Friday, December 29, 2017

Old School

Maybe (arguably) the most famous baseball players
in Major League Baseball history:

Ty Cobb, 1905-1928
Babe Ruth, 1914-1935
Lou Gehrig, 1923-1939 
Joe DiMaggio, 1936-1951
Ted Williams, 1939-1960 
Yogi Berra, 1946-1965
Jackie Robinson, 1947-1956
Roger Maris, 1957-1968


Jackie Robinson was the first African American (in the modern era) to play in the majors. At age 28, he broke the baseball color line when the Brooklyn Dodgers started him at first base in the first game of the 1947 season. In 1997, MLB retired his uniform number; 42. 
Josh Gibson (active 1930-1946) did not play in the major leagues. (Gibson was known as "the black Babe Ruth”. Some fans called Ruth "the white Josh Gibson”.)






















In 1961, Roger Maris broke Babe Ruth's single-season home run record from 1927 (60 home runs). Maris hit home run number 61 in the last game of the season. (Maris had 590 at-bats in 161 games that year. Ruth had 540 at-bats in 151 games.)



Ty Cobb is regarded as one of the greatest baseball players of all time.

 Babe Ruth is the most famous player in baseball history. 

 Lou Gehrig is most known for his record of 2,130 consecutive games played; despite several injuries, he played in every game from June 1, 1925 - April 30, 1939 (a fourteen-year streak). He ended that streak because he felt something was seriously wrong with him - he had mysteriously lost strength and struggled with making easy outs at first base. A few weeks after this, Lou Gehrig was diagnosed with ALS and he died two years later, at age 37.
(Gehrig's "unbreakable record" of 2,130 games was broken by Cal Ripken Jr. in 1995. Cal Ripken Jr. ended his streak, at 2,632 games [17 years], by benching himself before a game in september 1998.)

 Joe DiMaggio was an All-Star every season in his career. He is most known for his 56-game hitting streak (and for his marriage with Marilyn Monroe). 

 Ted Williams is considered one of the best hitters ever. 

 Yogi Berra won the World Series ten times with the New York Yankees. He is also well known for his "Yogi-isms"; Berra coined the phrase "It ain't over till it's over." He also said:

 "You can observe a lot just by watching."
"It's like déjà vu all over again." 
"Baseball is 90% mental. The other half is physical."

 About a restaurant in St. Louis, he said: 
"Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

Yogi Berra (1956)
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Thursday, December 28, 2017

Andruw Jones

Center fielder Andruw Jones makes it look easy.
(Atlanta Braves, 1999)




A great game-ending catch by Jones (2002).


In baseball, the visiting team bats first (usually wearing grey, in the MLB). Only the home team can end a game with a hit.
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A Larry Walker Classic

Five-time All-Star Larry Walker thinks he's making the third out and gives the ball to a kid. (After this “incident”, Walker gave the kid a new ball.)


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Why you need a batting helmet

In 1920, infielder Ray Chapman died after being struck in the head by a fastball. At the time, some players had already started to use different kinds of batting helmets (leather, cork, etc.).
In 1953, 22-year old Don Zimmer nearly died after being hit in the head by a fastball (in the minor leagues). Zimmer had to undergo brain surgery (where holes were drilled in his skull to relieve the pressure of swelling). He could return to baseball (although he was told his career was over) and he made it to the major leagues the following year. Shortly after this incident, MLB required all hitters to wear a batting helmet.
In 1956, Zimmer was hit in the face by another fastball. That time, he broke his cheekbone.
(Other players in history suffered head injuries as well; some with career-ending skull fractures.)

In this video (from 2016), Cleveland infielder Juan Uribe is hit in the head by a 94-mph (151 km/h) fastball. Thanks to the batting helmet, he did not get injured. (Look at it a few times and notice how little reaction time he has.)

In this video, from the 2013 playoffs, Juan Uribe hits a two-run home run for the Los Angeles Dodgers, after trying to bunt twice (to advance the runner on second base to third, sacrificing himself.)

Watch this video at Youtube.com

If the batter hits a foul ball in a two-strike count, his turn at bat continues with two strikes. If he bunts the ball foul, however, he is out. The MLB record for most foul balls hit during one at-bat, is 16. 

 (A hit ball [fair] that rolls or bounces over the foul line, after it has passed first and third base, is still a fair ball.)


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The Natural

Ken Griffey Jr. (Seattle Mariners, 1996)

Watch this video on Youtube.com


Griffey robbing a home run, at Tiger Stadium (1998).
Major League Baseball consists of two leagues: The National League (founded 1876) and the American League (1901). In October, the World Series is played between the champions from each league (best-of-seven games).
In the National League, the pitcher must hit for himself. The American League is using the designated hitter rule (DH). In the World Series, a DH can be used (by both teams) only at American League ballparks.  

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Hitting for the cycle

First baseman John Olerud hits a single, a double, a triple and a home run, in one game (2001). 
Most hitters in the majors have a batting average between .200 and .350 (20-35% - hits/at-bats). A walk doesn't count as an at-bat, because that would lower your batting average. A walk raises your on-base%.


Right fielder Jay Buhner hitting for the cycle (1993).


Watch at Youtube.com
In the statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) means total bases/at-bats. For example, one double in four at-bats gives a .500 SLG. In 2016, the average SLG among all batters in the major leagues was .417.

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One more chance

The 1992 World Series, Game 6 (Toronto 3, Atlanta 2): 
With two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning (trailing 2-1; runners on first and second), Otis Nixon’s base hit gives the Atlanta Braves one more chance.
(The Toronto Blue Jays won the game, and the series, in the 11th inning, 4-3.)

 Runners on second base usually scores on a single that is hit to the outfield. Therefore, runners on second and third is said to be in scoring position.

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David Cone’s perfect game

This is all 27 outs (in five minutes) from David Cone’s perfect game in 1999.
The New York Yankees won the game against the Montreal Expos, 6-0. No batter reached first base for the Expos.
(This was the sixteenth perfect game in Major League Baseball history.)
A starting pitcher usually leaves the game after five to seven innings. After a game, the starter must rest his arm a few days. Every team in the major leagues has about twelve pitchers in their 25-man roster. At least five of them are starters (a five-man starting rotation - they play about six games every week; 162 games/season).
A pitcher should never throw more than 120 pitches in a game, to not risk getting injured.

 If you liked this video, just look for "perfect game all 27 outs MLB" at Youtube.com, and you will find a few other five-minute videos from MLB. There, you can also find a video with Randy Johnson's 20 strikeouts in a game, from year 2000. (Johnson could throw 100-mph [160 km/h] fastballs, along with a very hard slider.)

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Omar Vizquel and Derek Jeter

Shortstop Omar Vizquel makes a great play in a critical situation (runners on second and third, two outs), in the 1997 World Series (game 6) between the Cleveland Indians and the Florida Marlins.




Derek Jeter, New York Yankees (1998 playoffs).

Jeter throwing a relay throw from the outfield grass, in the 2000 World Series against the New York Mets.



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Double play

This is the most common way to turn a double play. (Shortstop to second baseman - it's a force play situation; the runners on first and second are forced to run, because there can only be one base runner at each base.)

 In this case, it's a left-handed batter who hits the ball to the left side of the field. The majority of the hitters bats right-handed, and they hit a lot of ground balls to the left side.
This is another way to turn two. (The runner must return to the base.)



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Runners advancing on fly ball outs

On a fly ball out, all base runners must return to their bases. However, as soon as the ball is caught, they can advance.
This is a video from the 1975 World Series, Game 6. In this situation, the Boston Red Sox has the game-winning run on third (bottom 9th inning, bases loaded, 0 outs - a walk would win it for the Red Sox). The Cincinnati Reds outfielders moves in (as close as they have to), to be able to reach home plate with a good throw. 
The batter hits a fly ball to [left fielder] George Foster (who has a very strong throwing arm). The runner on third is waiting (with one foot on the bag) till the ball is caught, then he goes. To get him out, the catcher must tag him (with the ball in his glove or hand), because the runner is not forced to run (he can return to third base).
If the runner scores, the Red Sox wins the game.
If Cincinnati gets him, it’s a double play (2 outs).
[The score is 6-6. Cincinnati leads the series, 3-2.] 

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Wednesday, December 27, 2017

Right field

Often, the right fielder is the outfielder with the strongest throwing arm (because the RF is farthest from third base).
This is an exceptionally good throw to home plate, by right fielder Vladimir Guerrero. In this situation, the catcher must tag the runner out. 


Another great throw by Guerrero. (The runner must be tagged out. If the catcher drops the ball, the runner is safe).




Ichiro throwing to third base. (The third baseman must tag the runner out.)




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Outfield collisions

Outfield collisions can be very dangerous. Whoever on the field that wants to catch a fly should call "Ball, ball, ball". In the outfield, the center fielder is in charge. If a fly ball is hit between an infielder and an outfielder, the outfielder is in charge.



(The warning track [that goes around the field, between the grass and the wall] is there to "warn" fielders that they are running out of room.)


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Dodgers four home runs in 9th inning


In 2006, the Los Angeles Dodgers tied a game against the San Diego Padres, with four straight solo home runs in the 9th inning (after trailing 9-5). Then, in the 10th inning (trailing 10-9), a two-run walk-off homer by Nomar Garciaparra won it for the Dodgers. 


Watch this video at Youtube.com

 The scoreboard from this game shows that both teams hit a lot of base hits (H) and that the Los Angeles Dodgers made two defensive errors.






The longest game by innings (in the MLB) was a 26-inning game in 1920; the teams were tied 1-1 when the game was called because of darkness.

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Tuesday, December 26, 2017

Mark Whiten having a good day

In 1993, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Mark Whiten hit four home runs and drove in 12 runs in a game against the Cincinnati Reds. (Whiten hit 25 home runs in 152 games that season.) With that, he tied the single-game records in both home runs and runs batted in.
Only 18 players in Major League Baseball history have hit four homers in one game.

Watch this video at Youtube.com


The schedule for a team in the MLB can look like this:

(Monday - Sunday, two weeks.)

vs Oakland Athletics
vs Oakland
Off day
at Kansas City Royals
at Kansas
at Kansas
at Minnesota Twins

at Minnesota
at Minnesota
at Minnesota
Off Day
vs Houston Astros
vs Houston, two games (a doubleheader)
vs Houston

The "Mark Whiten game" was the second game of a doubleheader.


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Bench-clearing brawls

In the NHL (hockey), they fight very often. Sometimes, that happens in baseball too. If you would like to see bench-clearing incidents, you can look for these videos at Youtube.com:

 "Don Zimmer ALCS 2003 MLB" (a 2-minute MLB video).

(It's an incident between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox in the 2003 playoffs, with 72-year-old [bench coach] Don Zimmer involved. Zimmer was the one who almost died in 1953, after being hit in the head.)

"Robin Ventura Nolan Ryan MLB" (a 6-minute MLB video).

(It's a fight between the Chicago White Sox and the Texas Rangers.)

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 This is Giancarlo Stanton, after being hit in the face by an 88-mph (141 km/h) fastball. (He suffered multiple facial fractures and dental damage.)

"Giancarlo Stanton hit in face 2014 MLB" (a 5-minute MLB video, at Youtube).

 After this, with a new custom-made protective helmet, Stanton has continued to hit majestic home runs. 
(In 2017, he hit 59 homers for the Miami Marlins. Only a few have hit more than 59 home runs in a season.)

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