MFS62

Delgado. Later

He'll be battling my adoptee Andres Regnault on his way up through the system. I think he also has the stuff to make it to the bigs. BTW, you forgot the underwhelming Doc Doyle on that list. Later

Bravo! Later

like how he's pretending he's "new" when he's had a twitter account since June of 2013 or so. Twitter accounts should be like toilet paper, not to be used unless you have to. Later

Liked: Roy Campanella - I rooted for the Brooklyn Dodgers and I had a catcher's mitt. (In case you're wondering, it was a Stan Lopata model) Disliked: Whitey Ford - it was obvious he was doctoring the ball, and nobody ever called him out on it. (read Joe Garagiola's book Baseball is a Funny Game - the players knew). Later

Who was the first baseball player you really liked? Why? Who was the first baseball player you really disliked? Why? Later

The film season highlights, not the print annuals. SNY is showing all of them, in order - 1962-1982. Right now, we're up to 1968 and a bull session between Lindsey Nelson, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Jim Mcandrew on how to pitch to Willie Mccovey. One of the highlights of The Long Season (by Jim Brosnan) is the discussion in the bullpen about how to pitch to Hank Aaron. It ends with "Pena just struck him out with a spitter. "Good pitch", we all agreed". Later

As long as he plays ten years, and continues to pitch at close to his current level, I don't think it will hurt him. And we will have the new stats to thank. Voters won't be looking at the traditional counting stats (e.g. wins, w-l, strikeouts, etc.) as much as they will be looking at things like ERA+, WHIP and K/IP. I think this will be a non-issue. Later

Rey, but Keith was a VERY close second. Later

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I remember wondering why his name was printed on batteries. We got it, but were trying to ignore it. Later

I hope they'll wait until after what would have been the Hall of Fame induction ceremony, so we won't have to watch a DH get inducted. (Hope this link works. It was part of a much longer email I get daily from mlb.com. https://www.mlb.com/news/hall-of-famers-who-benefited-from-designated-hitter-rule?partnerId=zh-20200406-156906-47943&query_id=1026&bt_ee=wFqCupZZ2oFY8SNJlldr8R2dLFsgBy48twcB%2FNto%2BVIqEa0yxZKe%2BQXIgyODgtah&bt_ts=1586172964245https://www.mlb.com/news/hall-of-famers-who-benefited-from-designated-hitter-rule?partnerId=zh-20200406-156906-47943&query_id=1026&bt_ee=wFqCupZZ2oFY8SNJlldr8R2dLFsgBy48twcB%2FNto%2BVIqEa0yxZKe%2BQXIgyODgtah&bt_ts=1586172964245 When the rule was first instituted by MBL, I was concerned about how it would artificially prolong the careers of players, allowing them to compile counting stats and one day lead to Hall pollution. This writer gives some examples: When the Yankees' Ron Blomberg stepped to the plate against Red Sox right-hander Luis Tiant at Fenway Park on April 6, 1973, Major League Baseball changed forever. In this landmark moment, Blomberg became the first designated hitter in MLB history. American League owners had voted to approve the DH rule (Rule 5.11) on a trial basis in January, and Boston hosted New York in the first MLB game of the 1973 season, giving Blomberg this unique distinction. Rule 5.11 would eventually become permanent in the AL. Over the years, the DH spot has been used for a variety of purposes, including hiding defensively challenged players, giving regular position players a break and relieving positional logjams. The rule also has had a larger impact on the Hall of Fame than you might realize. The Hall doesn't yet have a player who played at least 70% of his games at DH (David Ortiz could change this when he's first eligible in 2022), but the seven inductees below each saw significant time as a DH. In fact, if not for the DH rule, all of these players' careers might have ended much sooner, leaving them short of the statistical benchmarks that made induction possible. (Players listed in order based on career Wins Above Replacement, per Baseball-Reference, and career stats included for each player through the last year he played more games in the field than he did at DH.) Paul Molitor, 1978-98 (75.7 bWAR) Through 1990: 1,870 hits, 131 HR, 626 RBIs, .299/.361/.437 Molitor was a three-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner over his first 13 seasons, but he battled injury problems and played fewer than 120 games six times during that span. Then, at age 34 in 1991, Molitor shifted to DH on a regular basis and stayed healthy for 158 games, leading MLB in hits (216) and runs (133) while slashing .325/.399/.489. Molitor ended up collecting 1,449 hits after 1990, reaching 3,000 in '96. He was the DH in 976 of his 1,143 games from 1991-98. Frank Thomas, 1990-2008 (73.8 bWAR) Through 1997: 1,261 hits, 257 HR, 854 RBIs, .330/.452/.600 Thomas is one of three Hall of Famers, along with Edgar Martinez and Harold Baines, who played more than half of his games at DH, though just 231 of his DH appearances came over his first eight seasons. The White Sox opted to move him off first base in 1998, and he played 131 games at first the rest of his career. This didn't help Thomas avoid injuries entirely -- he played fewer than 75 games in four seasons from 2001-08 -- but the DH spot gave his powerful bat a home through his 40th birthday. Thomas slugged 145 homers over his final six seasons and became the 21st member of the 500 home run club in 2007. Jim Thome, 1991-2012 (72.9 bWAR) Through 2005: 1,665 hits, 430 HR, 1,193 RBIs, .281/.408/.562 Thome averaged 41 home runs per season from 1996-2004, but in '05, he played just 59 games and hit .207 with seven homers and a .712 OPS before undergoing season-ending right elbow surgery. Traded from the Phillies to the White Sox in November 2005, Thome would make only eight more appearances on defense thereafter. Thome was reinvigorated as Chicago's DH in 2006, hitting .288/.416/.598 with 42 round-trippers and 109 RBIs over 143 games. The lefty slugger joined the 500 home run club a few months after Thomas in 2007, and four years later became the eighth player to reach 600 homers. Eddie Murray, 1977-97 (68.7 bWAR) Through 1993: 2,820 hits, 441 HR, 1,662 RBIs, .290/.364/.483 With three-time All-Star Lee May at first base, the DH spot allowed Murray to receive regular playing time with the Orioles in 1977, when he won AL Rookie of the Year honors. Murray took over as Baltimore's starting first baseman the following season and held that role until 1988, before moving to the National League for five years. He returned to the AL with the Indians in 1994 at 38 years old, sitting 180 hits shy of 3,000 and 59 homers away from 500. Appearing as a DH in 371 of his 428 games from 1994-97, Murray became the third player in history to record both 3,000 hits and 500 home runs, joining Willie Mays and Hank Aaron. Edgar Martinez, 1987-2004 (68.4 bWAR) Through 1994: 686 hits, 62 HR, 268 RBIs, .303/.391/.460 Martinez is the poster child for the DH position; the award for the league's top designated hitter has been named after him since 2004, and he played 68.3% of his career games as a DH, the highest among Hall of Famers. Martinez was a capable defender at third base early in his career, but injuries took their toll, relegating him to permanent DH duties in 1995. The slugger really blossomed that year, hitting .356/.479/.628 with 29 homers, 52 doubles and 113 RBIs over 145 games. Martinez would record an OPS of .966 or higher in seven straight seasons from 1995-2001, eclipsing the 1.000 mark five times in that stretch. Dave Winfield, 1973-95 (64.2 bWAR) Through 1991: 2,697 hits, 406 HR, 1,602 RBIs, .285/.354/.479 Although Winfield remained a regular outfielder through age 39, he was able to hang around for another four seasons thanks to the DH spot. Those years allowed the 12-time All-Star to pad his resume, as he finished fifth in the AL MVP race and won the only World Series title of his career with the Blue Jays in 1992. Winfield then joined the Twins and reached the 3,000-hit plateau the next season. Like Molitor, Thomas, Thome and Murray, Winfield was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Baseball Writers' Association of America in his first year of eligibility. Harold Baines, 1980-2001 (38.7 bWAR) Through 1986: 1,077 hits, 140 HR, 589 RBIs, .287/.331/.468 Baines made just five appearances as a designated hitter over his first seven seasons, but he ended up playing 58.1% of his career games as a DH, second to only Martinez among Hall of Famers. Baines racked up 1,789 of his 2,866 career hits, 244 of his 384 homers and 1,039 of his 1,628 RBIs from 1987-2001, a stretch in which he made only 81 appearances on defense. He was elected to the Hall of Fame by the Today's Game Committee in 2019. OE, Martinez was inducted last year. Too Late. Later

If you wanted a wrestler turned actor (instead of an actor who looked like a wrestler) in those days, it was usually Mike Mazurki: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0563417/biohttps://www.imdb.com/name/nm0563417/bio Later

Great job. Thanks. Later

Longtime cyber friend (from FASTBALL.COM my first baseball website) and later personal friend, Jack Miller, 72 lost his fight with cancer on March 30 at his home in Canada. A long time Blue Jays fan, he once admitted to me that Rey Ordonez was the best fielding shortstop he had ever seen. He also tried to convince me to like the DH, and we had some great arguments about it. Gosh, I'll miss ya', Jakester. RIP Later

=seawolf17 post_id=34545 time=1585829625 user_id=91] =kcmets post_id=34538 time=1585789289 user_id=53] Have to find a link.

The first writer to cover the Mets for The Sporting News (when each team had a segment written by a local writer) was Dan Daniel, who had covered the MFYs for The New York Times for many years. Accompanying each team's article would be a picture of a player (usually mentioned in that week's article. For the first seven weeks, there was a picture of ex-MFY and now Mets GM George Weiss, even though several members of the team (and their manager) were famous in the New York Market. And when Daniel did discuss a player, it was in a context with which he was familiar. One I remember was "Jim Hickman would make a nice fourth outfielder for the MFYs*". I wrote a letter to the editor of TSN (J.G. Taylor Spink) voicing my opinion about Daniel's coverage and several weeks later, a new writer was assigned. I hope I had a part in Spinks' decision. Later * = he used the actual team name, but I can't bring myself to type it.

Keep it up, as a symbol of hope that the season will one day begin. Later

Embedded in a long article in my local paper was this bright spot: Baseball fans who want to brush up on the history of Stan Musial, Roberto Clemente and others from yesteryear now have an extra opportunity. The magazine Baseball Digest has made its entire archive file -- dating to its first issue in 1942 -- available for free through July 15. Publisher Norman Jacobs said he wanted to provide the service to help fill the void while the season is delayed because of the new coronavirus outbreak. Baseball Digest has produced features, crossword puzzles, cartoons, stats and schedules over the years, along with stories written by players and popular quizzes, including the well-known, So You Think You Know Baseball? Fans can access the archives by going to baseballdigestarchive.com/free and registering. Later

Aha! My bad. Later

Fine, 86 I can't find a picture of a major leaguer wearing 86 'cause there ain't one. And every positive whole number lower than 86 was worn. That makes you the winner. Wasn't the original question "the lowest"? That would be the highest. What are you talking about? This, in your own words: What's the lowest number that's never been worn as a uniform number in MLB? Later

Fine, 86 I can't find a picture of a major leaguer wearing 86 'cause there ain't one. And every positive whole number lower than 86 was worn. That makes you the winner. Wasn't the original question "the lowest"? That would be the highest. I thought you might be thinking that Eddie Gadel's 1/8 was the lowest, and maybe, when he went into his crouch, it was technically the lowest. Later

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=34367 time=1585590547 user_id=68] What's the lowest number that's never been worn as a uniform number in MLB?

Las Vegas? Later

Sorry to be late here, my internet has been down. All the other responses that came to mind have been used, so: Joe Schultz Fuck Derek Jeter (just ... because) Later

My trigger finger, first reaction was R.Lee Ermey. But my heart goes to Warren Oates. Ermey's (as well as all the others')troops were obedient. Even Lee Marvin's were reluctantly obedient, but he was an officer. His D.I was Richard Jaeckel, and he wasn't that significant a character. Oates had a different type of soldier to deal with. And I can say from experience (I trained troops) that his were the closest to a hyperbolic reality. So only two get my vote. And if I had to vote for only one, it would be Oates. Thanks for the nod, Edgy. Later