My dad's favorite team back in the pre-1994 days was the Reds. I love it every time the Dodgers beat them.

Let's see who can name the other 8 (16). No cheating, obviously.

Then it hit me all at once.

I love it when a plan comes together.

Today's NY Sun puzzle is considerably easier.

Gary & Ron Roenicke
Pedro & Ramon Martinez
Steve & Dave Sax

drawing a blank...

Now I just need to find someone to impregnate. :)

Every time I think of Gordie Hershiser, I get an image of the father from Stand By Me saying "It should have been you, Gordie."

"If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence, you have won before you have started." -Marcus Garvey.

Brother of Steve Garvey. Wow.

In a TV interview before the 1974 World Series:

"I always try to act as though there is a little boy or a little girl around, and I try never to do anything that would give them a bad example."

Steve Garvey is not my padre!!

Looks like the worst of the T-Storm has already passed - according to Yahoo Weather, but chance of storms all night. So... my guess is they'll try as much as they can to get this one. For the Dodgers sake, I hope they do.

Sigh... Dave and Cody?

I give up.

Unless I'm thinking of Ken Boyer.

The Reds are already at home and an off day on September 7th so I am sure they will choose that date.

Back in my youth I rooted for both teams.

Either that or the Reds have an inexplicable fear of Greg Maddux.

How's the tropical storm off Florida looking for the weekend? I'm always wary of L.A. teams having sporting events postponed because of a threat of a hurricane and having to be made up later.

BRAD MELSBY DIDN'T FUMBLE!
TACKLE EDGERRIN JAMES JUST ONCE!

Sorry, flashback there.

I'm sitting here wondering what the job description of those guys is when it isn't raining.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

The Royals crew last night was like a drill team. They got the tarp on so fast, I was in awe.

Is it bad that I laughed out loud at this?

Hilarious.

immediately spring to mind.

Miserable.

Am I allowed to say that word here?

Know, though, that it wasn't a comment about politics but about the guy's personality, having met him several times.

Today's game - 6.0 IP 4 hits 1 run 0 earned run 0 BBs 11 Ks

For the season (including today), 27.0 IP, 18 hits, 5 runs, 3 ER, 0 HRs, 4 walks, 42 strikeouts

Bob,

Gaaaaaaah. I just got it. I had 55 Down solved and couldn't figure out how it answered the clue. I searched google -- no luck. Then........

Gaaaaaaah.

Frank Robinson, Eddie Murray, Babe Ruth...

I had the same reaction to 55-down. Once I figured that one out, everything else fell into place.

the baseball gods are genious I tell you..!!

Also Hack Wilson.

And a lot of others that will come to me as soon as I stop trying to think of them.

Only time in my life I've ever done something like that. I can laugh about it now, but my mom still doesn't think it's very funny.

One was when UTEP lost a big game on a desperation 3-pointer. The other was in college when the kids in the next dorm room wouldn't quit smoking pot and blasting music at 5 a.m. the night before I had a final exam.

In Koufax'days radar guns might not have been in wide use, or not very reliable, or ?

Is he the fastest Dodger ever?

Beyond that, what pitcher has been clocked as fastest ever? How fast was that?

Also, could someone address a reference I once saw (not sure where) to the Dodgers' radar gun being "generous?" How can that be? If a radar gun is calibrated correctly how is there any room for "generous" or "stingy" or whatever?

Ah...I have fond memories of listening to UTEP games on AM radio.

No radar guns in Koufax's day.

I believe Nolan Ryan is credited with the fastest pitch that has been reliably timed and that was 100.9 mph.

This link has some radar gun readings:
http://www.baseball-almanac.com/articles/fastest-pitcher-in-baseball.shtml

Mark Wohlers at 103 mph seems to be the leader in the clubhouse.

Im pretty sure Billy Kock hit 101 a couple of times as well.

After watching Penny-Martin's strike em out throw em out double play I started wondering when was the last time the dodgers did that and how frequently that play occurs in baseball. Do you know of a good site were I could search for that type of information?

I did some research on this once and I'm fairly certain Koufax's speed was never clocked scientifically, although I'm not sure why, since earlier pitchers like Feller and Walter Johnson had their speed measured by various crude scientific methods.

The differences between "fast" and "slow" guns come about because of differences in the way they are calibrated. The way a radar gun works is it takes multiple radar readings as the pitch is on its way home, then averages those readings to come up with the number you see. Different brands of guns have different numbers of these test points and sometimes they are aimed at slightly different angles, so the numbers come up different.

Or maybe it sounded better than Hazen.

I don't know how to do that, mainly because you need a PC to do it and I'm a Mac guy.

I'm guessing that the K-CS DP isn't that unusual.

It is everything I can do not to destroy my television. Maybe I could tape myself head butting the screen and sending it into this particular show to add to the other unfunny things
they are showing.

Count your blessing if you are following via Gameday this time.

As soon as I find out his name the homeplate umpire is going to be added to my "Dead to me list". Rain delay with no rain. Whatever happened to TWIB during a rain delay?

How about this

Kigh Kigh Kighler

Kigh as in high

Ahh English spelling!

http://tinyurl.com/2l79c

http://tinyurl.com/nqunn

http://tinyurl.com/2l79c

Ah, for the old days, when a player's disability could be mocked openly.

Most times if you play a game of catch with a lightning bolt, you don't get to play anymore.

That is like staring at the Mona Lisa compared to an hour of "That's Funny". One more episode and I'll find a way to reverse my Lasix.

126

Great. The Reds have been on my dead to me since at least 1994. No changes there.

Hey, baseball. nevermind

Ben Franklin says "Hi, Bob"

Jason Tyner could hit a home run off of this guy.

Not so far for Ethier but nice nonetheless.

Bob has strik rules for that.

I swear I LOL'ed

"There goes the Doomsday Alarm. We ain't heard that since last week!"

And 300 wins beats 500 HR, this time.

Saenz has played Gold Glove defense for the past 10 days or so. What gives?

Didn't Mythbusters (aka "The Greatest Show on Television" bust that story a little while ago? I remember them doing it, but don't remember the results.

I just got the print edition of SI, and there are samples of the sunflower-seed carved styrofoam cups of Hendrickson, Lugo and Hall pictured in the front of the book.

Probably more so than the K-CS DP.

One of the things we didn't think about with the Maddux deal was the Gold Gloves the guy has. Might be the best fielding pitcher I've ever seen.

Again with me messing up the links. I'm quitting cold turkey this time.

& trying to pull everything(come on Murrey earn you're check)

Dunn is at 6.

Bill Hands struck out in 14 (!!) straight at-bats in 1968.

Though you couldn't tell from the way he's pitching tonight.

my bet goes to a healthy Repko, but Furcal is pretty damn fast.

And you thought I had no sense of humor.

I have no clue, Bob to the rescue I hope.

Did he trip over the ball or something?

Con and Ed Daily (didn't Con used to run Enron?)
Jim and Mickey Hughes
Mike and Greg Maddux
Ramon and Pedro Martinez
Steve and Dave Sax
Norm and Larry Sherry
Chris and John Van Cuyk
Lloyd and Paul Waner
Zack and Mack Wheat

Huh? Wha' happen?

Who's with me?

Sandy Koufax struck out in all 12 of his plate appearances in his rookie season in 1955.

In the AL, Dean Chance struck out 11 times in 11 straight plate appearances.

Who's with me?*

My brain works like you're but you just have a better way of writting. :o)

Just kidding.

52, 29. not bad at all. thanks

I was trying cbs sportsline and then gameday but it wouldn't open up. only reason I asked. i agree with your point though

And the bold thing doesn't work in more than one paragaph -- so you have to put new * around each separate paragraph.

But position players! Who holds that record, and what is it?

Somebody posted something about Tomas Perez, but I'm not sure what he did or when he did it.

They have on TV.

262 All the talk in Cincy is about why the fans don't come to games. They have a beautiful new ballpark, a semi-winning team and a couple of big names but their attendance is terrible. I think I've heard a different excuse for each empty seat. It's too hot, too cold, too rainy, too much traffic, too expensive... whatever.

Gotta be at least half a dozen.

Moments later, Valentin sent the ball flying into right field.

he did that once before.

it was in colorado non the less.

Even more importantly, I wish I could actually watch the Dodgers game somewhere tonight (I'm in SF)... Sigh.

I do recall it being really cold.

I've been trying to get an intervention arragned for Wes.

For another 4 innings only(hopefully) I hope I got that right from reading the Griddle

God saying "Watch it, Maddux."

Gosh, Milton's pitched a pretty decent game himself.

I am never going to finish my last (possibly) paper ever.

I would imagine that wherever Wes Parker is, there are thousands of opened, flat bottles of champagne.

http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B05280HOU1995.htm

You are SO going to H-E-double-hockey-sticks.

Um... yeah, how about those films of Charlie Kaufman? Aren't they all great?

{In Ralph Wiggums voice} Do you like things, and stuff?

I'm gonna go make dinner. Give me a holler when they're back. Thanks.

It would be "interesting", but only in a "special" sort of way. It would be Andy Hawkins or Melido Perez or David Palmer or Dean Chance interesting.

Wonder if Maddux will come back?

Which really, really stinks.

David Ortiz DID NOT homer to tie the game in Boston.

Thank goodness for this rain delay, otherwise I would have missed Family Feud! ;)

2. That Ned Coletti is a genius.

3. Throw away all your stats - they ain't CRAP! THis is baseball, not Stat 101. If you don't know the difference - well you are sad!

I just beat you to it. I swear what's wrong with the weather dudes!!

I just beat you to it. I swear what's wrong with the weather people!

And the bullpen held on.

Really, an hour rain delay?

Well, at least Mr. and Mrs. Billingsley aren't going to catch colds.

I would ask Phil Birnbaum about your "Familly Feud" question. He is an expert on sabermetrics and on game shows.

This is his blog:
http://sabermetricresearch.blogspot.com/

He'd give your question a stab.

Really, he would.

He's given my analysis of what game show had the fairest scoring system.

I think it was "The Newlywed Game".

"Repeat, 'Teen Wake-Up Calls', (2006), Mothers and their troubled teens are guests. (Advice)."

Some guys have all the luck. But everyone knows that Press Your Luck was the fairest scoring system.

I thought that was Claudia Perry.

Good job.

Thank you for that. That actually calmed me. It could always be worse. I forget that sometimes

Goes well with the butterflies buzzing around my kitchen.

And has everyone read 379 and clarifying comments?

Do you have "anything" to say?

Jon,

It's OK because I was just baiting Bluephan - I knew he jump on "picher". He likes to point out errors. It's my bad. I should not have been baiting him. I'm just surprised it took him so long.

P.S. Maybe I really don't know how to spell "pitcher."

Feud should have ended with Richard Dawson. And since when haven't they had the real flip-reveal board instead of the video screen? This is as bad as Vanna touching the video squares to reveal the letters rather than turning the actual squares.

Maybe he's a more adrenaline-oriented pitcher than he will admit. First Dodger game and all. Maybe that's aiding his concentration.

Or maybe he's just in love with Russell Martin's glove.

Seriously, I wish I knew the answer to that question. His pitches appear to have great movement but that has always been the case and he has never pitched an interesting game before. So I don't know.

WoW!

I could have sworn...

Boy, is that Terry guy smart...

I'll work on it.

Thanks,I'm watching 30 days with Morgan Spurlock. I caught the illegal immigrant/Minuteman episode and decided to add it to the TIVO list.

I wish I were more anal!

Ahh, the irony. The sad life of America's best-loved Mormon game show host.

Maybe it's a little of both, but I echo you're thought on Russell Martin's glove it's pretty sexy.

Hi everyone, happy to be here. Dodgers fan from Montreal. Fernando Valenzuela made an impression on me at age 8 and I've been a fan ever since. Enjoy your blog Jon.

Eric, any word on whether maddux is coming back out?

Dzzrt, I only saw a few of the ABs against Maddux on Baseball Tonight, but from what I saw it looked like Maddux was hitting his spots and fooling the Reds hitters - freezing them, even. Saw 2 strikeouts with batters caught looking. And the ball was kept down.

Meanwhile, I'm about to burn my dinner.

Thanks for your baseball team.

Welcome, Johnny. Did Fernando make the impression on "Blue Monday"?

I can't wait for the game to restart, just so mlb audio shifts from the Westwood One annoyingly perky voice over guy on an endless loop... even Rick Monday will be a sound for sore ears.

Not one reporter--not one--is willing to say they blew the story. If I had a vote, "Journamilism" would be reason number one.

Hey, we gotta talk about something during a rain delay, right?

LOL!

Please say it is just his day to throw between starts. this is too cruel

You had a lousy day?

There are no BAD days - some are just better than others!

I had tickets for tonights game and had a meeting I couldn't get out of. I had to give them to my Sales Manager...

He's called me 4 times with updates!

Drat!

Sorry for the baiting...

Anyway, go Dodgers.

Sure you can, it's winning that's difficult.

Which still really, really stinks.

Not sure I agree with that, really. We're talking about a pitcher here who is 40 years old and has basically never been hurt, has never had a hint of any kind of arm injury and presumably knows what his body can do.

If I'm Grady, and Maddux wants to stay in, I let him.

But here comes Joe.

(ducks)

I find that very hard to believe, considering he only has 13mils left on his contract.

Now that's just based on how I see Grady, and I certainly don't know.

So you can figure that the number of them probably holds steady around the 140-180 mark per season in the majors.

And, skirting around site rules, there can be, um, interesting games pitched by multiple pitchers, no?

Yes. Remember the 6 Astros' collaboration versus the Yankees?

Except he does this after EVERY game.

Rick Monday on a continuos loop? that made me sweat until I realized you couldn't hear his voice.

Discuss.

Not bad for a lefty.

the people working gameday must be reds fans.

Impossible practically: too many loopholes (injuries?). Theoretically: cool.

But he's sitting right in front of me, I guess I could go ask.

ps in the minors.

If I had to go with an all-time LA Dodger starting five, I would pick Koufax, Drysdale, Marichal, Pedro and Maddux. Wouldn't lose too many games with those guys pitching at their peak.

Hang in there Jon

Stan from Tacoma

Broxton was the key to the no-hitter!!

Bills & Broxton did (no-no)

I guess that was a righty-lefty switch from Beimel to Broxton, huh? Beimel seemed to be doing well.

It's gotten better but it's maddening when it happens.

Any all-time Dodger rotation list that doesn't include Dave Mlicki...

Would it have to be earned or could unearned/inherited count?

righty left is overated!

it seems tha this stuff has gotten better since college. If he can end the season well enough in jax, i might be inclined to place him in the dodgers top 7.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=230909129

Boy, is Ryan Freel the most, uh, interesting centerfielder in baseball or what?

542 I think we're allowed to talk about a no-hitter now, given it's not happening any longer, yah?

That is a new major league record for DPs by a pitcher. Maddux was tied with Phil Niekro.

Maddux is also way ahead of all pitchers in putouts.

But he doesn't have that many assists. That record is held by Christy Mathewson and Maddux is way behind him. I assume that's because there is far less bunting in today's game than there was in the Deadball Era.

Now if Chad Billingsley can just stop walking people.

And if Hendrickson would just catch one break.

Maddux is getting roundly praised in this thread. People were just raising great debuts -- I certainly wasn't locking horns on which was the best, and I don't think anyone was.

Stan from Tacoma

Give me a break.

I have an even-handed post on the Griddle about the Cardinals.

When I told him a couple weeks ago that Majewski had been traded, he cried.

For about thirty seconds.

Then he looked at me and said: "But they won't trade Ryan Zimmerman will they?"

baseball is such a beautiful/weird game.

I attended the game when Glenn Hubbard tied the major league record for assists in a 9-inning game by a second baseman with 12. Juan Samuel then matched the total 6 days later.

Samuel would have broken the record in the 9th inning, but he ... wait for it ...

made a throwing error.

Stan from Tacoma

Or maybe unsurprisingly, since fielding was such a big part of the game when guys were playing without gloves and teams scored a lot of runs on errors.

Or is that Howard's kitchen?

If a player is claimed by an opposing team, the team putting him on waivers has the option to pull him back off waivers. I guess other teams just didn't really want to bother. I probably wouldn't have bothered to claim him unless i was seriously thinking about working out a trade for druw.

Saito-san. C'mon.

Come on Saito.

Stan from Tacoma

thank you

The second thing, because they are revocable waivers, it is pretty doubtful that the Braves would let him go, though I think they only have a few days before he is a 10/5 player which gives in a no-trade clause anyway.

there a song by that name no Bob?

But still they begin
Needles and pins
Because of all my pride
The tears I gotta hide

Stan from Tacoma

Darn you Bob, know I have to look for it on the web...

ps Dodgers rock to 6

Just turned the game back on and didn't see the runner on first. thanks

It's tough to say, considering how streaky this team is...

on the current team for 5 years. it was a players union thing.

Thanks for turning me on the the American version of The Office. I like it.

Please explain to me why Buster Olney was gushing out over the reds basically trading Kearns, Lopez, and other prospects for middle relievers? I mean, what's so great about a bullpen that has a lot of middle relievers, and a Baezesque closer? Especially since you had to give up guys like Kearns and Lopez for them?

But pity poor Joe Beimel. One of his better outings, but I'll bet he feels like a scab in the locker room tonight.

Trading prospect, even guys that aren't likely to pan out, for bullpen help isn't the wisest thing to do. I know I'm just basically parroting Steve, but I wanted to point it out once again.

But he's got high hopes!
He's got high hopes.
He's got high, apple pie in the sky, hopes!

To illustrate his last remark
Jonah in the whale, Noah in the ark
What did they do
Just when everything looked so dark

Man, they said we better
Accentuate the positive
Eliminate the negative
Latch on to the affirmative
Don't mess with Mister In-Between
No, do not mess with Mister In-Between

Stan from Tacoma

The Cardinals are going to win the NL Central by default.

Now, one week later, the Dodgers are entering Friday's game 3 games out of the division in 3rd place and 2 games behind the Reds and D-Backs for the wild card.

I still think they need to get a few games above .500 before I get excited but 2 sweeps makes watching them a lot more fun.

But to quote someone from yesterday, boy this team is streaky.

Stan from Tacoma

Thought those might have mentioned JR Richard of Houston. I thought he'd hit 101?

Sorry to learn Koufax wasn't clocked. A story I saw last year quoted one of his catchers saying Koufax had the greatest margin for error he ever saw at the ML level. This in an era of Marichal, Gibson, et al.

Story told how, late in games and on a roll, Koufax sometimes would just quit using his curveball. Didn't need it. Major league hitters knew what was coming, just bullet after bullet. Didn't matter.

Whatever anyone's opinion of Joe Morgan on TV or otherwise, he's very knowledgeable. He's said Koufax had the best stuff he ever saw.

This thread a couple days back had a discussion of best all time pitchers. (Was surprised to see no mention of Nolan Ryan on any list there.)

I know numbers, ratios, etc. tell a lot. But if I had to pick one pitcher to win one game, intangibles and whatever else, it'd be Koufax.

Post too long. Way more than 'nuf said...

I was going to say that it's because Buster Olney is a reactionary idiot.

And I do think the comment re Buster Olney is against site rules. Its safer to go after the statement not the person.

My brother nicknames each of his nieces and nephews, but I can't see them sticking with them into adulthood.

"We now bring in ESPN baseball writer Knucklehead Austin for the latest on the trade deadline..."

http://www.4shared.com/file/2875652/422e699a/rmartinmadduxnohitsaug032006.html

Go to the bottom left of the page and click "download."

(I got a clip of Maddux's comments too, but alas, they're unintelligible because of the hip-hop blaring in the background.)

I don't know how he became Buster, though.

He was all smiles in the locker room afterward, FWIWF

"For What It's Worth, F**: The Explicit Buffalo Springfield Record."

Then again my dad was baptized as Henry, called Vernon by his family, and then Tim by everyone else as an adult, including the priest at his second wedding.

No wonder that priest got defrocked.

650 - They both enjoyed the name? They're cartoon characters? Family history? Fans of Buster Keaton? Sounds like a great story.

I know a Snapper and a Jett, but no Busters.

The best recent Dodger comparison I can think of to Sandy is Eric Gagne, but Gagne only was called on to pitch one inning at a time over a period of a couple of years. Fernando in 81 and Orel in 88 I suppose are comparable, but they did not sustain Sandy's excellence over a five year period. At their peak, Sandy is to pitching as Vin Scully is to broadcasting.

Stan from Tacoma

No one seems to be able to properly describe it in English. It's a screwball/sinker hybrid.

When I asked Rob Neyer and Bill James about it at a SABR Convention when they were compiling their book, James insisted that the "shuto" was not unique to Japan.

I heard a story that "For What It's Worth" was written about a bar on Sunset near Laurel, I think. Apparently, they were shutting down the bar due to safety code reasons, because it was pretty small. The story is that people were out with picket signs trying to save the bar, and thus, the song was written. The only thing left of the site now is a triangular cement bus stop island. I never believed it, but the source of the story swears it is true.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuuto

I know its a crazy story, but the reference to Buffalo Springfield just popped it into my head.

And it was told with such conviction, I half-way believe it.

Sorry, AP. You really need to go back and rewrite that lede.

Which brings up a question: Why have Vegas oddsmaking and sabermetrics not been introduced to each other yet? It seems a natural marriage.

However shuuto is also the Japanese-ified translation of the English shoot. Shuutobooru cleverly translates as "shoot ball" and is used to describe a screwball. So the correct spelling probably has two u's.

I just read Bill Plaschke's column. Transparent bias against his latest grudge (Penny) and made-up arguments backed up by gross illogic... he's a heckuva nice guy by all my second-hand accounts; patient with young interns, giving of colleagues and competitors when necessary and sometimes when not. He is apparently a very good guy. But there are many good guys and gals who are sportswriters. They should be good people and they should also be good at what they do. Plaschke is not my least favorite Times sportswriter--the odious Simers has that honor--but Plaschke is becoming the most indefensible sportswriter. The best you can say is that he genuinely believes what he is writing.

Anibel Sanchez for the Dodgers in FL today. He kind of blew up his last start, but his three before that were dominating.

As I thought, I asked a Japanese friend of mine who writes about baseball and he says he would write "shuto" instead of "shuuto." I think neither is "wrong" or "right". It's more just a matter of style.

Penny's exact quote before the game: "We'll see if we can work something out. And if not, there's only two months left."

Carlos Delgado (of Florida then) hit into one against Arizona last year on July 20.

http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/B07200ARI2005.htm

Brandon Webb was the pitcher.

http://tinyurl.com/zmzkf

What you want is "Plashke delendus est".

odi et amo, Paschke
Odi to
Amo autem omnia quae non es

odi te odi te odi te

odi te = I hate you ???

Anyone who gives blood or platelets on a normal cycle and has time, a HUGE Dodger fan is fighting for his life and could use your help. The family would greatly appreciate anyone who is able to donate platelets to do so. They only have a shelf life of 5 days so when a child is losing his platelets he sometimes has to wait for platelets to come available I'm not exaggerating when I say it can be the difference between life and death. This boy has been fighting Leukemia for 18 months now.

Sean lost a lot of blood last week (the doctor said "I've never seen a living person with such a small amount of blood in them.")

These procedures need to be done at Children's Hospital (on Sunset, near Normandie). They are open Mon-Sat.

The phone number for the Childrens Hospital Blood Donor center is 323-669-2441

My niece happens to be in Children's Hospital recovering from back surgery this week (doing well), so this is one of those times I am doubly disappointed to live so far from LA.

Best wishes to Sean and his family.

New post up top.