End-of-Season Grabbag - Major Changes Coming in 2023

Three pretty major announcements have been made in the last month or so that will greatly impact the baseball landscape at all levels next season - Minor League Players agreeing to MLBPA union representation, a new balanced schedule, and a bevy of significant rule changes at the major league level.  I'll dive into each of these briefly in a grabbag-style fashion.

1.  MiLB Players Agree to MLBPA Union Representation.  It has been well documented that minor league ballplayers make significantly below poverty-level wage - often as low as $500 a week - and unlike indy ball, does not cover travel and living expenses.  So it really comes as no surprise that a body of people in the thousands would agree to representation in order to make a living wage.  What did come as a surprise is that Major League Baseball voluntarily agreed to recognize this unionization.  Rob Manfred has publicly maintained since he took office that the MLB antitrust exemption has "improved the lives of minor league players" and is not detrimental to the sport.  The acceptance of the MiLB unionization might be a "canary in the coal mine" to try to improve soured relations with the players union, or perhaps in response to increased pressure from Congress to do something about their living conditions.  Or maybe this is just all to look good in the media and is really just a rouse.  Whatever the motivation, it will be interesting to see where this goes as MLB now infamously owns and controls all of Minor League Baseball, which means they can pretty much do whatever the hell they want anyways.

2.  2023 MLB Schedule.  For the first time in the modern era, all teams will play each other at least once in the 2023 slate.  Divisional and League play is still weighted, but it is now reduced to 13 divisional games per opponent instead of 19, and 64 against the rest of the league (roughly a 3-game home and away set per opponent).  The balance of the schedule will be either a home or away series with every team in the opposing league, with the "rivalry" home-and-home remaining in tact.  I of course jumped out of my chair with overaction when I first heard this and shook my fist angrily at the clouds for awhile, but I've come around to liking this new schedule.  It gives every fan exposure to every player in the league which in turn helps grow the game with young fans, and it really does balance the schedule for everybody.  The NL Central and AL Central teams will have to go out and earn the respect of pundits everywhere and not be able to fall back on weak divisional schedules anymore.  I vividly remember times when I blocked out weekends to see Derek Jeter and the Yankees or Mike Trout and the Angels play in Milwaukee because those teams only came here every 6+ years, and you won't have to do that anymore.  One overlooked aspect to the schedule next year as well is that every single team plays on July 4th, which is mind-boggling that it's not always the case - it's supposed to be AMERICA'S pastime!

3.  MLB Rule Changes.  On to Rob Manfred's specialty - tinkering with the game itself.  Among the rules that were tested in MiLB and Partner Leagues and will be enforced in MLB as of the 2023 season:

• Pitch Timer Regulations
• Pitchers have 15 seconds with bases empty and 20 seconds with runners on to throw a pitch.  
• Hitters must be ready to go with 8 seconds left on the clock.
• Pitcher may only disengage the rubber twice per plate appearance (not including mound visits).  A third disengagement must result in a runner being tagged out, or else is called a balk.
• Hitters only get one timeout per plate appearance.
• Umpires may provide additional time at their own discretion.
• Limitations on Defensive Shifts
• Two infielders must be on either side of second base with both feet on the infield dirt at the time of the pitch.
• Infielders cannot switch sides
• No limitation on outfielder shifting or outfielders playing the infield (i.e. 5-man infield in a crucial game situation).
• First, second, and third bases increase from 15" square to 18" square.

All for the pitch timer regulations.  When implemented in the minor leagues these rules reduced the average game time by almost a half-hour.  It's not necessarily about reducing the sheer time of the game, but reducing times when there is no action, and this should help with that - if it is enforced, and that will be the key.  Anybody who watches baseball regularly already can see how umpires and players already do not take the pitcher check for foreign substances seriously anymore, and I fear these pitch clock regulations will become lax over time in the same way.  Also all for the larger bases.  More steals and more runner safety at first base, sign me up.  I don't really agree with the limitations on shifts.  Do I want to see Christian Yelich hit .315 every year instead of repeatedly beating 100-mph grounders into the shift?  Of course I do.  The Brewers have 3 of the top-10 offenders in hits taken away by shift this season.  League-wide batting average is also at its lowest point since the mound was lowered.  But I'm also not one to take away an avenue for strategy.  The saying is that the "shift giveth, and the shift taketh away," and even though it's easy for me to say "learn to hit it the other way"...just about everything else in this game has learned to adapt over time.  It seems shortsighted to change the rules just because hitting has not caught up to pitching yet in a league that is very cyclical and analytics-driven.  I'm sure like all rule changes I will get use to it, and I'm sure like all rule changes there will be creative ways around them, and probably over time it will not even be that noticeable.  But I still grumble over any rule change that involves changing the strategy of the game.  It's one more tool that has been removed from the manager's toolbox when they already have less power than ever.

STANDINGS AND FINAL REGULAR SEASON SERIES AS OF 9/26/22:

Brewers 82-71, -6.5, -1.5 WC; 2 v. Cardinals, 4 v. Marlins, 3 v. Diamondbacks

Twins 74-79, -12.0, -9.5 WC; 3 v. White Sox, 3 @ Tigers, 3 @ White Sox

2022 GAMES ATTENDED:

Erik - 5

Peter - 18

End-of-Season Grabbag

Just some miscellaneous notes and tidbits as we wind down the 2015 season:

- I saw an interesting story in USA Today during the summer about this new "axe-handled bat" that is slowly becoming the new vogue in Major League Baseball.  The article mostly focused on how Dustin Pedroia has been some combination of hurt and/or God awful the last two years, and he owes his reemergence in 2015 due in large part to this new bat.  It is designed with ergonomics in mind to help hitters increase swing efficiency and bat speed, and at least partially eliminates the troublesome knob of a traditional bat that causes discomfort and a lot of hamate bone injuries.  This story went largely unreported in the media, but to me it is significant because of how slow MLB has been historically to adopt any change at even this small of a scale.  It's another small initiative that is slowly but surely being rolled out to increase player safety.  It may take years if not decades to see increased netting in foul territory, or the goofy padded caps to protect pitchers, but in a game largely based on "feel" or "instinct" this new bat could soon become the norm.

- Congratulations to the Biloxi Shuckers, who lost in Game 5 of the Southern League Championship Series to the Chattanooga Lookouts.  Much has been reported about their new stadium issues an overwhelming majority of the season on the road, and for them to even sniff the playoffs let alone come one game shy of winning the title is pretty remarkable.  It really speaks to the level of the coaching staff down there and just how good this next crop of talent is coming up for the Brewers.  A good portion of these players were also on the 2012 championship roster at the low-A level in Appleton and have been playing together the last 3+ years.  Some of those 2012 players have already been on the major league roster for awhile, such as David Goforth and Jason Rogers, and a bunch of them got called up in the last week to get a little taste of the big leagues as a reward for their great season.  The Brewers have had nearly a dozen players make their big league debuts this year, and whichever players don't make the roster next year will certainly be making  a run at the AAA title in Colorado Springs.

- Congratulations to the Toronto Blue Jays for ending the longest playoff drought in baseball (22 years) by clinching a spot this past weekend.  With their high-powered offense they are an easy team to root for, but moreso I am just hoping that Erik and I are celebrating a championship with the team in Montreal in April!

My picks for postseason awards:
AL Cy Young - Dallas Kuechel
NL CY - Zack Greinke
AL Rookie of the Year - Carlos Correa
NL ROY - Kris Bryant
AL MVP - Josh Donaldson
NL MVP - Bryce Harper
AL Manager of the Year - Paul Molitor
NL MOY - Joe Maddon

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 09.28:
Brewers 66-90 , -32.0, eliminated (3 @ Padres, 3 v. Cubs)
Reds 63-92, -34.5, eliminated (1 @ Nationals, 3 v. Cubs, 3 @ Pirates)
Twins 80-75, -11.0, -1.5 WC (4 @ Indians, 3 v. Royals)

2015 GAMES ATTENDED:
Erik - 16 (+25 worked)
Peter - 41

End-of-Season Grabbag

As is customary, here are a few miscellaneous stories I've been following that I wanted to get out there before the end of the season:

- There was an interesting and insightful story on FOXNews.com (I know, I'm as shocked as you) about actual attendance versus paid attendance at a ballgame.  It talks about how teams will always announce the paid attendance but that doesn't necessarily mean that is how many people are in the stands.  This article was written particularly in response to the fact that the Red Sox supposedly have a consecutive sellouts streak remaining in tact, when in fact anybody who watches a game can easily tell the park has seats available.  Erik and I always have sort of a running joke, particularly when we go to Beloit Snappers games, of how we can physically count the number of fans in attendance but the number announced is always way more than that.  Things like donated tickets, standing room seats, suites, and even people who just buy season tickets but don't show up, all factor into actual attendance numbers.

- Speaking of the Snappers, in 2013 I will be watching them play not as an affiliate of the Minnesota Twins for the first time.  The Twins signed a new PDC with Cedar Rapids this past week, displacing the Angels who had previously resided there for nearly 20 years.  The Twins had had their A-ball affiliate in Beloit since the Brewers left in 2005.  There's been a lot of shuffling in the Midwest League this year as teams scramble to find a better fit for the future of their organization.  The Cardinals have returned to Peoria after an 8-year absence, and the Cubs made a sensical geographic move in putting their team in Kane County.  Burlington and Beloit are two of the worst attended ballparks in the minors, and Erik and I agree it will be a fight to the finish to see who's left standing in these two unfortunate situations.  With the case of Beloit in particular, I wouldn't be surprised if the next MLB parent to reside there will already have a plan in place to move the team or build a new park.

- Congratulations to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, who took home their first Midwest League title in franchise history!  I was proud to attend a victory in one of their first round playoff games a few weeks ago.  With this new hardware, a major stadium renovation next year, and an extended contract with the nearby Brewers, exciting times are in full swing in Appleton.

- In a long overdue ceremony, "Mr. Baseball" himself Bob Uecker received a bronzed 8' tall likeness of himself outside of Miller Park last month.  Despite all of the fame he has attained over the years in movies and television, Mr. Uecker has always stayed true to his roots in Milwaukee, and calling Brewer games on WTMJ radio has always been his first love.  Brewer fans recognize the struggles to keep prominent stars in town because of its market size, and in cases like Ueck, are always proud to honor its "homers."  I wish I could have seen the ceremony in its entirety, but with Bob Costas as MC and a speech by Uecker that went way past its alloted time, I can only imagine how hilarious it was.  I saw the statue at a game last week and it looks great next perched next to the other Milwaukee legends of Bud Selig, Robin Yount, and Hank Aaron.

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 09.24:
Brewers 79-73, -12.5, -2.5 WC (3 @ Reds, 3 v. Astros, 3 v. Padres)
Reds 92-61, +10.0 clinched NL Central, (3 v. Brewers, 3 @ Pirates, 3 @ Cardinals)
Twins 64-89, -17.5 E (3 v. Yankees, 3 v. Tigers, 3 @ Blue Jays)

2012 GAMES ATTENDED:
Erik - 31
Peter - 40

Odds and Ends

All photos of the Brewers' final 2010 home game available on Flickr.

As the regular season draws to a close, it's time to tie up some loose ends and cover all of the stories I didn't get a chance to write about this year.

- One night when watching the news at my girlfriend's house in Madison this summer, I saw scores for the "Home Talent League" scrolling across the bottom during the sports report. The teams were all playing in small towns in the south-central Wisconsin area, primarily in Dane County. Was this an independent league I'd never heard of? I did some research and discovered it was an adult amateur baseball league founded in 1929. From what I can tell, it's almost akin to a softball or bowling league. Players pay league dues rather than receive any salary and there are tryouts annually for the now 44-team league. Since teams seem to play at local ballfields and county parks it might not be worth "ranking" these fields on this blog but I sure do hope to get to one of these games next season to see some old guys duke it out for the love of the game.

- There were no first-ballot Hall-of-Famers in this year's class, as Andre Dawson was the lone inductee. That might not be the case in upcoming years as there are many big names approaching their eligibility. The next 5 years alone could see Jeff Bagwell, Edgar Martinez, Craig Biggio, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mike Piazza, Curt Schilling, Frank Thomas, Mike Mussina, Randy Johnson, and Ken Griffey Jr all welcomed into Coooperstown. The big year to keep an eye on is 2015, because there is a lot of talk that Tom Glavine and Greg Maddux will intentionally not be voted in in '14 so that they could go in together with John Smoltz the following year. All 3 were long-time, Cy Young award winning members of the great Braves teams of the '90s. An induction ceremony is definitely on our list and that would certainly be an awesome year to go. Although it dates myself, it's great to start seeing players I grew up watching getting inducted into the Hall, starting with Ripken and Gwynn 3 years ago.

- In July, there was a vendor inspection report released by ESPN. In it, it very simply lists every team in the 4 major sports and how they faired on their most recent health inspections. The results were given as a percentage of vendors with "critical violations" and listed some of the most heinous for each team. The results were staggering to me, as only the Cubs and White Sox reported no health code violations - this probably speaks to a stricter health code in Chicago. Back home, Miller Park reported that 33% of its vendors had a "critical violation" and that "mold was growing near ice machines in 6 locations." All 3 of the Tampa area's sports venues had at least 75% of its vendors having violations, with the Trop astonishingly having all 100% of its vendors reporting a violation. It's worth noting that Angel Stadium, where Erik and I were told not to eat certain foods in 2007 because of rat infestation, showed an improvement to 12% violations in this study. It's also worth noting that all 30 MLB stadiums passed basic health inspections and standard levels of cleanliness which allowed them to operate despite having violations. I personally don't want to know what is in most of my food as long as it tastes good, let alone ballpark fare, but it's just something interesting to think about.

- A couple notable stories off of Ballpark Digest. The Phillies are now making it possible to order food using an app on your iPhone and having delivered to your seat in 30 minutes or less. Also, the Rays and Athletics ballpark proposals have gone nowhere for another season. The Rays have been drawing very poorly despite having a very good, young team, and the A's are trying to get rights in the San Jose area (Giants territory) to build a stadium there. On a side note, I encourage anyone who wants to read more about these and other ballpark stories to go to Ballpark Digest's website, as it is a fantastic source of information and is very well written and organized. However, I discourage anyone and everyone from become a fan on Facebook. The guy who writes on that fan page is the most pompus and arrogant jerk I have ever come across in my entire life and it is not worth your time.

- I wrote earlier this month about Trevor Hoffman's 600th career save, and I mentioned how Ken Macha getting ejected in the 2nd paved the way for the opportunity. What I did not mention in that post was how the umpire had also tossed 3 other people that game, including an apparently rowdy fan in sitting in the front row by the Brewers dugout. Just one other thing to make Trevor's milestone even more memorable - the first fan ejected by an umpire in Miller Park history. Apparently, Yadier Molina was complaining about some of the comments he was making and asked the ump to do something about it. This was not too long after Molina had started a fight with Brandon Phillips of the Reds which led to a bench-clearing brawl. Looks like the Cards finally having an off year has gotten the best of Yadi.

- Ending on a lighter note, there was a pretty funny story released a few weeks ago - around the same time as the aforementioned umpire-fan story - about Arizona's Ryan Roberts sleeping in the Aces' clubhouse when he was at AAA Reno this summer. He spent most of the 2009 season with the Diamondbacks and figured to be on the club in 2010. But after buying a new car and signing a lease in Phoenix, he ended up getting beat out by Rusty Ryal for the 25th spot on the roster. After a brief callup in May, his family decided it wasn't worth the hassle of moving back to Reno again. So, with the help of the cleaning crew, he proceded to live for most of the season at the ballpark while his wife and daughter were back in Phoenix.

PS - Cincinnati can clinch the NL Central today with a win over the Astros or a Cardinals loss to Pittsburgh - go Redlegs!

STANDINGS & UPCOMING GAMES AS OF 09.28:
Brewers 73-82, -13.5 (4 @ Mets, 3 @ Reds)
Reds 87-69, +6.0 (3 v. Astros, 3 v. Brewers)
Twins 92-64, AL Central Champs, -1.0 AL Best Record (3 @ Royals, 4 v. Blue Jays)

FINAL 2010 GAMES ATTENDED TOTAL:
Erik - 20
Peter - 52

Odds and Ends

As the 2009 season draws to a close (14 days remaining), here are just some factoids and tidbits I've been compiling over the year that didn't really warrant an entire post.

- In July, the Wall Street Journal released a "Cooperstown Code" that I think is worth a look for any avid baseball fan. It's a computer-generated formula that calculates a player's probability, based on statistics and any outside factors such as drug use, of whether or not he will make the Hall of Fame. It seems to be pretty accurate and ingenious. For example, a shoe-in guy like Trevor Hoffman was calculated at 86% probability, whereas maybe a guy that might get in on his 10th ballot like Mike Mussina was calcuated at 47.8% probability.

- A couple weeks ago, Erik emailed me an article entitled "Can a Ballclub's Record Justify its Beer Prices?" This article points out that, as you may expect beer price to be affected by the quality of the stadium and the team as ticket prices are, it is not always the case. The Phillies were noted to have the best beer value in the majors, based on them being the best team charging the least per ounce (31 cents, or $6.75 for 21-oz beer). The cheapest beer overall is in Pittsburgh, as you'll only pay $4.75 for 21-oz beverage. Fenway Park, Nationals Park, and Citi Field top the list as the most expensive beer. In Boston, you'll spend an attrocious $7.25 for only 12 ounces. One flaw I found in the system was the souvenir cup factor - I am willing to pay the second highest price in the majors at Nats Park because they offer three varieties of souvenir cups - at least they did when we were there in 2008.

- Keeping an eye on the Northwoods League as I always do, the league announced a yet-unnamed expansion franchise in Willmar, Minnesota will begin in 2010. To make an even number of teams, probably one of the league-owned teams (Brainerd, Battle Creek) will cease operations, or Waukesha, Wisconsin's Frame Park proposal will go through and get built for a new team, or some combination of these. The Green Bay Bullfrogs are also fielding proposals for much-needed new stadium. The Madison Mallards achieved the highest attendance of any college summer league team in America by quite a substantial margin, for the 3rd year in a row.

- In other ballpark news, Marlins Park looks to be a go as ground was broken in July, and there are some pretty cool renderings out - finally a park that seems to deviate from the beloved brick retro style! Erik and I look forward to visiting the park on the site of the old Orange Bowl in 2012. Meanwhile, the Athletics and Rays parks look to be going nowhere. The Rays had planned on building on the site of their spring training home, Al Lang Field, and the A's are now fielding proposals for a joint MLS-San Jose Earthquakes/Oakland Athletics stadium. Wisconsin's two minor league teams, the Timber Rattlers and Snappers, are also both exploring options for new stadiums. As regular readers may know, I think that Pohlman Field is a disgrace, so Beloit's proposal talks are coming not a moment too soon.

- A sad day for baseball fans and preservationists everywhere, as the final remaining pieces of Tiger Stadium were demolished yesterday. Like Detroit has anything else going on right now that they needed that land ASAP? What, a big Ford expansion?

- For anyone who has not picked up "The Yankee Years" yet, it is a great read and I highly recommend it. It's over 400 pages but reads very easy - I read it in about 5 days. I'm also looking forward to picking up a copy of "The Machine" (about the Big Red Machine, obviously), which came out this week.

- Ever notice that injuries are getting weirder and weirder every year? Oblique strains, post-concussion syndrome, tired arm, anal fissures, and who could forget this year's blessure du jour, anxiety disorder! This year, the Mariners' Adrian Beltre took the cake, after recently coming back from a 30-day stint on the DL with a bleeding testicle. Maybe he'll think about wearing a cup next time.



- Last but certainly not least, Major League 4 is becoming a reality - the writers and directors from the original, as well as Bob Uecker, are already signed on.

STANDINGS & UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 09.21:
Brewers 74-75, -10.5 wc (3 v. Cubs, 4 v. Phillies)
Reds 69-81, -16.0 wc (3 @ Pirates, 3 @ Astros)
Twins 76-73, -3.0 (3 @ White Sox, 3 @ Royals)

RACE FOR 2009 "MOST GAMES ATTENDED" TITLE:
Erik - 41 (+21 worked)
Peter - 59

This Week in Baseball

A few happenings around baseball as we roll into September:

- A historic moment occurred on Wednesday, September 3rd, as instant replay was used for the first time at Tropicana Field. Alex Rodriguez hit a towering shot over the foul pole in the late innings of a game against the Rays. The 2:15 replay process confirmed that the ball did indeed fly over on the fair side of the pole, and A-Rod was allowed to touch 'em all after yet another meaningless solo homerun as a Yankee.

- September callups first saw action last week, and will continue to filter in as minor league seasons end. ESPN ran an interesting story last week about the top 10 propsects to look for making an impact in their brief time in the bigs this year; Mat Gamel of the Brewers tops off this list at #2 and had his first big-league hit on Sunday.

- Going hand-in-hand with callups, the MiLB playoffs started last week as well. Despite AA-Huntsville's torrid start, Milwaukee's only representation in the MiLB playoffs is in the South Atlantic League with their low-A affiliate, the West Virginia Power. After the season, the Brewers have expressed interest in moving this team back to Wisconsin, and Appleton seems like the likely candidate since the Beloit stadium is a dump and the Timber Rattlers' affliation contract with the Mariners is up at the end of the year.

- The Northwoods League and the Midwest League both announced some changes in the last couple weeks. The NWL will be getting a still-unnamed expansion franchise in Waukesha WI at Frame Park, hopefully for the 2009 season. In an effort to reduce travel costs, the Lake County Captains and the Columbus Catfish of the South Atlantic League will be shifting to the MWL in 2010. The Captains will remain in Eastlake OH, and the Catfish will be getting a new team name and moving to Bowling Green KY next year.

- Lastly, the Brewers announced the sale of their 3-millionth ticket, which is the first time this plateau has been reached in franchise history.

STANDINGS AND UPCOMING SERIES AS OF 09.08:

Brewers 82-61, -4.0 division, +4.0 wild card (3 v. Reds, 4 @ Phillies)

Reds 64-79, -22.0 (3 @ Brewers, 3 @ Diamondbacks)

Twins 78-65, -2.5 (3 v. Royals, 3 @ Orioles)

RACE FOR 2008 "MOST GAMES ATTENDED" TITLE:

Erik - 25

Peter - 48

Getaway Day Grab Bag

Let's see what's in the news this week.

After being scratched from what was supposed to be his season debut on Monday at US Cellular Field due to groin problems, Roger Clemens will now make his debut in an interleague showdown against the Pirates at Yankee Stadium on Saturday. Hopefully this is on FOX Saturday baseball so I can watch that.

Ben Sheets was named the pitcher of the month, and Prince Fielder was named the player of the month for May, and Trevor Hoffman notched his 500th career save this week this past week.

Of course, the big news story was the Cubs dugout fiasco a few days ago. Michael Barrett and Carlos Zambrano, known league-wide for being major dicks, finally met in a showdown in the Cubs' dugout. Big Z didn't like how Mike was calling the game and was not pleased with the passed ball he had just allowed, and Barrett was less than thrilled with Zambrano's pitching performance that night. The two had a shoving match in the dugout, were separated, and then Barrett then continued the match in the clubhouse, where Michael subsequently beat the crap out of Zambrano, giving him two black eyes. Both players were fined. Also in an unrelated incident, Lou Pinella was handed his 60th career heave-ho and was handed a 4-game suspension by the MLB (see toteboard) for an on-field tirade. The team still somehow managed to take 2 of 3 at their home-away-from-home, Miller Park, this week.

A few things happening in my neck of the woods. Touted pitching prospect Homer Bailey will FINALLY make his major league debut on Friday against the "Mistakes by the Lake," the Cleveland Indians. I finally got to use my rainout tickets and actually see a ballgame in Dayton on Tuesday. The weather was gorgeous, the between-inning entertainment was unrivaled, the stadium was awesome, the food unparalleled. "A"s all around for the experience. The highlight of the game was in the 8th inning, when a man the Dragons call "Roofman" (shirts available in team shop) ran around the roof of the press box and showered the crowd with souveneir baseballs, all the while donned in a spandex one-piece suit and a cape. Of course, the walk-off homer in the 9th by the Dragons was pretty sweet, too.

Lastly.....I am graduating Saturday!!!!! This means that, for avid readers of this blog, posts will be few and far between until the start of the trip, which kicks off June 20th in Madison, Wisconsin.

STANDINGS THROUGH 06.06:
Twins 29-29
Brewers 33-27
Reds 22-38

Getaway Day Grab Bag

Another week, more attention on the Yankees. Roger Clemens concluded his tour of the minor leagues with a start at AAA Scranton-Wilkes on Memorial Day and is scheduled to pitch against the White Sox on Monday. Most thought he would be starting this weekend sometime against the Red Sox (is it just me, or have they already played like 10 times?), but instead Torre scheduled him for Monday with Wang, Moose, and Petitte going in the weekend set.



A controversial play happened yesterday when A-Rod screamed "I got it!" at Troy Glaus, who was trying to catch an infield fly while Rodriguez was running to third, and he subsequently dropped the ball, which opened up a 3-run inning. The Yankees are 22-29 and are probably just looking to jump start things however they can, and I'd have to say that it was a pretty outstanding move. The Blue Jays didn't seem to think it was too cute, but hey, it works, and it's not illegal. Let's see if they try the hidden ball trick with the first baseman tomorrow.



The top three vote getters in the AL are Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, and David Ortiz. Justin Morneau is 3rd amongst 1st basemen, Joe Mauer is 2nd at catcher, and Torii Hunter is 4th in the outfield. The top three vote getters in the NL are Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, and David Wright. Prince Fielder and J.J. Hardy are 2nd at their respective positions, and Weeks and Estrada are 3rd at their positions. Ken Griffey Jr. is 4th in outfield voting.



The shocking story of the week was the severe injury to Reds centerfielder and fan-favorite Ryan Freel. His hustle actually got him into trouble on this play, as his momentum going after a fly ball in the gap caused him to collide with right fielder Norris Hopper and subsequently bang his head on the warning track, leaving him unconscious for 13 minutes before taken to an area hospital. MRIs were negative and he was diagnosed with head/neck contusions and was placed on the 15-day DL. He was released from the hospital yesterday and is scheduled to see a spine specialist before reporting back to the team. Get well soon, Ryan; you're one of the few reasons I can still muster enough enthusiasm to go watch your team play.

RESULTS THROUGH 05.30:
Twins 27-25 (5.5 GB)
Brewers 29-24 (5.5 up)
Reds 21-33 (8.5 GB)

Getaway Day Grab Bag

For a guy who is generally known around the clubhouse as a "clutz" and missed a series in Kansas City last year due to a salad tong mishap, Brewers reliever Matt Wise sure does know how to handle power tools pretty well. And I'm not talking about his wicked changeup either. For the second year in a row, the Brewers have teamed up with Habitat for Humanity, the organization that Erik and I are raising money for on the trip (which is a month from today by the way!) Matt helped construct a house in the Miller Park parking lot that was on display for this past weekend's largely attended Twins series. The major Milwaukee chapter goal this year was to help the depleted Harambee neighborhood on the North Side, and the Brewers have donated $5,000 to the effort. Hopefully they will help accomodate Erik and myself as well.

In other Brewers news during the week, JJ Hardy, Bill Hall, Jeff Suppan, and Chris Capuano, shown to the right looking mighty dapper with actor Peter Bergman, did guest spots on The Young and the Restless while in LA to play the Dodgers this week. They play themselves in the scene and the spot is scheduled to air on the June 20th episode of the 35-year daytime soap. This is a day game against the Giants that Erik and myself have planned on attending, so hopefully they show the clip on the jumbotron between innings. I'm glad to see the Brewers getting press no matter in what capacity, and from the looks of it, apparently we have a pretty handsome young group of guys on the team.

It was announced this week that Mr. Cub, Ernie Banks, will have a statue erected of him at Wrigley Field in time for the 2008 season.

More Yankees highs and lows this week. Roger Clemens took his minor league tour to AA-Trenton and Derek Jeter passed Joe DiMaggio on the all-time Yankee hit list. A-Rod hit 3 homeruns to extend his league lead. On the flip side, it looks like Pavano needs Tommy Johns surgery, which typically takes 18 months to heal, which means he will miss this season and next. This means that by the end of Carl's 4-yr contract, Pavano will have missed 2006 and 2008 entirely, half of 2005, and almost all of this season. That's 110 IP in 4 seasons...what is $40 million divided by 110 by the way? What a bust. Also, Jason Giambi has the possibility of getting his contract terminated due to an ongoing steroids investigation, which I don't quite understand since he admitted use like two years ago.

And this just in...the NL Central is STILL horrible. The Brewers have managed to lose their last 4 series and still gain 1.5 games in their division lead. The Reds are about to lose a series to the MLB-worst Nationals, and every team except for the Crew is below .500. The Brewers could quite possibly make the playoffs playing .500 ball the rest of the year, just have the Padres have done for the past three seasons.

Getaway Day Grab Bag

This week, there were two things on the ballot for Major League Baseball. One was the approval of the sale of the Atlanta Braves from Time Warner Cable to Liberty Media. Although Ted Turner owns Time Warner, the ballpark is owned by the city, and thus the name "Turner Field" will remain, so I am okay with this. Next on the ballot is the potential sale of the Cubs by the Chicago Tribune. Let's hope Wrigley Field doesn't become "Uno's Pizzeria Field."


The second thing was the potential reinstatement of ball as an Olympic sport. It is a cut and dry case as far as I'm concerned - Selig doesn't want to interrupt the season with the use of Major League Players (Ben Sheets in college playing for 2000 olympic team to left), so there is no point in discussing this, particularly since there is the World Baseball Classic now. If they want to reinstate ball, however, that would be fine with me. United States collegiate and minor league players could handle most of the world's professional competition pretty handily, except for maybe Cuba and Japan (All-Star ballots are now available in Japanese, FYI...)


The fun story of the week was that in exchange for Mets fans having to sit through a 3+ hour rain delay a few nights ago, all fans in attendance who stayed through the rain delay will receive free seats to a game against the Twins of their choice from June 18-20. I'm not sure if a hand stamp as you left the rain-soaked game will be able to keep until June, so let's hope they had a better system than that.


And this just in -- J.J. Hardy belted his 12th homerun Monday in a loss to the Phillies, making him the first NL shortstop to lead the league in homeruns this late in the season since 1986. Ernie Banks was the last NL shortstop to lead the league in HR for an entire season, with 40 in 1960. Hardy hit another one yesterday, putting himself and Prince Fielder at 1-2 in HR in the NL, with 13 and 12 respectively.

**Arrests & Suspensions Toteboard updated**


LAST NIGHT'S RESULTS:
Twins L (18-21)
Brewers L (25-15)
Reds L (16-25)

Getaway Day Grab Bag

Time once again to see what's making headlines in baseball this past week.

The biggest story this week was obviously the signing of Roger Clemens. Amidst the probability of Karstens being out for the season, as well as Pavano missing his 3rd straight year, and with depleted bullpen, the Rocket decided to make another go of it for the Bronx Bombers. He is expected to make his first start for the Yankees the first weekend in June against the Red Sox. Here are some of the terms of the 44-year old Clemens' sweet deal:

- demanded to be the highest paid player in the game
- exact salary is $28,000,022 (he is #22)
- only has to make roadtrips when he pitches, and he doesn't have to travel with the rest of the team
- showing up for workouts and games where he doesn't pitch are optional
- paid condominum in full by team in Manhattan
- use of team private jet whenever he wants

Roger Clemens, much like Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan, is just one of those players where you can't say "it's about the money." His contract is ridiculous, but fans can't seem but always like him, because they know his work ethic is outstanding. He's only a #3 starter nowadays, but he's still one of the greates pitchers of all time, and a treat to watch - he will certainly help this ballclub.

There was a push this week to try to get alcohol banned from clubhouses throughout the Majors, following reports from Josh Hancock's toxicology report that he was driving drunk. The Cubs have already stepped up and enforced this rule, and personally I think it's a good idea. Hey, if I can't drink at work, they shouldn't be able to either. It's the safe thing to do, particularly now that David Wells has diabetes.

Bonds jacked two more this week, bringing him up to 745, and lastly...

The fun story this week is that the Mets (except Reyes) all decided to shave their heads in an effort to instill more team unity. Apparently the third best record in baseball wasn't enough. The photo of Shawn Green to the right with an obvious look of "haircut remorse" says it all. I wish the Red Sox would do this so that I can stop shivering every time I see Manny Ramirez.

YESTERDAY'S RESULTS:
Twins L (17-16)
Brewers W (24-10)
Reds L (14-20)

Getaway Day Grab Bag

The big story this week is that the Yankees, with Mussina and Pavano already on the DL, lost two rookie phenom pitchers to injury in the span of a week. Jeff Karstens took a ball off the leg and is out for the season with a broken fibula, and Phil Hughes (pictured to left) is out 4-6 weeks with a torn hamstring. Hughes, 20, was in the middle of a no-hitter in the 7th inning in Texas when the hammy popped. News is now that Chien-Mien Wang may also miss his next start with a torn fingernail, thus leaving the Yankees rotation as Andy Petitte, Kei Igawa, and three guys I've never heard of. Joe Torre gets manager of the year if this club is even close to .500 at the All-Star Break, although I'm sure Brian Cashman is on the phone with Roger Clemens as we speak.

Although I'm admittedly biased, the story of this season has to be the Milwaukee Brewers thus far. At 18-9, and coming off a sweep of the defending World Series Champion St. Louis Cardinals, the Crew owns the best record in baseball and enjoy a hefty 5-game lead in the NL Central. This could finally be our year, and it would keep in line with the trend of "cinderella teams" the past few years - Cubs 2003, Red Sox 2004, White Sox 2005, Tigers 2006. The pitching is outstanding, and almost every player is swinging a hot bat right now, including the bench players. We also have the best setup man-closer combo in the major leagues (D-Bow has to wake up an inning earlier this season). And, as Hall-of-Fame broadcaster Bob Uecker puts it, "the Brewers are winning and they're not even playing as good as they are capable of." Keep it up boys. Suppan, Capuano, Cordero, Jenkins, Hardy, Estrada, and Fielder should all be legitimate All-Star contenders; it sure would be nice to get more than one obligatory representative this year (although last year we did have three).



A stranger story over the wire this week...Ryan Langerhans was traded twice in three days. The Atlanta Braves sent Langerhans to the A's on Monday, and after going 0-4 with a fielding error in two games against the Red Sox at Fenway, Langerhans again packed his bags and headed to Washington, as part of a trade for pitcher Chris Snelling. Ryan was cordial, however. In regards to the Oakland organization, he remarked "I've enjoyed my time here."

Tonight, look for the rematch of Dice-K and Ichiro in a makeup game at Fenway Park

LAST NIGHT'S RESULTS:
Twins L (15-12)
Brewers W (18-9)
Reds L (13-14)

Getaway Day Grab Bag

One of the stories in Baseball news this week was a piece that MLB.com did on Athletics outfielder/douchebag Nick Swisher. This article actually tries to defend his reputation, instead of reinforce it. Most people, including myself, don't really care for this "Moneyball" player because of his stupid hair, the massive amount of body armor he wears while batting, and that he points towards the sky every time he gets on base. MLB.com has revealed that he is actually quite a down to earth guy who wears his hair long in honor of his grandmother who raised him, and he actually plans to do what Johnny Damon did a few years ago and donate his hair towards a foundation that makes wigs for women with cancer. It's going to take a lot more than that to get me to like you, as a person or a player, but it's a good first step I guess.


Torii Hunter was also in the news the week. The Twins centerfielder is under investigation for "donating" a case of champagne to the Kansas City Royals last season after they beat the White Sox at the end of the year, thus allowing Minnesota to make the playoffs. This is hardly a college booster issue, and I think Major League Baseball should be more focused on the steroids issue right now as it is, and Bonds only has 14 to go.


The Yost family certainly should make the TWIB Blooper reel this week. Ned Yost IV, who is in the Brewers' farm system, is out for the season after injuring himself during a bodysurfing accident. However, Brewers manager Ned Yost can ceratinly not be angry with his son, because on Tuesday he broke his collar bone after tripping and falling during a job near Lake Michigan in Chicago. He has refused to be casted or immobilized, and basically said "Hey Doc, stick it, I gotta coach ball!"


The infamous 2004 ALCS Game 6 sock worn by Curt Schilling that now resides in Cooperstown was under fire from Gary Thorne early this week. Thorne, known mostly for his hockey commentary but is also an announcer for the Orioles, seemed to indicate that the sock was a hoax and was actually paint, and not only that, but that Red Sox catcher Doug Mirabelli was in on it. All team members denied this, particularly Schilling, who offered to show Thorne the nine-inch scar on his ankle if he wanted any proof. I think Thorne is probably just pissed off that since the NHL is on Versus now, his lone duty for ESPN is now horse racing. There's no need to take it out on Schilling though, one of the greatest pitchers of all time and a true ambassador of the game - not to mention the pride of Anchorage, Alaska!


Hurt again this week were: Ken Griffey Jr (colon inflammation), Ben Sheets (groin strain), Mark Prior (torn rotator cuff), and Eric Gagne. All are expected to return shortly, excpet for Prior, who is out for the season again. No surprises here. Maybe they should just round up all the parts that still work on these guys and give them to other mediocre players. If so, I got dibs on Gagne's specs.


Records set this week: Ken Griffey Jr pulls ahead of Reggie Jackson for 10th all-time on the homerun list; Sammy Sosa's 593rd career homer at Jacobs Field today was a record 44th park he has homered in, most in major league history; Jake Peavy struck out 9 batters in a row, setting the Padres mark and falling one behing Tom Seaver's record of 10 with the Mets; A-Rod now has 14 homeruns in April, tied for most in April with Albert Pujols (he is currently on pace for about 115 HR and over 300 RBI.


Lastly, Randy Johnson made his first start of the seaon in his second stint with the Diamondbacks; his first time around, he won 4 Cy Youngs and a World Series ring with Arizona.

YESTERDAY + TODAY'S RESULTS:
Twins L, W (12-10)
Brewers L, off (13-8)
Reds L, L (10-12)

THIS WEEKEND:
Twins @ Tigers
Brewers @ Astros
Reds @ Pirates

Getaway Day Grab Bag

Last night, 28-yr old Mark Buehrle tossed his first career no-hitter, the first White Sox pitcher to do so since 1991. He was actually even one walk away from a perfect game as well. As much as I hate the White Sox, and mostly anything from Chicago except Old Style and Harry Carey, a no-hitter is a special achievement and it deserves a mention, particularly to have one this early in the season when pitchers are not considered to be in "full form" yet. You have hat tricks in hockey or perfect passer ratings in the NFL, but nothing really comes close to the mystique of the no-hitter. It's a moment of perfection unrivaled in sports that could happen to anybody: case in point, Mark Buerhle now has one more no-hitter than future hall-of-famer Roger Clemens.

Barry Bonds hit three home runs this week and is now only 17 away from tying Hammerin' Hank. I only mention this because yesterday the Brewers unveiled plans to mark the location of where Hank Aaron's 755th and final homerun fell as a Brewer in July 1976 at Milwaukee County Stadium, which stood in the parking lot now adjacent to the new stadium. This commemorative plaque should prove to be the subject of much controversy when Bonds eventually breaks this record, but I'll leave this debate for when this event actually happens. Right now, I'm just glad that Aaron is being honored in the special way by the Brewers' organization at Miller Park.

Phillies first basemen and last year's NL MVP Ryan Howard injured his knee in yesterday's loss to the Nationals. This is the last thing this team needs, as sports writers had very high hopes for this club. At 3-9, the Phillies can ill-afford him to be placed on the DL, so hopefully he is alright. He stayed in the game post-injury, so that's a good sign at least. Howard is probably one of my top 5 favorite players, so I hope he's okay; I am looking forward to watching him and Utley in Philadelphia this summer.


Voting is underway already for the 2007 All-Star Game!? Is it just me, or does it seem a little early? I don't ever seem to recall filling out ballots at mid-April ballgames.


A-Rod is still on a tear, now with 9 HRs, and lastly...


Good news for the trip! The Brewers' recent rainout in St. Louis is going to be rescheduled for the day we're in St. Louis in July! Seeing a Crew-Cards doubleheader would be totally awesome; I only hope we can acquire tickets, since it's not your typical 2-for-1 doubleheader. Also, we're in Oklahoma City the day before, so driving 7 hours through the night to catch a Noon game might be challenging, but between the 2 of us, I think we can make it happen. And there's a giveaway at the evening game! This could prove to be one of the top 5 days on the trip.


LAST NIGHT'S RESULTS:
Twins W (9-5)
Brewers W (8-6)
Reds L (8-7)

Getaway Day Grab Bag

Last night, the Mariners-Red Sox game was nationally televised for one reason: Daisuke Matusaka's first start at home, Fenway Park. And as an added bonus, he would be firing gyroballs at former rivals from the Japanese league, Ichiro Suzuki and Kenji Johijama. Matusaka pitched well, allowing 3 runs over 7, striking out 4. But the man who stole the show on this night, amongst all the flashbulbs and "Dice-K" signs, was Felix Hernandez, the 21-year old phenom of the Mariners. Us east coast people don't get to see a lot of Seattle games, but it was pretty hard for King Felix to fly under the radar on this night. He pitched a complete-game shutout, striking out 6. He carried a no-hitter into the 8th, until that lazy overpaid guy J.D. Drew broke it up with a single up the middle. I got to watch 6 innings of this game at the bar, and this guy was just outstanding. The movement he had on some of his pitches for a guy his age tells me this kid is going to be around for a long time, barring injury.

The big story in my neck of the woods this year has been Josh Hamilton. A former rising star and former 1st round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 1999, his career came to an abrupt halt due to a cocaine addiction. He played for a few years in the D-Rays farm system, and now after being out of baseball for nearly 5 years, he is back on the field, cleaned up and looking better than ever with his new team, the Reds. He made the team in spring training with hustle, determination, and not to mention a .403 batting average. He is primarily going to be used off the bench, but he did manage to get his first career homerun in his first career start on Tuesday, and last night in his 2nd start, he had a double and a homerun. These are the stories that you just love to hear about in Major League Baseball. For every Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry out there, there's a Sammy Sosa and a Josh Hamilton that fight for and deserve a second chance.


Just a quick thought...I noticed in watching a few innings of the Yanks-Twins series this week that A-Rod seems to be on a mission this year, as he now leads the Majors with 6 HR and 16 RBI. Maybe he's going to finally stop letting the New York fans get to him, even though I'm sure they'll always be ready to boo at the drop of a hat. A-Rod has never hit below 30 HR and .280 in a season, and he seems to be a .300/40 HR/120 RBI guy year in, year out. He's one of the best players in baseball, even under the microscope, and I really hope he does well this year for the sake of his mental health. This isn't Seattle or Arlington anymore - it takes a special player to play under constant scutiny and to win the favor of such a tough crowd year in, year out, much as his teammate Derek Jeter has.

Lastly, our Brew Crew managed to win 2 games in a little over 4 hours last night, taking their first road series on the year against the Marlins in Miami. A new rule this year (see "New Rules" post from last month) allows suspended games to be resumed the next day, and the Brewers took full advantage of this, as Prince nearly came out of his shoes knocking in the go-ahead run in the 13th. The Brewers' defense and pitching looked much better this series, and Dave Bush, typically a pitcher who struggles on the road, looked phenomenal. The bullpen is looking outstanding, minus a few shaky appearances by Villanueva. Turnbow certainly looks to be back to his old form - giving up a walk and a hit, and then striking out the side. Hardy, Jenkins, Estrada, and Fielder are all hitting a ton, and everybody seems to be getting good swings at the plate except Bill Hall, but I'm sure he'll come around. We have plenty of other outfielders to spell him until he gets hot and starts hitting opposite field jacks ad nauseum.

LAST NIGHT'S RESULTS:
Twins W (5-3)
Brewers W, W (5-4)
Reds W (5-4)