Aaron Judge stands tall at six foot seven in the New York Yankees’ right fielder spot, and he is the answer for trophy 28. The Yankees have struggled in the past couple years, but they are back in action with a young squad led by power-hitting Gary Sanchez, speedy Didi Gregorius, and huge Judge. How does this translate to another piece of pinstripe success?
Here’s the verdict: they’re right back ahead of their rival Red Sox, they have been absolutely on fire, and they’ve got a pretty easy schedule up ahead which is a pretty clear indication that they’re gonna break out into the playoffs, again. Another factor is the young Judge: The man is batting well above .300, he’s already hit close to 15 home runs by early May, his on-base percentage is above .400, and his slugging percentage is closing in on .800! The last pinstriped outfielder to start out this well in his rookie year was Joltin’ Joe DiMaggio. Judge is sentencing opponents to grim final scores. They’re merely becoming names in history books about Judge as who he set his records against. How do teams prepare for their trial against New York? Don’t pitch right into the strike zone. The best opportunity for getting the powerful Judge out is to pitch around him. That means something similar to intentionally walking a batter. Say you’re a left handed pitcher and Mike Trout comes up with the bases loaded; you don’t want to give him anything good to hit, but you also can’t walk him because then a run will score. What you do is throw pitches around the edges of the strike zone that wouldn’t always be called a strike by the home plate umpire, but still look close enough for the batter to take a whack at. The pitches are close enough to look hittable, but they’re much more difficult to strike than pitches right down Broadway are. That’s how pitchers have to play it against Judge. For example, last year he struck out 42 times out of just 95 plate appearances. His batting average was a mere .179, but his strikeout average was an astounding .442. This year, he’s struck out just 32 times out of 104 at-bats. That’s a strikeout average of only .308. His SO average has dropped by more than .130! The Yankees also have Gary Sanchez’s power in tow: Sanchez is batting up near .300 with an OBP close to .400 alongside 2 home runs in just 10 games for Sanchez. Last year, he came in second for the Rookie of the Year award behind the 11-7 Detroit Tiger, Michael Fulmer. Sanchez also went .299 for his average, .376 for his OBP, and hit all of 20 home run shots in just 53 games. If the Bronx Bombers ballclub can keep calling their shots, this team could come to be another rendition of their late 1990s and 2000s team, their 70s team, and maybe even their 1927 Murderer’s Row lineup. Baseball has been judged and the sentence is life in another set of Yankee World Series championship wins. Jesse A. Cook May 10, 2017 “Tough To Judge: The New York Yankees”
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There have been many athletes with unusual lives outside of sports, but none more compelling than that of catcher turned spy Moe Berg.
Born in raised Harlem to a pharmacist and a homemaker, Morris “Moe” Berg was always interested in languages and baseball. Considering the fact that his parents were Jews from Europe and that he lived in a predominantly non-Jewish community, he picked up Yiddish and English rather quickly. Soon, he’d be off to Princeton University to play baseball, though his dad wanted him to follow in his profession, or at least study for a high-paying job like a lawyer. “He could speak 12 languages, but he couldn’t hit in any of ‘em,” is one of the most notable quotes about the Princeton graduate. Moe Berg is remembered in New Jersey as the greatest baseball player in Princeton history. Though he was a shortstop, then, he’d soon be converted to a catcher after the catcher the White Sox had signed turned out to be too fat. He couldn’t maneuver well enough behind the plate to stop all the pitches, so Moe Berg volunteered. There was only one issue, Moe Berg had never even put on the shin guards in his life and the man on the mound, Ted Lyons, was tossing a mean knuckleball which would cause Berg to be in a dangerous position to miss the ball and catch with an unprotected area. One more thing, they were facing the 1920’s New York Yankees Murderer’s Row lineup. Against the Bronx’s Ruth and Gehrig, Moe Berg would be outstanding, thus beginning his career behind the plate. The majority of Berg’s career would be spent with the Chicago White Sox, Washington Senators, and Boston Red Sox. On a major league tour of Japan, Moe Berg, who may have played well in 1926 for a couple games, but was never that good again, was taken along and many thought it quite odd. Turns out, he spoke Japanese, just by coincidence, and, just by coincidence, he had some business with some government officials shortly beforehand. After his baseball career and during World War II, the Office of Strategic Services would make him a spy for the United States. What was his mission, you ask? Well, I’ll give you a little important info on it: it’d be a Jewish man from Harlem, New York, heading straight into Nazi Germany. He’s a Jew, in Nazi Germany, during World War II, and his mission is to listen to a physics lecture in German, decipher whether or not the Nazis were close to inventing the atomic bomb, and if so, kill Werner Heisenberg, the man leading their research, all while avoiding being caught because if he was caught, he’d be killed. Odds are kind of stacked against him, huh? Thanks to Moe Berg’s undercover research, the US was able to uncover the fact that Germans were nowhere close to creating the bomb. Berg, fortunately, was able to return safely to the states without having to kill Heisenberg. He didn’t have a glamorous baseball career, but his service to this country is a great achievement. Jesse A. Cook April 20, 2017 “The Catcher Was A Spy” Bartolo Colón, nicknamed “Big Sexy,” is taking a leap of faith… towards the basket.
Oh, it does come as quite a surprise to baseball fans, but the future Chicago Bull, when interviewed by ESPN representatives about going reverse-Jordan, said “It's a very special feeling to do it for one team, unlike what I did before.” He’s of course talking about how he’ll remain loyal to his Bulls fans, unlike how he traveled from organization is his 20 year, and eight team, career. Colón will finish his 20th season this year with the Atlanta Braves, but he will reportedly join the Bulls organization in the 2018-2019 season. He’s expressed how he wants to end the 2017 MLB season, but spend a year training so he can be at his “Peak ability.” Bartolo will join names like Deion Sanders, Danny Ainge, Tim Tebow, Bo Jackson, and Michael Jordan to switch sports at what Colón called “The middle of my career.” The almost 44 year old expects to have a good 10 years in the NBA. Is that so crazy? At first glance, it’s a bit unbelievable, but Big Bad Bart may have a point: he’s played baseball for this long and he has no intention of retiring anytime soon, many baseball players, including Jamie Moyer, Bronson Arroyo, and Ichiro Suzuki, played and are playing well into their forties, and Colón is one of the more agile pitchers in the game. Does it seem so insane, now? He has impeccable aim and often times, that can translate pretty smoothly to perfect aim on the court. There have been plenty of successful, large basketball players: Glenn Davis, Jared Sullinger, and Oliver Miller are only a few of the players in that category. Bartolo is a rather fast character and if baseball can no longer satisfy his sporting needs, why not give him a “shot?” He’s agile, he can move, he’s got great aim, and if I saw that racing down the court towards me, I would not want to get in his way. Braves fans will have Bartolo for the rest of the season and he’s expressed how excited he is to get a chance to play with Dansby Swanson, Freddie Freeman, R.A. Dickey, Matt Kemp, and Julio Teheràn. Colón is expected to have an impressive season with Atlanta, but several Bulls fans have made custom Colón jerseys. One fan stated that “Big Bart deserves the MLB and NBA Hall of Fame!” Strong words, but Colón could make it to Cooperstown if he plays a few more years, which does make his intersport transition a tad upsetting. Bart is also the last active player to have spent time on the Montréal Expos. His absence from the ballgame truly marks the end of an era. Everybody is a little upset, but still quite intrigued about this switch from the ballfield to the court. Sure, Benny the Bull may end up looking a bit larger than usual, but Big Bart will make a huge impact on the National Basketball Association. Colón will finish his 20th season in Major League Baseball, spend a year training for basketball, then start his NBA career with the Chicago Bulls in the 2018-2019 season. We’ve had a lot of fun with him in baseball and we’ve had way more fun with all you viewers on the wonderful April Fools’ Day. Happy April Fools’ Day, but in all seriousness, baseball begins on Monday, April 3rd. Unfortunately for me, April 1 is my birthday, so I apologize for all those victims who share the misfortune of having been born on a day where people prank you and, in France, slap fishes on your back. Happy April Fools’ Day, and let’s hope for a baseball season as fantastic as the last one! Jesse A. Cook April 1, 2017 “Big Sexy To Basketball: Bartolo Colón Leaves For The NBA” With a final score of 8-3, Team Japan knocked Team Israel out of the World Baseball Classic. Now, the Jewish holiday of Passover, or Pesach, as it’s pronounced in Hebrew, is almost upon us; during Pesach, all yeast products, including pasta, rice, and of course, bread, must be dropped and replaced with the hard cracker, matzah. While we’re talking baseball, it’s true that everybody wants to come home with the most “bread,” but Israel, being primarily made of Jewish ballplayers had to take home the flavorless, crunchy, and disgusting sheet of drywall, matzah, instead.
The seder started with relief pitcher Josh Zeid asking the four questions, one per inning, with no response, only to be matched by Japan’s Kodai Senga. Everything was calm until the sixth inning when the Japanese lineup unleashed the plagues on Israel’s Zack Thornton, Alex Katz, and Brad Goldberg. Pharaoh let my people go for three runs in the top of the ninth, but Japan still split the sea and crossed all the way to the Finals in Los Angeles alongside the Netherlands. Israel lost their last two games, yet they were the only games they lost. If they had repeated their first bout with the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Israel would be off to Hollywood to compete for the World Title. What went wrong, and led to the death of their first Classic birth? To begin with, while a great deal of the Israeli ballclub has major league experience, none of them are currently in the Big Leagues. Secondly, it’s a miracle that they even beat the Netherlands once! The Dutch lineup boasts several major leaguers including Jurickson Profar, Jonathan Schoop, Kenley Jansen, Didi Gregorius, and Xander Bogaerts. That makes it a tad difficult for a minor league lineup, doesn’t it? Israel actually did remarkably against them: granted, the country formerly known as Holland did crush them 12-2 in their last matchup, it was 4-2 Israel in their only other game back in the first round in Seoul, South Korea. If you switch the two games, Israel still makes it to the round in Tokyo, but they also move on to LA with 2-1 record in each round, in place of 3-0 in Seoul and 1-2 in Tokyo. Israel will be back to play in 2021, but they might have to play in late 2020 for the Qualifiers. There’s a whole system of who does or does not get a bye for the Qualifying Round. Anyhow, while Israel is out throwing away all their food that is not kosher for Passover, the Mensch on the Bench is riding the waves in LA as Japan and the US prepare to fight it out, tonight. Jesse A. Cook March 21, 2017 “As Passover Approaches, Israel Drops Bread” Team Israel has made it past the Qualification Round and into the World Baseball Classic. They have a 2-0 start after beating Korea 2-1 in the 10th inning and Chinese Taipei 15-7 later that day on last Monday, March 6. The Kingdom of the Netherlands are also 2-0 and they play Israel tonight at 10 pm Eastern Standard Time.
While the Netherlands have such stars as Loek Van Mil, Shawn Zarraga, Jurickson Profar, Jonathan Schoop, Kenley Jansen, Didi Gregorius, and Xander Bogaerts, and have Bert Blyleven as their pitching coach, Israel has been on an unstoppable roll ever since the qualifiers. They also have Jason Marquis, Ryan Lavarnway, Cody Decker, Nate Freiman, Sam Fuld, Craig Breslow, Scott Feldman, and Ike Davis. Clearly, tonight will prove to be a great game, however the loser will have to play one more game against the winner of tomorrow’s 4:30 am Eastern Standard Time Korea vs. Chinese Taipei game. Even if the loser of tonight’s game lost to the winner of tomorrow’s game, they still would have the tiebreaker over them, for both Israel and the Netherlands have beaten both Chinese Taipei and Korea. Team Israel made its first appearance in the tournament 4 years ago in 2013 when Spain knocked them out in the final Qualifying game with a 9-7 win in 10 innings. They had previously beaten Spain and South Africa, but just couldn’t hold on. This time around, they swept their Qualifying round, beating Great Britain and Brazil, then winning with a 9-1 over Britain in the final game. Can they translate this streak into a week in Tokyo, and then maybe winning it in Los Angeles? In Tokyo, they’d most likely play the Netherlands again, Cuba, and Japan. If Israel can defeat the Netherlands tonight, they’ll be likely to defeat them once more, and Cuba has been on a decline ever since all their best players defected to the US. That merely leaves the always strong Team Japan. Japan has one major leaguer on their squad, Nori Aoki, but plenty of the other names on their team that I can’t pronounce are the top players in Japan’s league. Cuba is an interesting program to think about: here in the United States, we’ve never heard of these players, yet once some of them defect, they’re likely to become some of the biggest names in baseball. Aroldis Chapman, Yoenis Cespedes, Jose Abreu, Yasiel Puig, Raisel Iglesias, Jose Iglesias, Yoan Moncada, Jose Fernandez, Yasmani Grandal, Aledmys Diaz, Yonder Alonso, Rusney Castillo, Jorge Soler, Kendrys Morales, Brayan Pena, Hector Olivera, and Alexei Ramirez are all players who played last year who were unknown when they played in Cuba, but are now very recognizable to the average baseball fan. We don’t know who on this current Team Cuba will become a Major League All-Star, but we can be fairly sure that there are a few great prospects. Many teams in the Classic, like Japan, Cuba, and the Netherlands have players who are hoping to be discovered by MLB scouts. Teams like Israel, who are primarily made up of major leaguers, their players are rather wishing to get adequately prepared for the upcoming MLB season. Israel of course, is an underdog compared to teams like USA, Canada, Columbia, and the Dominican Republic, but if the 1990 and 1991 seasons taught us anything, then we all should know that even the worst teams can swiftly turn into the best. (If you’re wondering, the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves were last place in their respective leagues in 1990, then faced each other in the World Series the next year in ‘91. The Twins won in 7 games) While it seemed quite unlikely a couple months ago, it is becoming more and more of a possibility that the Stars of David may end up as the Stars of the World. If Israel does end up on top, we can all shout the treasured Hebrew expression “נס גדול היה שם” (pronounced “Nes Gadol Hayah Sham”) which means “A great miracle happened there.” We Jews have had many miracles, and that phrase, which the letters on the dreidel stand for, may apply to this Classic tournament. Jesse A. Cook March 8, 2017 “The Yiddish Are Coming!” Éric Gagné, who retired nine years ago, is trying to make a return with Team Canada in the World Baseball Classic…
I’ll just let that sit for a moment. For those of you who don’t know, Gagné played 10 years in the Majors with the Boston Red Sox, Texas Rangers, Milwaukee Brewers, but mainly with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 2003 Cy Young Award winner and three-time all-star is attempting to make a return to professional baseball. Gagné is with the Dodgers at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix, Arizona, as an instructor, however, he has been throwing in the bullpen to warm up for the WBC. He has recently been clocked at 93-95 miles per hour. Could “Gagné” mean “gagner” (French for “to win”) for Team Canada? He held a strong 3.77 ERA, struck out 718 batters, and only gave up 76 home runs during his 10 year career, but can he survive with similar status until possibly March 22? He struck out six and allowed one run on two hits and no walks in five innings with the Ottawa Champions, but that’s a very small amount of time with a sub-minor league level team. While the former Trolley-Dodger has expressed how amazing he feels, currently, one can also compare him to the many minor league prospects and veterans attempting a comeback throughout the ages who felt the same way, but were never heard from again. He’s now putting himself in a select group of ballplayers who had careers and tried to be a star on one final team, yet he’s most likely going to end up in the far more select group who had mediocre careers and still persisted at making a return even though the game rejected them multiple times prior. He may end up being remembered alongside Jimmy Rollins and Bret Saberhagen; players who went from honorable mentions in a team’s success to being a comedic side note in a feeble, lesser, and different team’s ventures. These feel good, end of a career, one-day contract stories are fondly remembered and reminisced about at the end of the season, yet Gagné and Canada’s chance gagner (again, French for “to win”) will surely merely come to be a simple flavor of the month. Vont-Canada gagne? Je ne sais pas, mais ce n’est pas. Jesse A. Cook February 28, 2017 “Canada Va ‘Gagné’” Yes, yes, the beloved Cincinnati Reds’ second baseman, Brandon Phillips, has been traded to the Atlanta Braves for the two prospects, Andrew McKirahan and Carlos Portuondo. While he will be missed, this is exactly what they needed to do. BP was good, but he’s getting old, his play has decreased, he had a massive contract that the Reds just didn’t want to hold onto, and he’s rather injury prone. The Reds don’t play against Atlanta until Friday, June 2 when Phillips makes his first return to Cincinnati.
His home run numbers have declined over the years and he’s finally down to near single digits. BP may happen to be a small middle infielder, but with age, you grow slower, and if an aging ballplayer can’t hit for power or run fast, he’s close to useless; this was a genius move for the Redlegs. Despite having a 5.93 ERA after 27 innings in the majors back in 2015 with the Atlanta Braves, McKirahan had a 2.20 ERA in the Minor Leagues. 27 innings is 3 games total, that really is not enough to judge a man’s career, but his years of fantastic minor league baseball is certainly enough to judge his potential. McKirahan is young and will most likely turn out to be one of the Reds’ best moves. Carlos Portuondo comes to us from Cuba, and alongside Jesse Winker and Nick Senzel, he’s one of the prospects that will, not to be political, make Cincinnati great again. He had a fairly low ERA with Santiago de Cuba. In the Minor Leagues, Portuondo merely had a 3.63 Earned Run Average. Billy Hamilton, Adam Duvall, Joey Votto, and Zack Cozart have been signs of why Reds' fans should have hope for their offensive game, yet they have been rather scant of the pitching end. With the recent additions to their pitching staff, the Southwestern Ohio team could make it back to a level they have not reached since the days of Barry Larkin. While they did make the postseason a few years ago with a reincarnation of the 1990 team, it looks like they could definitely be just right back where they were very soon: Cincinnati will have an incredibly strong squad. Though the personality of Brandon Phillips, who my uncle won a contest to talk to over the phone and said was a wonderful person, will surely be missed, his declining play and the improving prospects shine a bright light on the future of the Reds. It’s hard to believe that the era of BP and Joey Votto is ending, yet as dedicated sports fans, we often have to deal with such grief. Cope with it how you will, but we’ll end on bright note: with Cincy’s recent trade, we could soon have a team akin to that of the 1990 World Champions with Barry Larkin, Billy Hatcher, and the Nasty Boys (Rob Dibble, Norm Charlton, and Randy Myers) or the Big Red Machine of the 1970s with Pete Rose, Johnny Bench, and Tony Perez. Sit back and enjoy the ride, Reds Country, we’ll be back on top soon enough. Jesse A. Cook February 22, 2017 “BP To ATL In GA” The Cincinnati Reds have been near dead last in the National League in the last couple years, but can they change, this year? There have been many terrible teams that turned it all around in one year: the 1991 World Series was between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves, the 2 teams that had finished last in their respective leagues the previous year.
The Reds are kind of like the Boston Red Sox, they’ve been bad for a few years, but their minor league system has some good prospects who could very possibly take the Reds back to the playoffs. Before we talk about them, however, let’s focus on who’s currently on the team: They’ve got young stars like Billy Hamilton and Adam Duvall who they can rebuild around, but they’d need to get rid of some of their veterans for younger players. Brandon Phillips is a no-brainer, but he won’t go. The Reds have tried every year to rid themselves of him and get some minor leaguers, yet Phillips repeatedly invokes his no-trade clause; the Reds Legs are stuck with him until after the 2018 season. Joey Votto, on the other hand, is a bit of question mark. He’s been good in the last few years, but is he so good that they should keep him and rebuild around him or so good that they should trade him and get good players and prospects for him? Votto’s batted over .300 in the last 2 seasons, and 6 more times in his 10 year career, he hit 29 home runs in each of the last 2 years, and he’s batted in more than 75 runs in each of the last 2 years. These stats make you wonder how he hasn’t made the all-star team since 2013: he was hurt for most of 2014, but in the last couple years, he’s been better in the second-half of the season. If Votto can keep up these stats for the entire year, he, alongside Hamilton, Duvall, and the soon-to-be rookie, Jesse Winker, might be able to take the Reds to their first playoff bout since their Wild Card Game loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013. Zack Cozart is a player for whom Cincinnati may consider a trade. While he may not have peaked yet, he has a great future ahead of him and The Reds would be able to acquire other prospects. He would be a valuable acquisition for a team striving for the championship this year like the Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, or Texas Rangers. Cozart’s contract ends after this coming season, so the Reds will definitely want to trade him and get players in return, rather than lose him to free agency and get nothing. This is all assuming that the Reds won’t want to sign him back. Now, they could do what the New York Yankees did with former Reds’ closer Aroldis Chapman, and trade him away during the season then sign him back after the playoffs when he’s a free agent. Getting back on the topic of prospects; there is another hope for Reds Country: Jesse Winker. Playing in Triple-A ball for the Reds’ Kentucky affiliate, the Louisville Bats, Winker batted .303, had 115 hits, and batted in 45 runs. Granted, MiLB is nowhere near being on the same level of playing as MLB, these stats are still quite impressive. Keep in mind, if the RBI and hits seem low, he did only play 106 games at AAA. Winker isn’t their lone ray of hope. As I mentioned before, Hamilton and Duvall are very promising, yet there are more minor leaguers that should be ready, and plenty of young men who are currently on the roster. Other players in the Reds’ minor league system include Nick Senzel, Amir Garrett, Robert Stephenson, and Alfredo Rodriguez. Of these 5, Winker is rated third, by MLB.com, behind (in order) Senzel and Garrett. Senzel played 10 games for the Pioneer League Rookie Ball Billings Mustangs and 58 games for the Midwest League Single A Dayton Dragons. In total, he hit .305, 24 doubles, and he batted in 40 runs. Garrett has a bit more experience; having played professionally since 2012, he pitched very well in 2016 for the Double A Pensacola Blue Wahoos and the Triple A Louisville Bats: with a total 2.55 Earned Run Average in 144.2 innings, he only gave up 6 home runs, and a 1.092 WHIP (Walks plus Hits over Innings Pitched). Robert Stephenson has already made the majors; in fact, he started 8 games at the end of the 2016 season for the Reds with a 2-3 record and a 6.08 ERA in 37 innings pitched. It’s not quite clear how close Rodriguez might be to the majors, for he’s playing for the Reds of the Dominican Summer League. Players in that league are usually Hispanic guys who were just recently signed by a big team. Most players don’t exceed the age of 21, which is the age when a good portion of Hispanic guys make the majors. Rodriguez, at 22 years old, is one of those few, though he was only signed last year. The Reds already have on their team promising young players like Anthony DeSclafani, Raisel Iglesias, Michael Lorenzen, Dilson Herrera, and Eugenio Suarez. These guys, combined with their prospects, the future players they may receive in trades, and the veterans like Joey Votto that they may not trade in order for them to lead the team, could turn the Reds back into the playoff team they were a few years ago, in the late 80s and early 90s, or the Big Red Machine of the 70s. It will take some crafty ownership and general managerial skills, but the hunt for a Reds October may not be too far off from their prey. Jesse A. Cook January 8, 2017 “The Hunt For Red October” There have been rumors of bringing back the Expos to Montréal, Québec. How will this happen? Well, before I answer that, we must take a look at why they left:
Owner Frank Loria faced a financial problem with the Expos. Most of the people funding the team had left them, causing Loria to increase his shares up to 92%. At this point, he realized that the main issue was the annual revenue that fans brought in. Why were ticket sales so terrible? That, you can blame on their ballpark, Olympic Stadium. It’s a pretty ugly place and it sort of resembles Tropicana Park in Tampa Bay, Florida where the Rays reside. Loria then searched for a new area for the park, but he had no use for the area as neither did the MLB, the province of Québec, nor an architecture firm that would’ve aided in the building of a second Expos field. This lack of a stadium would force fans to fear getting to April and having no team in their city. Just 72 hours before spring training in 2002, Loria left for the Florida Marlins and Omar Minaya was left in charge. The franchise was saved by a new bargaining agreement that guaranteed the existence of the team until 2006, however, it looked to be as if the best option for maintaining the baseball program would be relocation. After the 2004 season, baseball left Montréal and returned to Washington D.C. as the Washington Nationals in 2005. The Nationals have not honored the Expos with retiring their numbers of Gary Carter’s #8, Andre Dawson’s #10, Rusty Staub’s #10, and Tim Raines’ #30, yet they do have the universally retired Jackie Robinson’s #42. These numbers do, however, hang up in the rafters of the Centre Bell, the home arena of Montréal’s NHL team, the Montréal Canadians. So, getting back to the main idea, how will the Expos make a comeback to Québec? The Montréal Baseball Project (MBP) was founded by former player and star of the Yomiuri Giants in Japan, Warren Cromartie. Currently, Montréal is home to the Canadians, the Impact of the MLS, the Alouettes of the Canadian Football League, and the Jazz of the National Basketball League of Canada; how and where does baseball fit into this mix? The MBP is looking into 5 main locations: Bonaventure Expressway, Wellington Basin, the Montréal Children’s Hospital, the Montréal Hippodrome, and Olympic Stadium. Wellington Basin looks to be the best and most feasible option for a new ballpark. Though there is a likelihood of land contamination, it wouldn’t require demolition, public transit is available, there’s good parking available, it’s within walking distance of downtown Montréal, there’s a great deal of space ready, and there’s a great deal of renewal potential. The MLB doesn’t want to add a team, like the soon-to-be 31 team NHL with the addition of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, so the only option for a second Canadian baseball team (in addition to the Toronto Blue Jays) would be the relocation of another team. The Tampa Bay Rays are a prime candidate for relocation: their stadium is falling apart, they’re dead last in yearly revenue, and frankly, they have no potential. Even the Reds and Phillies have their farm systems in the works. Sure, they have Evan Longoria, but ever since Ben Zobrist, James Shields, and David Price left, there hasn’t been much keeping them there. One might argue that the Reds or Phillies should move, but they have wonderful ballparks, they still bring in a good amount of revenue, they’ve got great potential, they’ve got the history, and they have something else that the Rays don’t: a large fanbase. Have you ever tuned into a Rays home game? The crowd is essentially empty! The Expos would surely sell out. There is a thirst for baseball in southern Québec that must be quenched. Whether it’s by importing some fishes from Florida or expanding the MLB, it’s got to happen, and they have the means, the might, and the manner of doing so. Let’s bring back the Montréal Expos, we need le retour de Nos Amours. Jesse A. Cook “Le Retour De Nos Amours: Bringing The Expos Back To Montréal” January 6, 2017 My dad turns 47 today, so I’ve been pondering for the last month or so, what would be the perfect gift? Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. can attest, baseball is the best way for a father and son to connect. I don’t play anymore, and I live in New England (I thought we’d have a couple inches of snow on the ground by now), so I decided that I should use my talent to buy him a gift I could afford: words; cheap, free however, meaningful words. Happy birthday, Padre:
It was 1990 when they heard the news: Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. would be playing on the same team. The Seattle Mariners had brought Junior to the Majors just the year before, and now the father Griffey would join him on the same ballfield. On September 14, 1990, the two would share a great moment when the dad hit a bomb to left center to put the Mariners above the California Angels 2-0. The incredible moment came in the next at-bat when Junior fired a shot just a few feet over into the left field stands. Back to back home runs in Junior’s second year and his dad’s second to last. The Griffeys will go down as one of the greatest father son pairs in history. Cecil Fielder and his son, Prince, are another historic pair. In the same year as the Griffeys’ back to back bombs, Cecil hit 51 home runs, and 17 years later, in 2007 Prince knocked his 50th out of the park. They’re the only father son pair to each have a 50 homer season. My dad grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, and almost every night during the summer, he and his brother would fall asleep to the magical words of the longtime (and still on the air) Reds sportscaster Marty Brennaman. To this day, the Hall of Famer and his son will often take us out with Marty’s signature catchphrase: “And this one belongs to the Reds.” They’ve been doing the games for years just like I have been doing with my dad for our hometown sports teams. “Like father, like son”, has great meaning in the world of sports, and I’m thankful that I can share that with my dad. There are some great father son duos, and I like to think that my dad and I fall into that category. Happy birthday, Padre, and many more. Jesse A. Cook “On The Field, Over The Fence, And In The Booth: Like Father Like Son” January 2, 2017 |
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