From The Baseball Docent: I love hearing why people love baseball. We all love the sport for different reasons; however, a common theme among many who love the game is that the sport some how connects them to their families in some way; usually their dad. Here’s one of those stories:
Note: This is a reprint from a recent post I wrote that appeared in The Baseball Docent Blog. I wanted to share it with you today, since it’s Thanksgiving Day, and it just seems appropriate. GFBB
October 7, 2010. “I think baseball’s a family thing. When I was growing up my parents were baseball fanatics and to be honest, I never understood it. Oh sure, I liked baseball when I was a kid; I collected cards, idolized Mickey Mantle… the usual stuff. Continue reading →
Note: You can access individual player salaries by clicking the individual’s team.
The above figures represent salaries for the regular season. The “Average” column indicates average individual salaries. Once a team makes it to the post season, there’s an entirely new payout structure for the players on those rosters. I read an interesting article the other day about what players earn for winning the World Series. I always thought it was a set amount but instead there’s actually a players’ pool derived from 60% of the gross gate receipts from each of the first four playoff games in each division. It’s based on a payout schedule, distributed as follows:
World Series Winning Team 36%
World Series Losing Team 24%
League Championship Series Losers 12% each
Division Series Losers 3% each
Non-Wild Card Second Place Teams 1% each
Last year the Philadelphia Phillies players were each paid $351,504 for winning the World Series and the losers, the Tampa Bay Rays, each received $223,390. (It kinda makes me wonder why the Texas Rangers were looking so sad at the end of Game 5 this year!) Whew! That’s a lot of “bonus” folks. Back in 1905, the winners share of the total pool, based on gate receipts of 91,723 in attendance, was $1,142 to the winners and $832 to the losers.
“When we played, World Series checks meant something. Now all they do is screw up your taxes.” Don Drysdale, 1978 .
Granted, that was back in 1978 when the tax rate structure was 70%. Now it’s only 35% but still……35% of $351,504 is still over $123,000, and that’s a lot of taxes for anyone! But, I know, it’s still kinda hard to feel sorry for them.
NY Yankees 2009 World Series Ring
Everyone on both teams in the World Series also gets a World Series ring valued somewhere around $40,000, and in addition to all the above, the MVP (Edgar Renteria this year) gets a car and a trip to Walt Disney World, again, all subject to income taxes, I’m sure.
Here’s a few interesting tidbits from one of my favorite sources, Baseball Almanac ~
Through the 2009 Fall Classic, there have been 105 World Series Classics, with 612 Series games played in front of 27,407,011 fans.
During the World War II years, players in the World Series received a percentage of their shares in War Bonds.
The Wildcard Team doesn’t receive a share unless they move up to the next playoff round.
It’s not supposed to be about the money. They’re supposed to be playing for love of the game, but how can the money not be a huge factor? Of course it is. We learned that back in 1994-1995 when the Players went out on a strike that literally shut down half the baseball season that year and we ended up with no World Series. Of course, the reason we were told was not about the money, but about playing conditions, contract clauses, etc. But, rest assured, it was about the money. Players now have managers to look out for their best interests, and who can blame them? We all grew up really fast in the 90’s and baseball has never really been quite the same. I mean, who’s to say it won’t happen again? Well, all I can say is I’m already going into withdrawals with no baseball games to watch…..December, January, February, March and then like magic, it’s April! And we get to start all over again! And we’ll keep paying those high ticket prices to the games that continue to fund these high priced baseball players and the teams with those enormous payrolls. Well, what can I say? This is baseball, America’s favorite pasttime, and it’s here to stay folks. Thank you God!
I’m currently on vacation in Central America but didn’t want to pass up an opportunity to salute our Veterans, and especially those Veterans who were named to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. We know that freedom isn’t free and we’re privileged to honor all Veterans everywhere, on this your special day!Baseball Hall of Fame Veterans
Listed below in alphabetical order by conflict are members / inductees (including non-players) of the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown who are officially classified as Veterans – each having served in the United States Armed Services during wartime.
“But the mainstay of the big leagues was the reservoir of 4-Fs – males of draft age who had been rejected on physical grounds by the Armed Forces. Not since harem attendants had gone out of style were men’s physical deficiencies so highly prized. Ulcers, hearing defects, and torn cartilages were coveted by team owners.” – Frank Graham, Jr. in Farewell to Heroes (1981)
Hall Of Fame Veterans Members Who Served in the U.S. Armed Forces
THE SF GIANTS ARE FOR REAL ……. THE TORTURE’S OVER!
SF Giants 2010 World Series Champions!
I had to play this great song one more time! It’s much more appropriate to hear it as the World Series Champions! The SF Giants won the 2010 World Series in 5 games, in grand fashion tonight, beating the Texas Rangers 3-1, behind the outstanding pitching of Tim Lincecum . Here’s some possible headlines I considered:
Six months ago I booked a 2 week vacation that begins tomorrow! Can you believe this? I mean who in their right mind would have thought the Giants could possibly be playing in the World Series in November? I’ve been on pins and needles all week thinking the Series would go to 7 games, putting it into Wednesday and Thursday of this week, at which time I’d be on the road and in the air enroute to Panama! But the Giants had other plans, (to accommodate me I’m sure), and decided to call an end to this ordeal in Arlington, TX, and come home tomorrow as World Series Champions! The only problem is that the parade is going to be Wednesday 11AM in San Francisco, for those of you who’ll be lucky enough to attend. Unfortunately I won’t be one of them. So hats off to the SF Giants who’ve played their hearts out all season, and have been rewarded mightily with the Championship Trophy! The details of this final game are outlined in related articles below so I won’t get into the nitty gritty but I do want to mention that Edgar Renteria who was mentioned in an earlier blog, and is considering retiring after this season, (say it isn’t so Edgar!) was named MVP of the Series.
A note to the Giants: Whew what a ride and I enjoyed every minute of it. But would you mind next year maybe averaging more than 3 runs per game? I’m getting too old for this stuff! 🙂
DISCLAIMER: Today’s blog is absolutely 100% pro- Giants so I want you non-Giants fans to know it’s nothing personal, just something I have to do! Things’ll get back to normal soon…..
I wish I’d written this song. I’m so emotional this morning I probably shouldn’t even be blogging, but couldn’t help myself. Here are some interesting facts related to last night’s SF Giants 4-0 Win over the Texas Rangers.
Texas is the first team since the 1966 Dodgers to be shut out twice in the same World Series.
Bumgarner is the youngest (21) rookie to make a scoreless start of six innings or more in World Series history.
Texas is the first team since the 1966 Dodgers to be shut out twice in the same World Series :))
Bumgarner is just the second lefty ever to strike out Vlad Guerrero three times in a game, joining Al Leiter in 1998.
Madison Bumgarner
Whew, quite an order filled by Madison Bumgarner, this 21 year old rookie pitcher from Hickory, North Carolina, and his sidekick catcher, another rookie, Buster Posey, age 23, from Leesburg, Georgia. I mean, where do they get these guys? I read an article this morning about last night’s DH, Aubrey Huff, you know, the rally thong guy? Aubrey grew up with his widowed mom, in a trailer park in Ft Worth, Texas. Few have done as much with their lives with such humble beginnings as Aubrey has. He relayed this story that says it all. ” I told my mom one day I wanted to be a professional baseball player. I was probably 8 or 9 years old. She bought me a batting cage on a Winn-Dixie salary. I wouldn’t be here now if it wasn’t for her making that decision.” I can envision this young kid setting that big batting cage up out in the drive-way in that
Huff & Bumgarner
mobile home park having the time of his life hitting those balls day after day and happy as a clam doing it. Who
Buster Posey
knows where he’d be now if he didn’t have a mom who cared enough to want to make his dreams come true? Being a mom who’s raised three really great boys who didn’t always have the easiest of times growing up, this story is really emotional for me. I’m sure every one of these Giants has a story to tell and I’d love to hear them all! And the same goes for each of the Texas Rangers. You’ve probably already heard the really inspiring story about Josh Hamilton, who crawled back from the depths of drug addiction to become one of the best baseball players in the country and has written a book about his life. You’re probably wondering what all of this has to do with last night’s game. I love baseball and to me most lessons in life can easily be applied to baseball. I think last night’s game exemplifies the best in baseball, not because the Giants won, but because they won with the youngsters in the spotlight, the kids who are setting examples for the other kids. Where do they get these guys? They’re right in front of us, in our own homes and in our hometowns. Usually it’s just a lot of hard work, and sometimes it’s just pure luck, but more often than not, the kids just need a break . The following poem was reprinted from The Baseball Almanac and says it quite simply and much better than I can:
The Reason for Rainbows
A Song to Baseballby J. Patrick Lewis
Published: Baseball Almanac
There was an Old Man of Late Summer
Met a Winter Boy out of the blue,
And he whisked him away
From the city one day
Just to show him what country boys do.He taught him three whys of a rooster,
And he showed him two hows of a hen.
Then he’d try to bewitch him
With curveballs he’d pitch him
Again and again and again.He taught him the reason for rainbows,
And he showed him why lightning was king,
Then he fingered the last ball—
A wicked hop fastball—
He threw to the plate on a string.Oh, the Old Summer Man and the Young Winter Lad
Spent the light of each day—every moment they had—
In the wind and the rain, or the late summer sun,
Where he taught him to pitch and he taught him to run
In the wind and rain and the late summer sun.But when that Old Man of Late Summer
Met the Winter Boy out of the blue,
He said to him, “Son,
You can pitch, you can run,
But to hit here is what you must do:Just pretend that the stick on your shoulder
Is as wide as a bald eagle’s wing.
You’re a bird on a wire
And your hands are on fire—
But you’re never too eager to swing.Stand as still as a rabbit in danger,
Watch the pitch with the eyes of a cat.
What will fly past the mound—
Unforgettable sound—
Is the ball as it cracks off the bat.”Oh, the Old Summer Man and the Young Winter Lad
Spent the light of each day—every moment they had—
In the wind and the rain, or the late summer sun,
Where he taught him to pitch and he taught him to run
In the wind and rain and the late summer sun.
I predicted once the Texas Rangers landed at home on their range they’d be in a comfort zone that would settle them down into playing what they’re totally capable of …… championship baseball. And so they did. It wasn’t a spectacular game, actually I found it rather non plus, but Texas got the job done and that’s what they set out to do. Giants appeared to show up to see what a real Texas stadium looked like and decided to stay for awhile. Maybe today’s game will have a little more action and excitement. Probably the most exciting part of the game for me was the Texas Ranger fans. They showed up to support their Rangers and they did just that, especially after Mitch Moreland slammed a 3 run homer off of Jonathon Sanchez in the 2nd. The Rangers never gave up the lead and beat the SF Giants 4-2. I watched the game again this morning and, all things considered, Jonathan Sanchez didn’t pitch a bad game and Colby Lewis didn’t pitch a great game, good enough to win, but not great. Interestingly, Sanchez is scheduled to pitch the 7th game if necessary and it has all the local pundits in hysteria. No more Sanchez, no way, can’t happen, he’s lost his stuff, 10 lashes, etc. But the edge in this game was the home run by Moreland. Without it, the score’s 2-2. Buster Posey stood by that Sanchez pitch in a postgame interview and said he called the pitch, it was the right pitch to call considering Moreland’s history, but against all odds and logic Moreland nailed it, and that was the deciding factor in the game. It happens. The Texas Rangers needed to win this game and they won it. I love watching post game commentary and interviews and in almost all of them last night, credit for the win was given to, who else? The fans! Don’t underestimate the value of home field advantage. It’s chicken soup for the soul of the players and they know it. Texas had a much
Arlington Park
better at home record this past season than the Giants, who also have a great and vocal fan base, but the Rangers also have a stadium capacity of almost 10,000 more than the Giants. Okay, okay, sure the players have something to do with this, but I’m just saying, the fans are the backbone of baseball. That’s where the money comes from folks! And it’s not just the fans that love their teams, the teams love them right back and show their appreciation by …… winning! Just like the Texas Rangers did back home on the range and back in the saddle. Home sweet home!
Geez, I know, it’s a really bad title, but it is almost Halloween. I thought about “Giants Smoke Rangers“, but with all the San Francisco pot stories and ballot measures promoting the stuff right now, I didn’t like that one either, so here it is ~ SF Giants 9, Texas Rangers -0-. First, let me say, this was a really close game. Close until the 8th inning and then the bottom fell out of the saddle for the Texas Rangers. Up until that time it was a knuckle-grinder and anything could have happened with just one pitch and one hit. As Aubrey Huff said after the game, the score was really technically 2-0, and I agree. It was a wild and crazy 8th inning. Every game in the post season the
Matt Cain
Giants have managed to come up with a different hero, so there’s not one really spectacular player that stands out about this team. It’s been like that all year. This time it was Matt Cain, record breaking, torture-ending, masterful Matt Cain. And it was also Edgar Renteria. Edgar Renteria? Who’s Edgar Reneria. See what I mean? No one’s ever heard of the guy, just like you’ve never heard of Cody Ross or Juan Uribe or Tim Lincecum. (Well, maybe Lincecum since he’s a two time Cy Young Award Winner!) I don’t want to spend a lot of time on this game because, to tell you the truth, in spite of my euphoria for the Giants, I felt bad for the Texas Rangers. I felt especially bad for Derek Holland, the young pitcher they brought in in the 8th Inning, who allowed 3 runs and 3 walks before they finally took him out. I ‘m still
Edgar Renteria
pondering why Manager Ron Washington left him in so long. Bochy would have had him out after the first run. The fact is they’re a much better team than what they showed last night and everyone knows it. We’ve all been there with really bad games you just want to forget and get past and move on to the next. But as the Rangers’ Josh Hamilton explained after the game, “Obviously they (Giants) have the momentum right now, but it sort of felt that way even before the first game started”. Next game will be at the Texas Rangers table with fan support behind them and I’m thinking it’s gonna be one of those low scoring, close games again. That’s what the SF Giants are used to. And besides, Halloween’will be here and gone soon and things can get back to normal.
(Note about Matt Cain. After last night’s game, Andrew Baggarly, who’s a beat writer with the SJ Mercury News, said he asked Matt why he hadn’t tipped his cap to the crowd and their wild standing ovation for him, and Matt said “Can’t do it with a runner on base. Just didn’t seem right.” He had just issued a one out walk and there was still work to be done. And that’s why he’s so admired and respected by his teammates and the Giants fans. Matt Cain, a real team player with a lot of integrity. Does your heart good doesn’t it? Just another example of a real class act! GFBB)
Whodathunk it? I had almost as much fun watching the sports pundits after the game than watching the game itself. Well, almost. The Giants had no chance, nada, zilch, zero, of beating Cliff Lee in game one of this World Series. None! I mean, after all, Cliff Lee had never lost a playoff game. Won 10, Loss 0! Whew, who wants to go up against those odds? I almost believed it myself. So after the game, when the pundits came slithering out from under the rocks, it was just a lot of fun to listen to their enlightened jibberish. I believe it’s called “eating crow”? As Joe buck said in his post-game commentary, “Don’t listen to us folks. We don’t know anything!”
The thing that puzzles me about the Giants getting absolutely no respect before the game, and still now, even after the game, is the way they made it to the World Series in the first place. This is a team of self-proclaimed misfits and oddballs, picked up from the trash heaps of other teams, a couple of rookies, and one helluva pitching staff. In August, this team was 6 1/2 games behind in the NL West, but they scratched and clawed and fought off not only the San Diego Padres, but also a very good Colorado Rockies team to prevail. They willed their way to the NL West Championship. They were the underdog as they advanced to the NLDS against Atlanta, under the leadership of Bobby Cox, destined to extend his career a few more games. But, once again, against the odds, the Giants won the National League Division Series against Atlanta!
So now the pundits had a ball! I mean now the Giants had to face the Philadelphia Phillies, defending National League Champions, two years in a row, and World Series Champions only a year ago! Their ace, Roy Halladay, as good as it gets, pitched a “no hitter” against the Cincinnati Reds, enroute to the NLDS this year, and the Reds were no pansies. To solidify the belief, earlier in the year Halladay had thrown a perfect game! And it wasn’t just Halladay, they also had to face Roy Oswalt, a fastball pitcher who the Phillies acquired from Houston specifically for this reason, to dominate in the playoffs. Again, Phillies fans lost a lot of money through their bookies over this series. Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies and won the National League Pennant in 6.
So what’s it going to take? Headlines all over the country projected the Texas Rangers to win the World Series. Everywhere except in the San Francisco Bay Area. Even the Los Angeles papers ….. (whoops forget it, that’s Dodger country, doesn’t count! i.e., LA Times article today by “Bill Shaikin ~ San Francisco takes advantage of a less-than-sharp effort by the highly regarded left-hander on a night when Tim Lincecum is not exactly crisp.”) Cracks me up, but you know what? He’s right! And that’s baseball folks! And you know what else? The SF Giants may NOT win the World Series. But if they do, it will be because they WILLED it, and not because of anything the Rangers and pundits have to say. Baseball, don’t you just love it?
The “Ship” is short for Championship as Sergio Romo explained to us diehard fans after last night’s game. I stayed up for hours watching the late night commentaries on all the sports channels. Just couldn’t get enough! Duane Kuiper, our local television and radio commentator of team Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper, coined the phrase mid-season “Giants Games ~ Torture!” and boy did it stick! Whew! The statistics for their one run games pretty much explains it all. I seriously considered not watching the bottom of the 9th last night! Instead I chose to leave the room with my radio and headphones and sit in a corner overcome by a huge anxiety attack! This was fun! Fun, like getting your finger stuck in a light socket, or pulling your toenails out one at a time. Nothing comes easy for Giants fans. Is that why we love these guys so much? Endurance?
All I can say is I’ve been a Giants fan for many, many years and I can never remember a team of players quite like this group. Misfits? Probably. Oddballs? Oh sure. Endearing? Absolutely! They have so many tags this year, it’s hard to know where to start. Black beards in the bullpen, Aubrey Huff’s red thong for good luck, Cody Ross, the wannabe Rodeo Clown, Timmy Lincecum’s long black hair flowing out from his cap, and his minor infraction this summer with the law, Barry Zito, most expensive paid cheerleader in history, sitting on the bench through the entire playoffs with his $18,000,000 Annual Salary, supporting his teammates.
But along with the idiosyncracies the Giants organization weaned a couple of rookies off their farm program this year and what a couple of rookies they turned out to be. I don’t know what they’re feeding and teaching the kids down in the Fresno area, but boy does it work! Rookies Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner both played key roles throughout the season after being called up this Spring, but also contributed immensely in the postseason . It gave me a huge thrill to watch the two of them, Bumgarner the Pitcher and Posey the Catcher,a couple of kids performing in postseason in the 6th Game of the NLCS against the current champion Philadelphia Phillies, doing their job like the young pro’s they are. My guess is they’ll be around for many years and, Lord willing, in San Francisco. Well for whatever reason, the chemistry works for both the players and the fans, and the fans aren’t going away anytime soon!
I’ve tried not to dwell on the incredible odds the Giants were up against with the Phillies who were the hands down favorites in every aspect. But I’d like to mention
Madison Bumgarner, Postseason Play
something here that’s been bugging me for years. The very worst of the worst of sports announcers has to be without a doubt Fox Sports “Buck & McCarver”. At one point in Game 1, the Fox commentators made a comment about how “bored Halladay must be, throwing strikes and retiring players. He probably thought he was back in the minors and what a piece of cake” or some such trivia as this, at which point Cody Ross blasted a home run out of the park and silenced the dribble at least momentarily. In the next game, the same illustrious announcers announced that some had referred to this year’s Giants team as a bunch of “idiots”. Then went on to explain it was the same term used for the Boston Red Sox the year they won the World Series, as though that somehow justified the comment. Another time they were busy showing pictures and
Fox Sports' Buck & McCarver
about Alcatraz while missing pitches and activity at the bases. But you know what really bugged me? In Game 6 the Buck & McCarver had a mindless conversation about how Buster Posey would never make it as a catcher, and probably would be more suited to “leftfield”. (Note: See Johnny Bench’s comments regarding Buster Posey as a catcher http://www.mercurynews.com/giants/ci_16344094?nclick_check=1 ). Probably the hardest part to sit through with these guys was that final out. Whew, might as well have been teatime ~ thank God for my Walkman! 1These guys musta had a lot of money bet on the Phillies. How else can you explain the complete ambivalence towards the Giants? And, good grief, we get to listen to them for the World Series? (Gotta remember to get batteries for the Walkman.) Where do they get these guys? Wherever it is, I wish they’d send them back! We want our own announcers in the broadcast booth, doing what they do best. Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper, true professionals, and I truly missed them during the entire playoff season! For what it’s worth!
Cody Ross, NLCS MVP
And so, in spite of the odds, the San Francisco Giants, with beards, thongs and a wannabe Rodeo Clown are going to the World Series to meet their worthy opponents, the formidable Texas Rangers, under the ownership of one of baseball’s greatest, Nolan Ryan. Best of luck to both teams! This is gonna be fun! See y’all on Wednesday!
Josh Hamilton was named MVP of the American League Championship Series as his Texas Rangers whooped the New York Yankees into submission yesterday and grabbed the AL Pennant for the first time in their long history. When he was asked about the award you couldn’t help but be impressed. Here’s what he had to say:
“I love my teammates. I love them so much. Any of these guys could have gotten this award. I’m happy to have them. At the same time , I don’t want to talk about myself, I want to talk about them! WE are the reason we’re here. The chemistry on the team is something like I’ve never known anywhere. All the guys love each other and we support each other.”
Texas Rangers on winning the ALCS
Manager Ron Washington said basically the same thing, acknowledging this was the best group of players he’s ever worked with. The Texas Rangers chemistry among each other seems to be contagious. Most would agree that the players on any team have to get along with each other, maybe not “like” each other but for sure they have to get along. Sometimes that promotes a winning team and sometimes not, but for sure these guys seem to really and truly “like” each other. This is evident in all the clubhouse interviews, on the field rapport, and articles written throughout this year. I don’t know very much about the Texas Rangers, but I have to be honest here, you can’t help but like these guys, each and every one of them!
Josh Hamilton, MVP
I decided not to write about all the great plays and statistics from this series. They were impressive and you can read all about them in the “Related Articles” below. But if you read my earlier blog about the Yankees and their tea party mentality, you gotta love these guys. This is the first time in their history they’ve won a Pennant and it does my heart good to see a bunch of guys whooping and hollering and jumping around like they really, really appreciate being here. Whatta series and what an accomplishment! Great win for the Texas Rangers. They deserve it!
I never knew much about Bobby Cox. Oh sure, I heard a lot about him through the years. After all he’s been managing the Braves since 1986 and it seems his name was always out there, usually for arguing with the umps or being ejected from a game, not necessarily what you want to be known for. But during this last playoff series and especially during his last interview, I was struck by one comment he made. It referred to a controversial call by an umpire at 2nd base. The play was a head-first slide by Giants’ Buster Posey into 2nd and a safe call by the ump. Replay shows Posey was clearly out, and it ended up being a deciding factor in the 1 run win by the Giants over Atlanta and eventually eliminated Atlanta from the series, ending Cox’s career. Yet Bobby Cox didn’t utter a peep! Why?
On August 14, 2010, Bobby Cox broke the MLB ejections record with 131 career ejections. He’s a player’s manager. Just getting ejected certainly doesn’t make one great, but when Bobby Cox got ejected he was doing it for the right reason. He wasn’t just arguing a call to get the ump to change his mind, or to grandstand, or slow up the game. He was always arguing in defense of his players. Always! He was out there every game defending his players, trying to even up the playing field making sure the other team wasn’t getting an unfair advantage. When he felt his players had been treated unfairly by a call, he never, ever backed down. That is his legacy.
In an interview after this last game Cox was asked about that call at 2nd base. He was told the replay clearly showed the runner was out and was asked why he didn’t challenge the call. After all, his career and reputation was built on challenging umpire calls these past 32 years. His response surprised me. The reason he didn’t challenge the call was simple. He was watching his 2nd baseman and outfielders and they showed no reaction. Had any of them reacted as though they thought the runner was out, he would have been out on that field immediately in protest of the call. Cox said it’s impossible to see what’s going on from the manager’s viewpoint so he’s always trusted his player’s reactions on how the play should have been called. That’ s how he managed his entire career and his players loved him for it. Of course, some players could easily have taken advantage of Bobby’s trust in them and I’m sure they did, but they always knew he had their back and that’s how loyalties are made.
I could write pages and pages about the career of this man. It might surprise you that he only played in the major leagues for two years, as a 3rd baseman for the New York Yankees. And did you know he ranks 4th on the Baseball All-time Managerial “Wins” list? It goes on and on. Check out the Related Articles below. They’ll keep you reading for days.
The team got together and gave Bobby and his wife a going away gift. It’s a cruise and they’re leaving next April! April? That’s the beginning of another baseball season! You don’t retire from baseball. No one retires from baseball. Welcome to Baseball Fandom Bobby Cox. The only thing that’s changed is the players!
Sorry, I just couldn’t resist. I guess it’s because I belong to so many Giants Blog Groups I keep finding these things, but honest, I’ll post the really good ones about other teams as I come across them. This is one of those and I wanted to share it with you. Steve Perry from Journey fame is an avid Giants fan so his handprint’s all over this video. Thanks for indulging me one more time! GFBB
"I was the worst hitter ever. I never even broke a bat until last year when I was backing out of the garage." Lefty Gomez, Yankees pitcher.
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. ~George F. Will.
"Does Pete Rose hustle? Before the All Star game he came into the clubhouse and took off his shoes and they ran another mile without him." Hank Aaron.
More Baseball Quotes!
“You see, you spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball, and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time.” - Jim Bouton
"I was such a dangerous hitter I even got intentional walks during batting practice." - Casey Stengel
"This isn't a job. This is a privilege, that's what this is!" - Mike Krukow, TV Commentator, on being at the ballpark each day.
"I've found that the knowledge of the game is usually in inverse proportion to the price of the seats." -Bill Veeck, Chicago White Sox owner.
"Derek Jeter's accomplishment puts Pete Rose's hits record in perspective. 3,000 hits is phenomenal. 4,000? Freakish!" - Anthony Castrovince via Twitter
"The best possible thing in baseball is winning the World Series. The second best thing is losing the World Series." - Tommy Lasorda
"You teach me baseball and I’ll teach you relativity.... You will learn about relativity faster than I learn baseball." - Albert Einstein
"Baseball is a game of race, creed, and color. The race is to first base. The creed is the rules of the game. The color? Well, the home team wears white uniforms, and the visiting team wears gray."
Joe Garagiola
GARLICFRIESANDBASEBALL is written by a long-time fan who simply loves the game. I write my own articles (hence the grammar and occasional misspellings). If I include an article from another source, credit is given to that source and will include links when appropriate. The opinions are my own.
From The Baseball Docent: I love hearing why people love baseball. We all love the sport for different reasons; however, a common theme among many who love the game is that the sport some how connects them to their families in some way; usually their dad. Here’s one of those stories:
Garlicfriesandbaseball's Blog 
