Juan Beniquez right here, card No. 8T, today. I don’t have anything flashy to say about this. In fact, I don’t feel like trying. I just want to look at the goofy Orioles uniform. Do you know why?


It’s because I’m sick of hearing about Alex Rodriguez. I’m sick of a steroid era that will never end because Major League Baseball will never outsource drug testing and the Union will never allow for blood testing. I wish baseball would just admit that it is as dirty as every other sport, because trying to save face is more painful than cutting out the bullshit and just saying what we all know is true.

I am immune. I do not care. The game will never change. I don't understand why this needs to be a morality play. The fans speak with money. The fans know what is going on, but their passion should be respected more. It is stronger than baseball's need to conduct this in-house Passion Play, this pathological need to drama queen itself.

It’s always going to be about MLB throwing the very players who made it wealthy under the bus and making those players take the bullet. Players are guilty, but so is ownership. Selig will grandstand and call it integrity.

So, Husker Bob, I want to tell you about Juan Beniquez. He was a damn good bench player who hit .300 for the Angels from 1983-1985. He always looked mad for some reason, but Gene Mauch didn’t care as long as the cranky son of a bitch hit. It took one cranky SOB to respect another. That’s the way it worked in the baseball I grew up around.

This photo was taken in old Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. I remember that faded green outfield wall. Nope, this doesn’t have anything to do with A-Rod and what is happening in baseball today. All I know is I gotta have fun or this game will bury me.

VOTE FOR BEDRO: Steve Bedrosian, 1987 NL Cy Young Award winner.

I have been woefully negligent in my duties to cover the entire 1986 Topps Extended Set.

For those of you new to SEEDS, here’s the deal. Right before Christmas, I got sick of buying everyone else gifts and decided to buy myself something. $37 later, karma kicked me square in the balls when SEEDS reader Chris W. told me I got really screwed on the price. I decided these cards would go to the Cyber Cemetery here at SEEDS, buried alongside countless gags and WILLIE’S BOYS plugs. (Coming in Fall 2009, the story of Willie Mays before he started acting like Willie Mays)

So here is card No. 7, Steve Bedrosian. I’ve had a long time to think about what to write about this bland photo of the closer called ‘Bedrock.’ Often, I stayed up late at night asking, ‘What would Cardboard Gods dude do (WWCGDD)’ or ‘What would Pack a Day say? (WWPADS).'

Finally, I reached these conclusions. I think Bedrosian has to be an Armenian name because of the ‘ian’ ending. Second, I am still so bitter that Bedrosian won the 1987 NL Cy Young Award for what would now be considered a measly 40 saves, jobbing Nolan Ryan out of the hardware despite Ryan’s 2.76 ERA and crummy 8-16 record on a garbage team. (These stats are off the top of my head. Consult the record books and sites to see if my memory is still here.)

And had Bedrosian gotten the moniker ‘BEDRO’ rather than ‘Bedrock,’ he could been PEDRO before there was a PEDRO. That means Steve could have worn a badge that read VOTE FOR BEDRO.

Maybe he was wearing the T-shirt after all. Enough guys from the BBWAA, back in the good old days of lying on their expense reports and jacking the company for ungodly overtime to ask guys like BEDRO how he felt that day, voted for him. Which I suppose is a good thing because a Cy Young Award is nice to talk about. I do want to mention that you can see BEDRO’s greatest gift very clearly in this image. Look at that right arm. It is loose, limber and all ligaments. That’s old school scouting for you.

Now if BEDRO was hard, guess who is on deck? Juan Beniquez. In the hole is Juan Berenguer. Seriously, what the hell am I going to say about Juan Berenguer that isn’t a fat joke? After that, it’s Mike Bielecki. Finally it gets better with Barry Friggin’ Bonds. I’m trying to decide if I should offer a teaser. OK, here’s one.

DODGER CLONE WARS: Is Craig Crawford Peter O’Malley’s Double?

SEEDS fans, I must know: Is political commentator Craig Crawford not the friggin’ spittin’ image of former Dodger owner Peter O’Malley? Whenever I see Crawford on MSNBC, my first thought is, ‘Hey! It’s Pete, the Patriarch of the Plastic Glove Giveaway!’

Talk to me, SEEDERS. I must know.

Is Craig Crawford Peter O’Malley cloned?

SEEDS Could Use a Bailout, Too

Dear Citi:

Since I started this blog, I have been giving mad love to Federal Bailout Ballpark, aka Citi Field. I was wondering if you would mind sponsoring this blog for maybe $100 a week. In exchange, I would be glad to rename this blog, SEEDS ON THE DUGOUT FLOOR, PRESENTED BY CITI.

That’s right, Citi! You can be a presenting sponsor. You like baseball. So do I! You like cash infusions. So do I! And if you lose your presenting sponsorship of the Mets’ new field, you can funnel some of that loot this way. I’ll even pay taxes on it, seeing as how it was the taxpayers’ money.

Just wanted to know how you felt. And I wanted to ask because I already barked up Enron’s tree.

Sincerely,
SEEDS

Bud Selig to purchase 360,000 plain red ties

With his pay all the way up to $18.4 million, Bud (saving $400,000 for living expenses) can now splurge on all the red neck ties he can dream of.

Like this one, priced at $50 a pop! Let’s read the product description and see how many of these terms apply to Bud: “Fiery and bold! For the man who wants to liven up his wardrobe with this zesty color. Best worn with a charcoal, black or navy suit and a crisp white dress shirt.”

Now, for our showcase model to strut down the catwalk! Music, please!

“I’m too sexy for my tie, too sexy for my tie, so sexy I love All-Star game Tieeees. I’m the Commish and You know what I mean, and I do my little turn on the Bud Walk.”

And in this photo, we see Bud discussing the size of his....salary.

How Jon Weisman and I go way back

We were once clerks together at the Los Angeles Times several years ago, taking high school sports results. That job is a bit like being the target of a firing squad and having to take each bullet with a smile (I rarely smiled). Later, when we both moved on, Jon started blogging before I knew what a blog was. His Dodger Thoughts grew, I rode a bus in the Northwest League, we both kept writing and both wrote books with actual publishers for actual money. Now, he heads back to The Times. I say, Go Get ‘Em! But if Ned starts calling in his scores, bail IMMEDIATELY.

COMING OUT OF SUPER BOWL INDUCED COMA

Wait a minute! According to my counter seven of you looked at this blog on Super Bowl Sunday? Well, thank you. Really, you didn’t have to. Let me get my scorecard out…SEEDS 7, Super Bowl 30 million. That looks bad, but it is seven more readers than some newspapers have. More tonight!

METS SIGN MANNY RAMIREZ! No, I'm just kidding, but they did sign Gil Hodges on this date in 1962

On this day in 1962, the New York Mets signed Gil Hodges for $33,000. This isn’t an earth-shaking anniversary, but it’s better than any of the news I’m seeing on the wires today. It also allows me to break out one of the favorite features here at SEEDS, the Sweet Retro Picture of the Day. Freshly scanned from my used bookstore-fresh 1970 Sporting News baseball guide is the team picture of the World Champion 1969 New York Mets.

It took Hodges less time to find a job for the 1962 season than it’s taking Manny Ramirez to find work in 2009. This stint was the lesser-celebrated of Hodges’s two stays with the Mets in the 1960s, but this brief layover at the end of his playing career certainly didn’t hurt his status when the Mets called for a new manager in 1968.

When the Hodges-led Mets started the 1969 World Series against the Orioles, this telegram arrived to Mets chairman Donald Grant from Yankees President Michael Burke. It remains one of the classics of baseball smack talk.

CONGRATULATIONS ON BEING NUMBER ONE – AM ROOTING FOR YOU TO HANG IN THERE AND TAKE ALL THE MARBLES. AS A NEW YORKER I AM ECSTATIC, AS A BASEBALL PERSON I AM IMMENSELY PLEASED AND AS A YANKEE I CONSIDER SUICIDE THE EASY OPTION.

Have a Coke and a Samoan Smile

A special hello to anyone who found SEEDS via the Troy Polamalu story I did for Yahoo. As a tribute to Polamalu, here’s a shout to the first major league baseball player ever born in American Samoa. Tony Solaita. He was a part-time player but he got more attention for being from Samoa. Tony, who died in 1990, was ahead of his time, though maybe in the wrong sport.

The Angels actually held a day for him back in the 1970s. As a catcher, he was the original Throwin’ Samoan (that’s a shout to former QB Jack Thompson). One thing about Polynesian athletes – these guys deeply respect where they came from. That makes them fun to interact with. Heritage means something and it transcends the uniform they wear.

Chicago Barack Sox

If Sen. John Boehner is given the first of the Chicago White Sox’s proposed brand-spanking new President Obama lids, I have a feeling his first act will be to shape the bill and then say the hat doesn’t fit.

The White Sox are hoping that you too can play pass the hat with your very own Obama White Sox cap. According to the White Sox, the club is hoping to get permission from the Administration to proceed with the souvenir-hawker’s dream and donate the proceeds to local charities around the ballpark. It’s just another reminder that Major League Baseball hats are the official hats of the much-hipper NBA.

I hope No. 44 approves this message. I hope part of the stimulus package then involves a free hat for all of us, except for the Mets fans, who already got Federal Bailout Ballpark.

The White Sox have gotten pub you can’t buy from Obama. The White Sox cap to Obama seems to be what the Stove Top hat was to Lincoln. The White Sox are leading baseball’s charge. They sent their mascot to the inauguration parade. And I don’t think the TV cameras showed it, but the club actually brought back Steve Lyons to recreate his famous self-de-pants-ing moment from old Comiskey Park. Pretty soon, the White Sox are going to recreate the famous Lyons vs. Wally Joyner tic-tac-toe in the dirt game and invite Obama and Boehner to go at it.

The White Sox say they are donating the proceeds to charities around the ballpark in Chicago. I say that’s great. You know how Obama rolls in the community. And this statement isn’t directed at the White Sox per se, but why do these wealthy baseball clubs generally ignore financial community investment unless they’re getting props? I’m sure there’s a low-income high school baseball coach near them who can use a dozen new balls and shirts for his kids and could care less if there isn't a press release about it. Relax, member clubs: not every coach is going to jack the gear.

I digress. I expect this relationship between the White Sox and President Obama to continue. The President’s secret service detail will shortly include Greg “The Bull” Luzinski, Carlton “Pudge” Fisk, and burly 1980s right-handed reliever Bob James. Those guys might be slow, but they would offer the Prez a supreme bunch of bouncers with cool nicknames. I also predict that sometime in President Obama’s administration he will be petitioned to pardon disgraced White Sox outfielder Shoeless Joe Jackson. But let’s pass the hats first.

Williams and Updike Meet Again

I imagine John Updike passed through that tiny little bandbox of a ballpark in the great beyond and proceeded directly to the batting cage, where Ted Williams has been waiting.

By now, Ted’s hands are calloused again and heaven-be-damned if you give him a bat a fraction of an ounce removed from what he specified. Williams is the patron saint of the F-bombers, dropping profanity like he sprayed line drives, a bomb for every opposite field blast that banged off the left-field wall.

He would greet Updike with a glare that conveys, ‘Don’t disturb my round, I don’t give-a-(f-bomb) how many (f-bomb-ing) books you (f-bomb-ing) wrote.’

I’m sure Updike knew this was coming.


And when the last ball is hit and Williams steps out and bitches at Cronin to get his ass in the cage and not embarrass himself, I imagine Williams will stomp up to Updike. He will reach his sweaty fingers into his back pocket and produce a wrinkled and yellowed envelope.


“Here,” Williams might say. “Here’s your letter I never sent back.”