Roberto Clemente

August 18, 1934-December 31, 1972

75 years of Topps Baseball Cards

Old Baseball

Love these cool old school baseball photos.

Paul Blair

Paul Blair, the former Gold Glove center fielder of the Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Cincinnati Reds, has passed away.

Paul Blair was 69.

Article... http://www.decaturdaily.com/sports/pro_sports/article_d367622f-be85-59d8-8238-e1fbe520880d.html?mode=jqm

In my 6 decades of watching baseball, there was no better center fielder in the American League while Paul Blair was roving the outfield for the Orioles.

Mickey Stanley, the Tigers CF in 1968, won a couple of Gold Gloves, the others always seemed to land in Blair's glove,  just like thousands of lost hits did.

My thoughts and prayers for the Blair family.

May God Bless Paul Blair.

My BBA Hall of Fame Ballot

Here are the ten big league baseball players I wrote on my ballot for this years BBA Hall of Fame ballot.

●Craig Biggio, C, 2B, OF, Houston Astros

●Jeff Bagwell, 1B, Houston Astros

●Greg Maddux, P, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres

●Tim "Rock" Raines, OF, Montreal Expos, New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox, Flirida Marlins, Oakland Athletics

●Jack Morris, P, Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians

●Edgar Martinez, 3B, DH, Seattle Mariners

●Frank Thomas, 1B, DH, Chicago White Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics

●Alan Trammell, SS, Detroit Tigers

●Mike Piazza, C, Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, New York Mets, Oakland  Athletics

●Tom Glavine, P, Atlanta Braves, New York Mets

The Bambino wishes you a Merry Christmas

Can't imagine getting a Christmas card from Babe Ruth.

Thanks to "When We Wore Fedora's" for posting the Babe Ruth card on their Facebook page.

1909 Detroit Tigers

Terrific photo via Twitter, courtesy of Just Baseball Photos( @Baseball_Photos ), of the 1908 Detroit Tigers.

Ty Cobb is stting on the far right side, second row.

The 1909  Tigers won their 3rd consecutive American League Pennant, finishing with a 98-54 record under Manager Hughie Jennings.

Ty Cobb had one of the greatest years any big league ballplayer has ever had.

In 156 games in 1909, Cobb led the American League in...

Batting Average...377 Home Runs...9 Runs Batted In..107...

...116 Runs scored, 216 hits, 76 Stolen Bases, a .431 on base %, .517 Slugging %,  and 296 Total bases.

I just love vintage baseball pictures of Cobb's era, 1905-1928.

Rudolph the Red Nose Shortstop

The great baseball people  over at baseballreference.com have come up with quite the Christmas gift for all us fans with a special player page for Santa's Christmas Ace, Rudolph, the Red Nose Reindeer.

www.baseball-reference.com/friv/rudolph.

I like Rudolph's baseball card, and the fact that he's a 5' 3", 375 lb. shortstop.

*******UPDATE**********UPDATE************UPDATE************UPDATE*******

The Rudolph Baseball Card below is now available on zazzle.com. 

I placed my order today,  and you can still get the card before Christmas.

I'll post again when my card arrives.

***********************************************************************************

Happy Baseball Birthday...Old Hoss Radbourn

Today we celebrate the birthday of 19th Century baseball legend Old Hoss Radbourn.

Charles Radbourn was born on December 11th, 1854, in Rochester, New York.

Old Hoss is most famous for his 59 wins for the Providence Grays World 's Champions of 1884.

In that unbelievable 1884 baseball season, Old Hoss pitched nearly every day for the Gray's,  678 2/3 IP, faced 2,672  batters, threw 11 shutouts,  and managed to come in and save 2 games as well.

Radbourn made his big league debut at age 25 for the Buffalo Bisons, on May 5th, 1880.

Radbourn also pitched for the Boston Beaneaters (1886-1889), Boston Reds (1890), and Cincinnati Reds (1891).

It was the Providence Grays though, that defined the Hall of Fame career of Radbourn.

Between 1881 through 1885, Old Hoss had a 193-88 record, with a 1.96 ERA, an 1,228 strike outs and 26 shutouts.

Radbourn passed away on February 5, 1897, in Bloomington,  Illinois, at the age of just 42.

Charles "Old Hoss" Radbourn was elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1939.

If you have a Twitter account,  @OldHossRadbourn is a must follow.

Happy 159th Birthday Old Hoss!

Play Ball!

Happy Baseball Birthday...Barbaro Garbey

Today's Happy Baseball Birthday wishes go out to former big leaguer Barbaro Garbey.

Garbey was born on December 4th, 1956, in Santiago de Cuba.

Garbey was signed as a Free Agent by the Detroit Tigers in June of 1980.

On April 3rd, 1984, at age 27, Garbey made his big league debut for Detroit.

In 110 games Garbey hit .287 (94 hits in 348 plate appearances), smacked 5 home runs, drove in 52 runs, and a .325 on base percentage.

For whatever reasons, Garbey played in just 86 games for manager Sparky Anderson in 1985, hitting .257, with 6 dingers and 29 RBI.

The Tigers traded Garbey to the Oakland A's on November 13th, 1985.

The A's released Garbey in Spring Traning of 1986.

The Texas Rangers signed Garbey as a free agent on December 13th, 1987.

In 1998 for the Rangers, his last big league season, Garbey appeared in just 30 games, batting .194, in 67 plate appearances, with no homers, and just 5 RBI.

Happy Birthday Barbaro!

Happy Baseball Birthday...Bill Freehan

Today is Bill Freehan's 72nd birthday.

My baseball hero played 15 big league seasons for my Detroit Tigers, collecting 1,591 base hits and 200 home runs.

There was no better catcher in baseball in the 1960s than Freehan, who won five consecutive Gold Gloves,1965-1969, and retired with a MLB record .993 fielding percentage. 

Happy Birthday to the greatest catcher to ever wear the Old English D, William Ashley Freehan.

Go Tigers!

Happy Thanksgiving

I'd like to say Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Hanukkah to all the great baseball fans everywhere.

May you and your families be blessed this Holiday Season.

God Bless.

No cheaters please on my team

Former Detroit Tigers shortstop Jhonny Peralta has signed a free agent contract with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Good.

I don't want Peralta on my team.

4 years, $52 million dollar contract for a cheater.

MLB says they have the toughest drug testing in sports.

Peralta served a 50 game suspension for using something illegal, PEDs, HGH, whatever it was, in 2013, as a member of the Detroit Tigers.

Peralta served just suspension, played in the playoffs, and is now rewarded with $52 million dollars.

Where's the punishment for Peralta?

Who's the idiot now, Peralta for cheating baseball and the Tigers, or MLB and the Cardinals, for allowing a cheater to get $52 million bucks?

I also don't want the Tigers signing any players that have been suspended, and that includes power hitting Texas Ranger OF/DH Nelson Cruz.

I dont want Cruz hitting one steroid HR while wearing the Old English D.

There is no reason, none, including trying to win a championship, for any team to sign any steroid using baseball players.

I'd rather have my team, the Detroit Tigers, be an average to above average team that plays the game
the right way than win a World Series using steroids cheaters.

There are absolutely no more excuses for baseball owners to sign cheaters anymore.

Baseball is our National Pastime, and steroids, and cheaters don't belong in our great game.

In my opinion, any player busted for any steroid, HGH, blood doping, etcetera, should never play in the big leagues again.

JFK50...Base

I would live having a JFK signed baseball.

Adios Sweet Prince

The Detroit Tigers have traded first baseman Prince Fielder to the Texas Rangers.

In return the Rangers will send second baseman Ian Kinsler to Detroit.

As stunned and excited I was two years ago when the Tigers signed Fielder to a massive nine year, $215 million dollar contract, I'm also equally not surprised by this move.

I always want what's best for my team, and I know Ian Kinsler can play.

I'm assuming the Tigers will put rookie Nick Castellanos at third base, move MVP Miguel Cabrera back at first base, and go after a free agent outfielder like Carlos Beltran.

I hear on social media that the Tigers have made this move for two reasons.

First, the Tigers weren't happy with Prince Fielder's non-hitting in the playoffs the past two years, including his lack of emotion after Detroit's loss to Boston in the American League Championship Series.

Second, the Tigers will save around $76 million dollars, which will be headed into the bank accounts of Cabrera, Max Scherzer, and Justin Verlander.

Goodnight Sweet Prince, we hardly knew you.

The Babe in Boston.

This is a cool piece of art, Babe Ruth with some lumber in a Red Sox uniform.

BOSTON STRONG.

Nuke LaLoosh

Love Bull Durham and Nuke LaLoosh.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy

This week we honor our 35th President of the United States, John Fitzgerald Kennedy.

This Friday marks the 50th Anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy in Dallas, Texas.

President Kennedy was quite an athlete,  and he enjoyed all sports as a young man, including baseball.

I'll be posting as much as I can this week on President Kennedy and his relationship with our National Pastime.

Play Ball!

******************************************

President John F. Kennedy throws out the first pitch , 4/10/1961, @ Grffith Stadium,  Home of the Washington Senators.

Baltimore Orioles...60 years.

Just came across this on Twitter, released by the Baltimore Orioles.

60th Anniversary Patch.

Miguel Cabrera, MVP! MVP!

Miguel Cabrera won his second consecutive American League MVP Award.

11-12-13

Tigers catchers

#11 Bill Freehan

#12 Jim Price

#13 Lance Parrish

Happy Veterans Day 2013

As a former U.S. Navy Ships Serviceman, and the son, of a son, of a Sailor, I say thanks to all those,  past, and present, who served our great country as members of the Armed Forces.

My Grandfather(WW II), and my Dad were in the US Navy, my Uncle Bob and Uncle John were US Marines, and my Uncle Paul served in the US Army in Vietnam.

Currently my Nephew,  Bobby, is serving in the Army in Japan.

To all Service Men and Women I say Thank You FOR YOUR SERVICE!

God Bless our Troops.

1960s Detroit Tigers Power

Saw this picture today, posted by a baseball fan on my Facebook timeline.

The Tigers had some pretty good teams in the early 1960s, led by future Hall of Fame right fielder Al Kaline, #6, on the left.

Kaline is pictured with power hitters Ricky Colovito, #7,  and Norm Cash, #25.

Brad Ausmus to be named new Manager of the Detroit Tigers

Despite having never managed in the big leagues, former Tigers catcher Brad Ausmus will be named the new manager in Detroit.

Several reports have stated that Ausmus, a former Gold Glove catcher, will replace Jim Leyland, who resigned following the Tigers loss to Boston in the American League Championship Series.

Ausmus played for the Tigers in 1996, 1999-2000.

Ausmus last played in 2010 for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Ausmus, highly regarded in baseball circles, did manage team Israel in this years World Baseball Classic.

Happy Halloween Baseball Birthday...David Delucci

Today we say Happy Halloween Baseball Birthday to former big leaguer David Dellucci.

Dellucci was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 10th round in 1995.

David had a nice big league career, batting .256 with 101 HRs and 398 RBIs.

Dellucci was a member of the 2001 World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks.

We had many choices for today's birthdays.

Our staff...that's me...decided to honor Dellucci, not just because he played baseball, but also because he happens to be married to Rachel Reynolds.

Who, you say?

Rachel Reynolds is, in my humble opinion, the #1 All-Time model on the Price is Right.

Rachel was also inducted in the Hot Baseball Wife Hall of Fame this year.


Click on the link below for her HBWHOF post...



http://hbwhof.blogspot.com/2013/09/a-brand-spankin-new-hall-of-fame.html?m=0

So, Happy Birthday David.

We're pretty sure  every day is your birthday.

Play Ball!

Happy Baseball Birthday...Bill Terry

In early 1981 I had the opportunity to meet Bill Terry.

For a young baseball fan of just 21, the chance to go see and meet a big league baseball player...a ballplayer in the National Baseball Hall of Fame was just terrific.

Bill Terry made Jacksonville, Florida his home after playing baseball.

He bought the minor league Jacksonville Braves of the South Atlantic League in 1958.

Mr. Terry is well known here in Jacksonville for his car dealership, Bill Terry Buick, which he ran from 1949 until his passing in 1989 at the age of 90.

I started thinking about that visit today when I saw that it would've been  Mr. Terry's 115th Birthday.

He was a very nice man who talked baseball with me...man was I nervous...talking to a man...a big leaguer...in the Hall of Fame...WOW!

Nearly every baseball fan knows about Ted Williams hitting .406 in 1941, the last player to hit over .400 in a single regular season.

I've always found it strange that Bill Terry has almost been forgotten by baseball fans, who should know that in 1930 he hit .401, the last National League player to hit over the magic number of .400.

Mr. Terry was a terrific hitter, posting a lifetime batting average of .341, with 2,193 base hits and 1, 078 RBI.

He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1954.

Happy Baseball Birthday! Mr. Terry!


Play Ball!

1953 Milwaukee Braves Pin

I saw this awesome Braves pin from their first year in Milwaukee, thought it would be cool to share it.

The pin is from the Braves first season in Milwaukee, 1953.

The Braves, now in Atlanta, played in Milwaukee through 1965 before moving south to the Georgia capital.

The Braves won consecutive National League Pennants in 1958 & 1959, beating the Yankees in the '57 Series, then losing the '58 Series to the Bronx Bombers.

Before moving to Milwaukee the Braves played in Boston, sharing the city with the Red Sox.

In 1914 the "Miracle Braves" won the first World Series in franchise history.

The Braves won the N.L. Flag by 10 games over perennial Senior Circuit powerhouse New York GiantS.

For more terrific Milwaukee Braves stuff go to their Facebook page...Facebook.com/Milwaukee Braves.

My Gold Glove Award picks

Today Rawlings and Major League Baseball announced the Finalists for this years Gold Glove Awards.

Below are the three nominated players at each position with a brief comment and my choice.

I must admit that I haven't seen every player nominated, so Ill do my best in those cases.

American League

Pitcher

Mark Buehrle, Blue Jays
R.A.Dickey, Blue Jays
Doug Fister, Tigers

***Who really knows who the best pitchers are  defensively?
We only see them every five days.
That said, its a Detroit Tigers homer/fan pick for me.
WINNER...Fister.

Catcher

Joe Mauer, Twins
Asalvador Perez, Royals
Matt Wieters, Orioles

Joe Mauer has been a great catcher for a long time.
Even though he spends time at first base, Mauer is still the best backstop in the A.L.
WINNER...Mauer

First Base
Chris Davis, Orioles
Eric Hosmer, Royals
Jamed Loney, Rays

Eric Hosmer wins the Gold Glove simply off his play against the Tigers.
Great young player.
WINNER. ..Hosmer

Second Base

Robinson Cano, Yankees
Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox
Ben Zobrist, Rays

Every time I see the BoSox play I marvel at the passion and skill level of 5' 8" second sacker.
WINNER... Pedroia.

Third Base

Adrian Beltre, Rangers
Evan Longoria,  Rays
Manny Machado, Orioles

Get ready for many years of Machado and the Gold Glove.
Brooks Robinson's 16 Gold Gloves are safe, but I could see 10+ for Manny.
WINNER...Machado

Shortstop

Alcides Escobar, Royals
Yunel Escobar, Rays
J.J. Hardy, Orioles

Ok, I really have no idea who the best shortstop not named Jose Iglesias is.
Two guys named Escobar?
Gotta have two awards this year.
WINNER...the Escobar's

Left Field

Yoenis Cespedes, Athletics
Andy Dirks, Tigers
Alex Gordon, Royals

I'm a Tigers fan and have no idea why Andy Dirks, a part time player, is nominated to win a Gold Glove.
The Tigers struggled with the Royals all year.
See the trend...Hosmer, Escobar, now Gordon.
WINNER. ..Gordon

Centerfield
Lorenzo Cain, Royals
Jacoby Elsbury, Boston
Adam Jones,  Orioles

Adam Jones beat out Tigers CF Austin Jackson last year for the Gold Glove.
Why isn't Jackson nominated again?
Jones is the best A. L. CF not named Austin Jackson.
WINNER...Jones

Right Field

Nick Markakis, Orioles
Shane Victorino, Red Sox
Josh Reddick, Athletics

The past two years I've watched as the Tigers battled the A's in the A.L. Division Series.
Reddick made unbelievable plays almost every game.
WINNER...Reddick

Ok, now the National League

Pitcher

Patrick Corbin, Diamondbacks
Zack Grienke, Dodgers
Adam Wainright, Cardinals

OK, tough one here.
Don't know that I've seen Corbin pitch much.
The other two, I've see quite a bit, because of netwok TV games I'm sure.
WINNER...Corbin...of course.

Catcher

A.J. Ellis,  Dogers
Russell Martin,  Pirates
Yadier Molina, Cardinals

Really?
WINNER...Molina

First Base

Paul Goldschmidt, Diamondbacks
Adrian Gonzales, Dodgers
Anthony Rizzo, Cubs

I've seen all of them play, and the young man playing for the Cubbies gets my vote.
WINNER...Rizzo

Second Base

Darwin Barney, Cubs
Brandon Phillips, Reds
Mark Ellis, Dodgers

Both Dodgers named Ellis are nominated this year.
How do the Cubs continue to lose?
WINNER...Barney

Third Base

Nolan Arenado, Rockies
Juan.Uribe, Dodgers
David Wright, Mets

I've never seen Arenado play.
Juan Uribe is still playing?
Didn't David  Wright play Captain America in the movies?
WINNER...Wright

Shortstop
Ian Desmond, Nationals
Andrelton Simmons, Braves
Troy Tulowitzky, Rockies

From what I saw this season,  the kid for Atlanta will be winning quite a few Gold Gloves.
I have his rookie card.
WINNER...Simmons

Left Field
Carlos Gonzalez,  Rockies
Sterling Marte, Pirates
Eric Young, Jr., Mets

Marte in left this year was a huge part of the Pirates first winning season in two decades.
WINNER...Marte

Center Field

Carlos Gomez, Brewers
Andrew McCutcheon, Pirates
Denard Span, Nationals

The best outfielder in the National League, regardless of position, plays in the same city, for the same team, that Roberto Clemente played for.
WINNER...McCutcheon

Right Field

Jay Bruce, Reds
Jason Heyward, Braves
Gerrado Parra, Diamondbacks

The Braves have another farm system gem in Heyward.
I like his play every time I see him.
WINNER...Heyward

There you have it.

I know many people will take issue with my picks.

Please fell free to comment.

Remember, be nice, its just my opinion.

Play Ball!

Saying Goodbye to Jim Leyland.

I will miss Jim Leyland.

I love Jim Leyland.

I've been watching the Detroit Tigers play baseball since the late 1960s, and I can say, without hesitation, that Jim Leyland is my favorite manager to wear the Olde English "D."

I know thats not the popular thing that many Tigers fans want to hear, mainly because those fans think he should've won multiple World Series during his stay in Motown.

Many fans have been very abusive towards Leyland during his 8 years as Tigers manager.

To me, even though every fan has the right to their opinion, I believe every Tigers fan who hated Jim Leyland the past 8 years should become fans of another team.

Maybe they should become a front runner Yankees fan, or become a fan of the Cubs. 

Good luck.


In his tenure as Tigers skipper, from 2006-2013, Jim Leyland took the Tigers to places the team hadn't been to in decades, and accomplished things the Tigers hadn't done in over 100 years.

The Tigers won 700 games while Leyland was the manager.

I know that doesn't sound like a lot, but for me, its worthy of consideration as one of the best tenures in Detroit baseball history.

The Tigers won the World Series in 1984, then won the 1987 A.L. East Division.

It took 19 years of mostly miserable baseball seasons after the '87 season before Jim Leyland showed up in 2006 to make the Tigers part of playoff baseball again.

The Tigers didn't just lose games before Leyland became the manager, they lost baseball games in historic fashion, including an American League record 119 games in 2003.

Between 1988-2005, the Tigers had just three winning seasons..1988, 1991, 1993.

In 1996 the Tigers lost 109 games, 97 games in '98.

In 2002 the Detroit Tigers lost 106 games.

In his 8 years managing the Tigers, Jim Leyland only had 1...1 losing sseason,  in 2008.

The Tigers were 81-81 in 2010.

8 years, 1 losing season, 1 even season.

One Wild Card playoff appearance, 2006.

Two American League Pennants, 2006, 2012.

There's also that infamous Game 163, in 2009, a game the Tigers lost to the Twins, losing out on the Central Division title.

The Tigers won three consecutive American League Central Division Championships, in 2011-2012-2013.

That was the first time the Tigers had been to the playoffs three years in a row since Hughie Jennings led Ty Cobb, Sam Crawford,  and Hooks Dauss to three straight World Series appearances in 1907-08-09.

Jim Leyland,  along with Tigers General Manager Dave Dombrowski, have re-energized the team, the City of Detroit, and Tiger fans all over the country.

Fans like me.

I guess because I've always been a positive fan, I don't get fans who think their teams should always win championships or the season was a failure because they didn't win it all.

To me, watching the Tigers the past 8 years, under Jim Leyland,  was a huge success. 

Jim Leyland resigned Monday as the skipper of the Detroit Tigers. 

He will continue to work for the Tigers,  in a new role in baseball operations. 

If I ever have the chance to meet Jim Leyland, I will darn sure shake his hand and thank him for everything he has done for my team.

Thanks Jim!

Go Chihuahuas!

This new minor league baseball team, the El Paso Chihuahuas, have me as a new fan.

Love the logos...and the ballcap.

BBA Awards...American League

Time for the Annual Baseball Bloggers Awards for the 2013 baseball season.

First up, the awards for the best of the American League.


Connie Mack Award (Best Manager)...John Farrell, Boston Red Sox

Willie Mays Award (Top Rookie)...Will Myers, Tampa Bay Rays

Goose Gossage (Top Relief Pitcher)...Koji Uehara, Boston Red Sox

Walter Johnson Award (Top Pitcher)...Max Scherzer, Detroit Tigers

Stan Musial Award (Best Player)...Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers

****this is my second post on the AL BBA Awards. It appears I somehow delete the first post.****

BBA Awards...National League

Earlier I posted my Baseball Bloggers Awards for the American League.

Now I submit my ballot for BBA Award winners in the National League.

Connie Mack Award (Top Manager)...Don Mattingly, Los Angeles Dodgers

Willie Mays Award (Top Rookie)...Yasiel Puig, Los Angeles Dodgers

Goose Gossage Award (Top Relief Pitcher)...Craig Kimbrell, Atlanta Braves

Walter Johnson Award (Top Starting Pitcher)...Clayton Kershaw, Lis Angeles Dodgers

Stan Musial Award (Best Player)...Paul Goldschmidt, Arizona Diamondbacks