Baseball: I'm giving MLB another chance.

Dear True North:

Re the Twins:

They were owned, from before the time the original Washington Senators became the Twins in 1961, until around 1984, by a racist and incredibly cheap piece of garbage named Calvin Griffith. They lost Rod Carew after 1978 because a breathtakingly racist, drunken diatribe by Griffith was publicized, and Carew said he didn't want to be "a n----- on Massa Calvin's plantation anymore."

When salaries really skyrocketed in the 1980's, and Griffith carried on the tradition of his Hall of Fame uncle, player-turned-owner Clark Griffith (who was very cheap, but a real decent person--read the story of the final months of Walter Johnson's life), Griffith sold the failing franchise at a bargain basement price.

The guy who bought the team from Griffith was a real piece of work, too (Carl (sp?) Pohlad), but an enormous improvement over old Calvin, who had been hands down the worst owner in baseball (yes, Marge Schott included). And NOW, the son of Calvin, named after his famous great-uncle Clark, is trying to buy the club with a lot of co-buyers and run it properly this time... i.e., nothing like dear old dad did.

They've done well for some time, and the general thinking is that if Clark Griffith #2 gets the team, they'll be one of the most respected franchises in all of sports--a huge jump from being the laughingstock they were until as recently as 1984.

I'm pleased to report that the miserable old miser, Calvin Griffith, lived a long life and was around long enough to see the Twins do something twice in 5 years that they never had done--and never would have done--under his aegis: win the World Series. The Senators went 3 times (1924, 1925 and 1933) and won once (1924); the Twins went in 1965 and lost in a great 7-game Series. Only after Calvin Griffith was out of the picture did the franchise become a non-laughingstock, and Griffith, living as he did until 1998, was around to see everyone get the big picture.

As I said on another thread, this miserly, ultra-racist piece of garbage is up for Hall of Fame enshrinement this year. Now, the Hall has a history of enshrining really horrible owners--see, e.g., Charles Comiskey, who was more responsible than anyone else for the 1919 World Series fix--but if Calvin Griffith gets in, GAACKKK!!!

BHN

Originally posted by BaseballHistoryNut
If only they'd kept the guy who, when his career is over, may displace Lefty Grove as the greatest pitcher in baseball history. (And I'm not even talking about Clemens, whom that guy may displace as the greatest RIGHT-handed pitcher in baseball history.)

Hi BHN, it hurt us all (sox fans I mean) when Pedro left. He still has a lot of gas in the tank and he should've retired a red sox, but than again, I thought bouges and clemens should've too. Something about the Red Sox front office is screwy, but hopefully they know what they're doing (first place so far isn't too shabby). As a side note concerning the rest of the thread I'm sorry to say the twins can't compete with the White Sox or the Indians in that division. Thanks for giving us Ortiz though, that was very kind. And it's always fun to be a Braves fan, as I'm sure you've gotten used to making the playoffs and not getting much more. Is it true Ruben Sierra is still playing and is on the White Sox (julio franco syndrome)? How can these guys still be playing but nobody will give Rickey Henderson a shot?

(sorry for rambling)

[Edited on 4/22/06 by Kwyjibo]

Sorry guys, but baseball sucks. Ba Humbug.

There are several sports listed on this site which I think suck. I simply don't comment on them. Does this mean you've made your last baseball post? If not, please list your favorite sports.

BHN

Originally posted by Flounder
Sorry guys, but baseball sucks. Ba Humbug.

I'm going to agree with BHN, i can name several sports i think suck, but i don't post that they suck for the sake of posting, i just don't respond to those threads. anyway back to the baseball.

Originally posted by aegis fang

Originally posted by Flounder
Sorry guys, but baseball sucks. Ba Humbug.

I'm going to agree with BHN, i can name several sports i think suck, but i don't post that they suck for the sake of posting, i just don't respond to those threads.

Well said guys!!!!

You don't care for a certain sport, fine. Just don't diss it. Like it has been said, there's sports out there that I think are lame, just don't go there.

anyway back to the baseball.

Let's talk about batting ave. and OBP. It seems to me that WELL over half of batters now have .100 OBP over there BA. That's amazing. Has the pitching gotten worse, the batters better or the strike zone shrunk?

Also, I saw a guy with a BA of .400 and an OBP of .398. How the hell is that possible?

An observation. Watching the Bosox and Jays, 4-3(for the Sox) game in the 7th. 0 out, man on 1st. Francona(ex-Expo ) puts on the hit and run. The SS covers the runner at 2nd and the ball is hit right where he was. Instead of an easy double play, runners on 1st and 3rd with 0 out. Beautiful call.

No. Lots of teams, and therefore their players, have gotten the word on how hugely important walks are. And one of these days soon, there will be a crackdown on the countless Latino players who swing at every damn pitch, even if it's miles out of the strike zone--like their great hero, Roberto Clemente, did, with his almost 2-1 career strikeout-to-walk ratio.

My Giants, I regret to say, haven't figured this stuff out yet, and do NOTHING as their players go right on swinging at garbage. As Bill James has demonstrated, the cost in runs to the teams of such players is enormous. And Barry B-word's best year, in terms of run production, was NOT the year of the 73 chemically-enhanced HR's. It was the year of the 200+ walks and the OBP over 600.

One day, with him sitting out because it was a day game after a night game, Alou sent him up to pinch hit in a tie game, to LEAD OFF the ninth. Now, for a guy who himself never walked, and whose players in general never walk, that was a brilliant move. Alou was saying, "Here, do you want to walk the winning run to START the bottom of the ninth." The answer came back "yes."

This was in September, with the 40-man rosters. Bonds was immediately replaced by someone not carrying 50 extra pounds of, um, muscle... some kid from the minors who could run like the wind, but whose career was doomed because, as they say, you can't steal first base. Well, he sure stole 2nd. Then he took 3rd on a bunt. Then he scored on a fly ball. One walk and game over.

The Boston Red Sox hired Bill James as a team consultant a few years ago, and he really sold them on the value of walks. Other teams were watching and learning. And THAT, I think, is why you've seen on-base percentages, in many instances, go way up. A guy with a .298 batting average and a .398 on-base average is, assuming roughly equal power stats, worth a LOT more than a guy with a .335 batting average and a .360 on-base average.

As for the guy with a higher batting average than OBP, I should know how to explain that, after all these decades, but I'm sad to say I don't. I believe that when a batter hits a base runner with a line drive, the BASERUNNER is the one who's out, and the batter can still get first base. OH!!!! I KNOW!!! The guy singled and got thrown out trying to stretch it into a double. That's a hit, but it didn't get him on base.

BHN

[Edited on 4/23/06 by BaseballHistoryNut]

Interleague play. Mets/Yankies.

Why does Randy Johnson have a batting average of .127?

Well, to start with, he's a pitcher. Secondly he's 6'10". His strike zone is roughly the size of a Harley.

Julio Lugo(Rays), he's a little guy. Remember that, he's a little guy.

Runners on 1st and 2nd, none out. He attempts to bunt going 0-2. The count evens out at 2-2(no longer trying to bunt). The pitch comes, a beauty curve but it really doesn't catch the plate, very close. HE TOOK IT!!! The count is now 3-2. Next pitch, BAM, to the deepest part of the park, the fence is 404 feet. The ball makes it over.

Great at bat. Did I mention that he's a little guy?