Happy Baseball Birthday. .. Mayo Smith

Today's Happy Baseball Birthday is former big league ballplayer and manager Mayo Smith.

Edward Mayo Smith was born on January 17, 1915, in New London, Missouri.



When I saw it was Mayo's birthday today, I wanted to make a post because,  as a fan of the Detroit Tigers,  Mayo has a special place in our hearts.



Mayo Smith became the Tigers manager in 1966 after the two previous Detroit skippers, Charlie Dressen, and Bob Swift, passed away within two months of each other.

Mayo took over the Tigers after the '66 season, and made an immediate impact by moving Dick McAulffe, the starting shortstop, to second base, inserting Ray Oyler, to shortstop.

The 1967 Tigers were in the American League pennant race until the final day, losing out to the Boston Red Sox.


The 1968 Detroit Tigers are my favorite baseball team.


Mayo Smith led the '68 Tigers to a 103-59 record, the American League Pennant, and the World Series Championship.


I was 8 years old...no other Tigers team, not even the 1984 Tigers, will ever overtake that '68 ballclub for me.


Al Kaline, Denny McLain, Mickey Lolich, Jim Northrup, Mickey Stanley, Willie Horton, Norm Cash, Dick McAulffe, and Bill Freehan, they were my guys, especially Freehan, still my favorite ballplayer ever.

Mayo Smith made a decision with just a few weeks left, a un heard of move, a move that helped make the Tigers champions.

Al Kaline, the Tigers Gold Glove outfielder,  had been waiting for 15 years to play in the World Series, and Mayo had to figure out how to use all four of the team's terrific hitting outfielders, Horton, Northrup, Stanley, and Kaline, in the upcoming Fall Classic.


Mayo moved Stanley, a Gold Glove centerfielder,  to shortstop, preparing Mickey for the series vs the St. Louis Cardinals, replacing starting shortstop Ray Oyler, who was just a .135 hitter.


The move, highly criticized by the media, was brilliant, as Stanley started all 7 games, making only 2 errors vs the Cardinals.


Kaline hit .379 in the series, Northrup hit agrand slam hone run in Game 6, and tripled in Horton with the winning run in Game 7 vs legendary Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson. 



The Tigers were World Series Champions for the first time since 1945.



Mayo Smith was redeemed.


Mayo's baseball career was now stamped with a championship,  something he had dreamed if since he started playing proffessional baseball at the age of 18 with the Double-A Toronto Maple Leafs of the International League.



Mayo played in the minors into the 1940's, even playing for the Tigers farm club, the Rule 5 draft by the Philadelphia Athletics in 1944.

On June 24, 1945, just as World War II was ending in the Pacific theatre, Lake Worth, Florida High School's own,  Edward Mayo Smith made his big league debut fir the Philadelphia Athletics.


Mayo played 73 games in 1946, batting .212, with 43 hits, 5 doubles, 11 RBI, in 203 at bats.


1945 was all the big league playing time for Mayo, who started managing in the minors, first, for the New York Yankees, from 1949-54.

In 1955 Mayo Smith managed the Philadelphia Phillies, and the team finished 77-77.

The Phillies struggled to a 71-83 record in '56, back to 77-77 in '57, and after a 39-45 record,  Mayo was dismissed by the Phillies on July 22, 1958.


Mayo was hired to manage the Cincinnati Reds for the 1959 season.

After a 35-45 record, the Reds fired Mayo on July 8, 1959.



Mayo scouted for the Yankees from 1959-66, before taking ovetas the Detroit manager.


After the 1968 championship team, the 1969 Detroit Tigers had another terrific year, going 90-72.


Unfortunately 90 wins still resulted in a second place finish, a distant 19 games behind eventual American League champion Baltimire Orioles.


In 1970 the Tigers struggled to a 79-83 record,  29 games behind the eventual World Series Championship Orioles.


Mayo was dismissed by the Tigers on October 2, 1970.


In 9 years as a big league manager, with the Phillies, Reds, and Tigers, Mayo compiled a 662-612 (.520) record, managed a 2 time Cy Young Award and MVP winner in Denny McLain, and won a World Series Championship in 1968.


Mayo Smith passed away from a stroke on November 24, 1977, in Boyton Beach, Florida, at the age of 62.


In 1983 a group of Detroit Tigers fans created the Mayo Smith Society, and since 2004 it has awarded the "King Tiger Award"  to the best player on the team.


Mayo Smith managed the Tigers for only 3 1/2 years,  yet to me, he's probably my favorite of all the Tigers skippers, right up there with Jim Leyland and Sparky Anderson.



Happy Baseball Birthday Mayo!!

PLAY BALL!

Oh My, Happy Baseball Birthday Dick Enberg!

Today we say Happy Baseball Birthday to Hall of Fame baseball broadcaster Dick Enberg.

Enberg is the 2015 recipient of the Ford Frick Award, and will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in July.

http://baseballhall.org/discover/awards/ford-c-frick/dick-enberg-2015-ford-c-frick-award-winner





Richard Allen "Dick" Enberg was born on January 9, 1935, in Mount Clemens,  Michigan,  attended and played college baseball at Central Michigan University, and attended graduate school at Indiana University. 



Dick Enberg was the voice of UCLA basketball for 9 years, and called 8 championship seasons of Bruins basketball under legendary coach John Wooden.



Growing up in the late 1960s and 1970s Dick Enberg was just about everywhere on my tv, from college basketball, football, and the wonderful sports trivia show Sports Challenge. 

The great part of the show was having two famous teams, such as the old Brooklyn Dodgers vs. their old nemesis, the New York Yankees,  or the National League All-Stars vs. the American League All-Stars.



Dick Enberg has done it all in sports, including calling California Angels baseballl games between 1968-78, the NFL, and many great college basketball games, including the famous Houston-UCLA match up in 1968, calling Notre Dame basketball ending UCLA'S 88 game winning streak, and Magic Johnson's led Michigan State's 1979 National Championship over Larfy Burd and Indiana State.


Enberg called many Rose Bowl games, including Michigan's 23-6 victory over Washington in the 1981 Rose Bowl,  the first bowl win for the Wolverines head coach Bo Schembechler.


Dick Enberg has called tennis, golf, the Olympics, baseball, boxing,  football, and will continue his baseball broadcasts this year by doing 40 play by play games for the San Diego Padres.






Happy Baseball Birthday Dick Enberg!

PLAY BALl!

Life is a Ballgame

Life is a ballgame, the song played at the end of the movie 42, is one of my favorite songs, combining my love of baseball and my faith in Jesus.


Here are the lyrics, and a video to the song perforned in the 1950s by Christian singer Sister Wynon Carr.

Enjoy.

********************LIFE IS a BALL GAME*********************

Life is a ballgame

Bein' played each day

Life is a ballgame

Everybody can play

Jesus is standin' at home plate

Waitin' for you there

Life is a ballgame, but

You've got to play it fair.



First base is temptation,

The second base is sin

Third base tribulation

If you pass you can make it in

Ol' man Solomon is the umpire

And Satan is pitchin the game

He'll do his best to strike you out

Keep playin' just the same.



Daniel was the first to bat

You know he prayed three times a day

When Satan threw him a fast ball

You know he hit it anyway

Job came in the next inning

Satan struck him in every way,

But job he hit a home run

And came on in that day.



Prayer will be your strong bat

To hit at Satan's ball

And when you start to swing it

You've got to give it your all in all

Faith will be your catcher

On him you can depend

And Jesus is standing at Home Plate

Just waitin for you to come in.



Moses is standin' on the side lines

Just waitin to be called

And when he parted the Red Sea

He gave Christ is all-in-all

John came in the last inning

When the game was almost don

Then God gave John a vision

And he knew he'd all ready won.

The Ball Game / Life is a Ball Game


Play Ball!

Merry Baseball Christmas 2015

Merry Christmas to all the great baseball fans out there.

May Santa bring you all your Christmas wishes.

Happy Baseball Birthday Mr. Tiger

Happy 80th Baseball Birthday to Al Kaline.

My 2015 Baseball Bloggers Alliance Hall of Fame Ballot

In early January the National Baseball Hall of Fame will announce the election of the newest members of Cooperstown, baseball's highest honor.


As usual, there are arguments for and against all eligible players on the ballot, as cast by members of the BBWAA. 



As a  member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance it is my honor and privilege to cast a ballot for the BBA and its 200+ bloggers.

This year the BBA tweaked the ballot to allow a "Yes" or "No" vote for all eligible ballplayers.




My "YES" votes are for....


Jeff Bagwell... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/bagweje01.shtml



Craig Biggio... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/b/biggicr01.shtml



Randy Johnson... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/j/johnsra05.shtml



Edgar Martinez... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/martied01.shtml



Pedro Martinez... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/martipe02.shtml




Don Mattingly...http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mattido01.shtml




Fred McGriff... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/mcgrifr01.shtml




Mike Piazza... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/p/piazzmi01.shtml




Tim Raines... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/raineti01.shtml




Curt Schiilling... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/schilcu01.shtml




Gary Sheffield... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sheffga01.shtml




Lee Smith... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/smithle02.shtml




John Smoltz... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/smoltjo01.shtml




Alan Trammell... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/trammal01.shtml




Larry Walker... http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/walkela01.shtml






Its too much to go through each name on my ballot so I've linked each players baseballreference.com page after their name.




Everyone knows how I feel about Trammell and his playing in Detroit and not New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago as the reason writers are holding him back from election.

The Hall of Fame is something special,  and it takes a special ballplayer to get into Cooperstown.


I continue to vote "no" for the likes of Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire, out of respect for the game I love.


To many times I've written in disdain for the BBWAA for keeping great ballplayers like Jim Kaat, Tim Raines,  Dale Murphy,  Lou Whittaker,  and Jack Morris from their rightful place in the Hall.

Lasy year I couldn't understand how a great ballplayer like Craig Biggio couldn't get elected.



3,000 hits, no frills, no steroids or controversy,  but he plays in Houston,  and didn't win a World Series.



Edgar Martinez was a designated hitter for most of his big league career, starting as a 3rd Baseman for the Seattle Mariners.

Martinez wasn't just a DH, he was the best DH in baseball history, and belongs in the Hall as the FIRST DH in the Hall of Fame.



Well, thats my ballot, the men I believe belong in the hallowed baseball museum in Cooperstown,  New York.



Ill be back with the update after the elections early next year.


Merry Christmas,  Happy Hannuka, and Season's Greetings!


Play Ball!

Sy Berger (1923-2014)

Baseball card collectors everywhere, myself included, lost a little piece of us on Sunday when Topps Cards pioneer and baseball card legend Sy Berger passed away at the age of 91.

There have been many tributes the past couple of days, and I'm late in writing this post since I first saw the news on Twitter on Sunday.


The best tribute?


To me it's from baseball card collector Keith Olbermann...

Growing up collecting baseball cards in the 1960s and 1970s meant one thing...Topps Baseball Cards...Series 1, and Series 2.





It took all year to collect the entire set, if you could, because Topps released the first series during Spring Training, and then waited until the fall to release the second series.



It was a labor of love for me, and from 1968-1980 I acquired one complete Topps set every year, collecting many doubles and triples of cards through the years.



I would always separate my Detroit Tigers cards from the set, waiting on those doubles and triples to complete the 660-762 card sets that Sy Berger put together.


And, of course, my first priority every year was to open a Topps pack containing a Bill Freehan card.

Sy Berger arrived at Topps in the late 1940s, and sitting at his kitchen table created the iconic 1952 Topps Baseball card set.

Today's collecting for me is picking up a pack of Topps at Walmart, and maybe a trip to the local card store if I can afford to.



I'm already very excited for 2015 Topps, and I've made it know to my better half that I want an entire box of cards for my 55th birthday in February.



I'm sure the folks at Topps will have a special Sy Berger card for us to collect in the set.


God Bless you Sy, we love you and will see you at the big card store in Heaven one day.

This Week's Sports Illustrated Cover...Jon Lester

Brand new Chicago Cubs pitcher Jon Lester is staring us down on this weeks Sports Illustrated national cover.

I love baseball themed SI covers, and I'll have to go out and get this issue.

The best part of the cover?

The traditional great old Cubbies home ball cap Lester is wearing.

I'm sure the issue will be flying off the shelves on Chicago's North Side this week.

•photo from @SInow on Twitter•

Why is it so hard to elect players to the Baseball Hall of Fame?

The other day the Golden Era Committee failed to elect anyone into the 2015 Class of the Baseball Hall of Fame.

All the players on the ballot were active between 1946-1972, and the committee is made up of HOF players, broadcasters,  and media members who know the game.



Two players, Tony Oliva and Dick Allen, received 11 of 16 votes,  just one vote short of the required 12 votes(75%), to be elected.

This is not a post to detail the merits of any one player, but I found it frustrating as a lifeling baseball fan that Gil Hodges, the former Brooklyn Dodger first baseman and Manager of the 1969 Miracle Mets received just 3 votes.

Hodges three votes,  and the fact that no player was selected is the reason I'm writing this.


In addition,  two BBWAA members have already announced that they will not even bother to cast a ballot for 2015 because the ballot will not be increased to 15 names.



I'm a baseball blogger, and am honored to be able to cast a HOF ballot every year as a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.



Every year I vote for players that I believe belong in the HOF, and there has never been a year in which I couldn't find worthy HOF candidates.


It's almost tine again to vote for the Class of 2015, and I will again place Jack Morris, Alan Trammell,  Dale Murphy, and Tim Raines, to name a few, on my ballot.



It amazes me that year after year the various writers and committee's entrusted to vote for baseball's highest honor fail to accomplish the simple task of placing 10 players names, or 12 in case of the Golden Era, in selevtion to Cooperstown,.




Craig Biggio collected over 3,000 base hits in his career, and yet has failed to appear on the required 75% of the BBWAA voters ballots.


Why do voters find it so hard to vote for 16 time Gold Glove Award winner Jim Kaat, or pinch hitter extrodinare Minnie Miniso.

According to baseballreference.com  18,408 players have officially been a part of big league baseball since 1871.



According to the National Baseball Hall of Fame just 211 ballplayers have been enshrined at the HOF in Cooperstown, New York.



Just 211 players out of 18,408, and only 306 total members when you include owners, Negro Leaguers, umpires, and managers.


0.01146241%.... 211/18,408.



Yes, it should be hard to get into the HOF.


But 0.011%?



Now that's exclusive.



And ridiculous.



In the days since the failure of the Golden Era Committee,  there have been plenty of articles and posts on social media denouncing the committee for it's neglect, including this one by  Rolling Stone Magazine.





211 of 18,408.



I know there are baseball purists out there who like the limited number, and there are new baseball Sabrmetrics fans and writers who believe many in the HOF don't belong.



Here's a terrific post at Baseball Past and Present by my Twitter friend Graham Womack on why no player shoukd be kicked out of the HOF.



Yes, there have been players who've gotten into the HOF because of friends, fellow ballplayers, but there has also been many snubs for the same reason.



Look at the original HOF Class of 1936.



The most hated, mist despised player in baseball between 1871-1936, one Tyrus Raymond Cobb,  received the most votes,  and was the very first player ever elected into the HOF.

If player's back in the day can put in the one man they despised the most, then surely voters on the Golden Era, Veteran's Committee,  and the BBWAA can start doing their job and elect deserving baseball players into the HOF.




Play Ball!

Madison Bumgarner is your 2014 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year

Sports Illustrated has named San Fransisco Giants left hander Madison Bumgarner the 2014 Sportsman of the Year.

Bumgarner was simply spectacular in the 2014 baseball playoffs, leading the Giants to their 3rd World Series Championship since 2010.

The World Series Most Valuable Player, Bumgarner came on to pitch five scoreless innings of relief in Game 7 just two days after his Game 5 victory over the Kansas City Royals at A T & T Park in San Francisco.

In the 2014 playoffs Bumgarner pitched 52 2/3 innings, allowing just 6 earned runs, striking out 45 batters with a ERA of 1.03.

Madison Bumgarner was born on August 1, 1989, in Hudson, North Carolina.

Madison attended South Caldwell High School in Hudson and was drafted by the Giants with the 10th pick in the 1st round of the 2007 Amateur Player Draft.

Madison made his big league debut on September 8, 2008 at the age of 20.

In six years with the Giants the left handed pitcher is 67-48, with a 3.06 era in 14 starts.

In 2014 Bumgarner was the Giants starter on Opening Day and went on to compile a 18-10 record with a 2.98 era, 219 strikeouts and a career best 1.090 WHIP.

Madison is the first ever San Francisco Giants player to be honored as the SI Sportsman of the Year, and the 14th baseball player (2004 Boston Red Sox make 15 baseball winners) to be honored as the SI Sportsman of the Year, and the first since Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter in 2009.

The very first SI baseball Sportsman of the Year was Brooklyn Dodgers LHP Johnny Podres in 1955.

                SI cover from @SInow on Twitter.