Baseball Quiz: New York Yankees… 1) Two players played in 162 games in a season in the 1970s for the Yanks. Name ‘em. 2) Name the six who appeared in 2,000 games in a Yankees uniform. 3) Lou Gehrig set the team single-season RBI record in 1931 with how many? Answers below.
Ball Bits
“Right now, he couldn’t hit the side of a barn if he fell asleep with his bat resting on the side of a barn. If he jumped out of a boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, he might not hit the water….
“Pujols – at least publicly – is not fazed by the power outage: ‘I come out here every day and try to get myself ready for the game and give 110 percent to this team.’
“(I always worry when that number is cited, like when O.J. Simpson said he was ‘110 percent not guilty.’)
“Now, if Pujols – who signed a 10-year contract – doesn’t defunkify, we’re looking at something that goes beyond massive free agent bust; he’s entering hallowed cultural territory.”
Like New Coke and Chevy Chase’s talk show, as Norman Chad writes. And…
“Susan B. Anthony dollar (1978-81, 1999): Hey, I was as big a fan of women’s suffrage as the next guy, but I don’t want some feminist coin rolling around my pocket ruining the feng shui of my favorite quarters and dimes.”
Sadly, Pujols went 3-for-4 on Tuesday with two ribbies to hike his average to .212, though his on-base percentage is still just .248 (7 walks in 146 ABs). And he remains stuck on one home run….after 37 games.
[The Angels fired hitting coach Mickey Hatcher after Tuesday’s 4-0 victory against the A’s. That actually makes sense…gotta do something to shake things up.]
–Speaking of overpriced performance, A-Rod is receiving $30 million to hit .286 with 5 home runs and 14 RBI in the team’s first 36 games. You can bring up a guy from AAA to do that and pay him like $450,000.
–19-year-old Bryce Harper, in hitting his first home run in the big leagues on Monday, became the youngest major leaguer to do so since 1998, when Adrian Beltre homered for the Dodgers also at age 19. Then on Tuesday, Harper hit No. 2 in the Nats’ 6-1 loss to the hapless Padres, as Stephen Strasburg had his first bad outing, owing in some part to the fact the topical analgesic balm, Hot Stuff, that he rubbed on his body to keep it limber and warm, somehow traveled to a sensitive part…and his performance suffered as a result. Yes, you can’t make this stuff up. [Strasburg was also hurt by a brief rain delay, the first pitch of which after was hit for a two-run single.]
But manager Davey Johnson said that with regards to the Nats’ injuries, “This team is beat up more than anyone I’ve ever had.”
Like look who is on the DL. Michael Morse, Drew Storen, Jayson Werth, Wilson Ramos, Ryan Zimmerman (earlier), Brad Lidge, Mark DeRosa, Chien-Ming Wang – all key players on the original opening day roster. They really need Morse back, in particular, and supposedly he returns in three weeks.
–The Mets’ Mike Baxter is 8-for-17 as a pinch hitter thru Tuesday’s action. This from a guy with just 10 career starts in the big leagues. Looks like he’s figured out a role that could keep bread on his table for a long time.
–The Wall Street Journal’s Jason Gay, writing of Boston hurler Josh Beckett’s “clumsy boo-boo the other night when he got defensive about his off-duty habits following a poor start in a loss to Cleveland at Fenway Park. The veteran pitcher was booed badly, and later gave a huffy answer when asked why he’d played golf the day after it was announced he’d miss a start because of a sore lat muscle.
“ ‘We get 18 off days a year,’ Beckett said. ‘I think we deserve a little time for ourselves.’
“Now this was a foolish, comical gaffe, though perhaps not a global crisis….
“(But) I was struck by a more basic concern: It seemed as if Beckett, now 31 [Ed. he turned 32 on Tuesday], did not know that what he was saying would cost him dearly. His comments came with cringe-worthy conviction, like the blowhard guy at the dinner party who loudly insists that the capital of Vermont is Boise, or that ‘Dude, Where’s My Car?’ was written by Susan Sarandon….
“2. Absolutely don’t break down how easy it is to spend $11 million. It’s crazy, but you would be SHOCKED by how few regular people hire $400-per-hour archery instructors for their nannies….
“4. Never storm into the locker room and bad-mouth your own helicopter pilot….
“10. Stop bragging about seeing ‘The Avengers’ at home….
“18. Pro golfers aren’t allowed to complain about anything. This is in the Constitution. You can look it up….
“22. Don’t complain about another player on your team hogging all the attention. That envy will tear apart a locker room.
Back to Beckett, on Tuesday, he earned a reprieve of sorts by throwing seven shutout innings on his birthday in Boston’s 5-0 win over Seattle.
–In the Roger Clemens steroids trial, trainer Brian McNamee testified Tuesday he saved the medical waste because his wife was concerned McNamee would be the fall guy.
McNamee said his wife told him, “You’re going to go down! You’re going to go down! You’re going to go down!”
Down goes Frazier!….Down goes Frazier!….Down goes Frazier!…err, McNamee….
It seems Mr. McNamee had told his wife about the times he was injecting Roger, including “no less than six, no more than 8 or 10 times” and supplying HGH 10 to 20 times.
And McNamee recounted injecting Clemens’ wife, Debbie, with HGH, at her request in 2003. Gee, Debbie is pretty hot….oops, sorry. Just kidding, Roger! [He was present for the injection, by the way, though Clemens has said he was not, which is one of the false charges Roger is alleged to have made to Congress.]
“According to McNamee, Debbie looked at her husband, and said, ‘I can’t believe you’re going to let him do this to me,’ and Clemens responded, ‘He injects me, why can’t he inject you?’
“McNamee said he felt ‘creepy,’ because it was his friend’s wife. He said he would never have injected her without Clemens being present.”
Two jurors have been dismissed for falling asleep. No doubt, this whole issue has become a yawner.
—Shyam Das, the arbitrator in Major League Baseball’s case against Milwaukee’s Ryan Braun, was fired. Braun became the first to win an appeal of a drug suspension when he convinced Das that his urine samples were mishandled. Das serves at the discretion of the league and the players union. Either side can terminate his contract.
Hey, I’ll take the job. I’m assuming it’s all the domestic you can drink.
–Mexican author and intellectual Carlos Fuentes died. He was 83. I never read any of his stuff, but his death reminded me of…second baseman Tito Fuentes, who had a serviceable career from 1965-78 with four teams, most of his time being spent with San Francisco. Fuentes hit .268 with 1491 hits. Carlos Fuentes never played in the majors, a fact his obituaries are all leaving out.
–Jared Diamond of the Journal had a bit on Cincinnati Reds setup man Aroldis Chapman. Get this:
Updating Diamond’s stats through Tuesday’s play, Chapman had faced 67 batters and fanned 32, or 47.8%. “In the last 90 years, no pitcher has come close to striking batters out at such a rate.”
“Among pitchers who threw at least 50 innings in a season, former Dodgers closer Eric Gagne holds the record for strikeout percentage, fanning 44.8%. Gagne converted 55 consecutive save opportunities that year (2003), striking out 137 batters in 82 1/3 innings.”
Title IX
Golfweek’s Gene Yasuda had an interesting piece on the landmark legislation passed 40 years ago.
“Title IX’s unqualified success in helping level the playing field might make some wonder if all the controversy it sparked during its early years is a thing of the past.
“An undercurrent challenging Title IX, essentially, as reverse discrimination, is fomenting among critics [Ed. count me in that group], and they’re bound to clash with the law’s ardent defenders, who insist much more work needs to be done before true equality is achieved. It’s unlikely the dispute will be contained within the ivy-colored walls of college campuses, and it could spill out to high schools across the nation.
“If that happens, it’s conceivable that girls’ sports, including golf, could undergo a proliferation much the way they’ve multiplied on the collegiate landscape. But some observers fear that might come at the expense of boys’ athletics, meaning their squads could get axed.
“No one questions Title IX’s objective: equality for girls and women. But there is certainly debate as to whether the means to achieve that end is fair….
“At the crux of the issue is what’s known as proportionality, the primary measure of Title IX compliance. It requires that gender participation among athletes mirror the female-male ratio of an institution’s overall student body. Therefore, if a school’s enrollment is 60 percent female and 40 percent male, its athletic participation must reflect the 60/40 ratio….
“The pursuit of proportionality has produced eye-opening results – some impressive, others alarming, depending on one’s point of view. According to an NCAA report tracking Title IX’s impact since 1988-89”:
Colleges and universities have added 4,641 women’s teams and dropped 1,943 for a net gain of 2,698.
But while 3,272 men’s teams have been added, 2,748 have been dropped for a net gain of only 524.
Among the women’s teams that have prospered, golf has gone from 132 to 575; soccer from 270 to 984; and lacrosse from 118 to 357.
Among men’s teams, wrestling has declined from 286 teams to 224.
–Sorry…I’ve said the only thing I care about with regards to the NBA Playoffs is that San Antonio defeat Miami…or anyone defeat the Heat. That’s actually about the only reason to watch. LeBron cannot win a title…ever. I enjoyed the regular season but just not getting into the playoffs, at least not yet. [Remember, we still have the Rangers around here.]
Of course I want Timmy Duncan to kick ass for the Spurs, and in Game 1 of their series against the Clippers he did just that, scoring 26 points and hauling down 10 rebounds, while that other Wake Forest Demon Deacon, Chris Paul, choked, hitting just 3-of-13 from the field.
Heck, the guy I long told you would be a great NBA player, San Diego State’s Kawhi Leonard, had 16 and 6 for the Spurs, along with three steals, to help offset Tony Parker’s 1-for-9 effort.
Meanwhile, Indiana evened its series against Miami at 1-1. Of course Miami is in deep trouble without Chris Bosh, out indefinitely.
–Did you know New York Rangers’ goaltender Henrik Lundqvist has won at least 30 games in his first seven seasons and that this is a record? I sure didn’t. I’ve taken his brilliance for granted like so many others around here.
And as the Journal’s Jason Gay writes, forget Linsanity, we should really be talking Lundsanity these days. On Monday he had his fifth playoff shutout in the Rangers’ 3-0 win over the Devils.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Kings, up 2-0 over the Phoenix Coyotes, loom for the winner of Devils-Rangers.
—Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini called Sunday’s performance in the season finale against Queens Park Rangers “the best four or five minutes” of his life. On Monday the team appeared outside Manchester Town Hall, receiving the applause of their adoring fans. 100,000 greeted their heroes in a victory parade through the city’s streets. Only one minor sour note. Man City’s Argentina striker Carlos Tevez held a handmade poster declaring “RIP Fergie,” making fun of Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, for which Man City later apologized for Tevez’ “significant error of judgment.”
—VCU is leaving the Colonial Athletic Association to join the Atlantic 10, effective July 1, 2012, in all sports. So the A-10 now has 15 members for the 2012-2013 basketball season. Great move for VCU, a big loss for the CAA. And, for the A-10’s conference tournament that has been held in Atlantic City, a big boon. Might have to check it out next spring.
–But then there are these rumors Florida State is leaving the ACC for the Big 12! It seems the chair of FSU’s Board of Trustees is upset at the new television-rights contract the ACC signed with ESPN that eventually pays FSU $17.1 million per year, but not right away, whereas the Big 12 contract is believed to be worth about $20 million annually for its schools.
But FSU President Eric Barron said that in explaining why the school wouldn’t jump for $2.9 million, “You have to realize all the travel costs that would come in the Big 12. We don’t have to fly to every game now in the ACC. We would have to in the Big 12. With the costs there, it may not be as big an advantage as others might think.”
So I ask you…is there one decent person involved in college athletics left in the entire freakin’ country?! Everyone is an a-hole, though I give Barron credit for also at least pointing out to his detractors that the ACC has an exit fee of between “$20M and $25M.”
Yet Barron hasn’t made up his mind what conference he wants to be with. Just shoot me.
–Staying on topic, a USA TODAY Sports analysis finds that “Major-college athletics departments increased the amount of money they generate by nearly $190 million in 2011, but they increased their spending by more than $267 million….
“In addition, only 22 out of 227 public schools in NCAA Division I generate enough money to pay for athletics. And the gap between those that can keep pace with the rising costs and those that can’t is rising.
–The Minnesota Vikings will get their new stadium in a deal fashioned with the help of Gov. Mark Dayton wherein the state and city of Minneapolis will pay a combined $498 million, while the team will fork over $477 million from private sources.
But many are already complaining because there is a provision in the law detailing the terms that prevents the public from getting a look at the team’s finances during the time the stadium is being built. So as one state legislator put it, “We now have the largest public commitment in the state’s history in an agreement with the Vikings, and we have an unprecedented lack of disclosure.”
The stadium will be built on the site of the Metrodome but won’t be complete until 2016.
–Before “Mad Men” came on Sunday, I watched the first hour of the “Desperate Housewives” finale. I have to admit, I caught the first two seasons and found it entertaining, at least mildly so. It then went downhill, but give ‘em credit….lasted eight years.
–May28-30, History Channel…Hatfields & McCoys… Kevin Costner and Bill Paxton. Reviews I’ve seen said it takes liberties with the real story, but who cares? Should be decent.
–I didn’t realize Tommy Lee Jones is starring in a biopic on Douglas MacArthur, scheduled for release in December. Man, that could be awesome. Titled Emperor, it picks up with Japan’s surrender. Why I might see this one as well as The Hobbit in an actual theater!
—Mick Jagger is hosting SNL’s season finale this week and while Keith Richards has denied he will be there, rumors persist. Or, will Jagger at least announce an anniversary tour? I believe those who say Richards can’t physically handle one…physically and musically, after his head injury.
Top 3 songs for the week of 5/15/76: #1 “Boogie Fever” (Sylvers…just ghastly…I hope they’re ashamed of themselves) #2 “Welcome Back” (John Sebastian…solid effort…solid show) #3 “Silly Love Songs” (Wings…and Sir Paul no doubt is disgusted he was associated with this pathetic drivel)…and…#4 “Fooled Around And Fell In Love” (Elvin Bishop…YESS!!! In my all-time top three, along with Todd Rundgren’s “Hello It’s Me” and Tommy James and the Shondells’ “Crystal Blue Persuasion”) #5 “Love Hangover” (Diana Ross…talk about a diva) #6 “Show Me The Way” (Peter Frampton…super tune) #7 “Get Up And Boogie (That’s Right)” (Silver Convention… that’s right…this one truly blows) #8 “Right Back Where We Started From” (Maxine Nightingale… eh) #9 “Happy Days” (Pratt & McClain…not sure why but this wasn’t in my rotation of comedies back then…must have been on the same time as one of my faves) #10 “Shannon” (Henry Gross…whatever…. ‘Shannon’ is a great name, though)
Baseball Quiz Answers: Yankees… 1) Chris Chambliss (1978) and Roy White (1970, 1973) appeared in 162 games. White was a highly serviceable player, pre-steroids, hitting 160 HR and driving in 758 while batting .271. 2) 2,000 games: Derek Jeter (2461+); Mickey Mantle (2401); Lou Gehrig (2164); Yogi Berra (2116); Babe Ruth (2084); Bernie Williams (2076). White is next at 1881. 3) Lou Gehrig had 184 RBI in 1931. He also has the next two slots on the RBI list with 175 (1927) and 174 (1930). Babe Ruth had 171 in 1921.
