Quote of the day
December 13, 2016
Baseball is like driving, it’s the one who gets home safely that counts.
~Tommy Lasorda
Month: December 2016
This day in baseball: $100 million man
December 12, 2016
On December 12, 1998, Kevin Brown signed a contract with the Dodgers that made him baseball’s first $100 million man. The $105 million, seven-year contract included a $5 million signing bonus and a $10 million salary in 1999, and salaries of $15 million annually for the remainder of the contract.
Wonderbat
December 10, 2016
Continuing my journey through The Simpsons episodes, I am a good chunk of the way into season three. Last night, I watched the episode “Homer At the Bat” and was thrilled to recognize a reference to The Natural. Early on in the episode, Homer tells Bart about the time he carved a bat from the wood of a tree that was struck by lightning.
Just like Roy Hobbs, Homer hits like a dream with his special bat. However, with the exception of Mr. Burns trying to cheat his way to winning a bet, the allusion to The Natural largely ends there.
The episode later ends with Terry Cashman’s “Talkin’ Baseball” parody, which he wrote just for this episode, “Talkin’ Softball.”
A little rusty
December 9, 2016
I haven’t been running in about two weeks, so I totally understand this kid’s concern about not performing up to par…
Quote of the day
December 8, 2016
Baseball is all I ever wanted. I could eat, sleep, and dream baseball.
~Smoky Joe Wood
Infographic: Vin Scully
December 7, 2016
As you probably know, Dodgers announcer Vin Scully received the Medal of Freedom just a couple weeks ago from President Barack Obama. This man has been calling Dodgers games since 1950, and he’s seen a lot in his time. Putting that incredible career in perspective, MLB.com created this infographic to give us a visualization of just how much he’s had the opportunity to cover.
“D-O-D-G-E-R-S (Oh, Really? No, O’Malley),” by Danny Kaye
December 5, 2016
This song had me laughing, but it is impressive all the same. The lyrics of this song are essentially a play-by-play based loosely on the 1962 pennant race. The Dodgers didn’t win the pennant that year, but they did get this high-energy song full of entertaining theatrics as a consolation prize.
Quote of the day
December 4, 2016
Baseball people, and that includes myself, are slow to change and accept new ideas. I remember that it took years to persuade them to put numbers on uniforms.
~Branch Rickey
This day in baseball: Naming Wrigley Field
December 3, 2016
In a Chicago Tribune article on December 3, 1926, the Cubs mentioned that Weeghman Park would now be known as Wrigley Field, in honor of club owner William Wrigley, Jr. The north side ballpark was originally named after the previous owner of team, Charles H. Weeghman, who had built the steel-and-concrete ballpark for the Chicago Whales. Weeghman had moved the Cubs to the new venue after the two teams were merged under his ownership when the Federal League team folded.
New York bronze sculptures
December 1, 2016
As a cat owner, I’m glad to know this isn’t based on a true story (I hope). Behold the strange power of bronze, and the potential tragic comedy that could come of it in the wrong hands.
*
A man from Atlanta moved to New York. As he wandered the streets he stopped at an antique shop and decided to go in. On looking around he noticed a very strange looking bronze cat which had a tag on it saying, “Bronze Cat $30.00, Story $150.00.” The man was very curious and asked the salesman to explain. “Well” said the man, “its just like it says, $30 for the cat and $150 for its story”. “I’ll just take the cat,” said the man.
“Very well, but you will be back,” said the salesman. The man left the shop with the cat in his pocket. As he walked down the street he heard a strange mewing sound. On turning around he noticed there were a couple of cats following him.
The further he walked the more cats seemed to follow him. As he got to the Brooklyn Bridge he turned to see thousands of cats behind him. “Screw this!” he said to himself and threw the bronze cat into the river. All the cats jumped into the river too and were drowned. The man returned to the shop where he bought the cat. “I knew you would be back. $150.00 for the story,” said the salesman. “Forget the story,” said the man. “Have you got a bronze Mets fan?”