David, Author at Baseball Roundtable

Players’ Weekend … Nicknames are Back …. YES!!

August 17, 2018 by David

Players’ Weekend is all about fun and smiles … and some serious hardball, too. Photo by Erik Drost.

On the weekend of August 24-26 – as MLB celebrates its second annual Players’ Weekend – uniforms will take on a whole new look. The uniforms and equipment (from spikes to batting gloves to catcher’s masks) will be more colorful and will tell fans more than ever about the players on the field. For example, the right sleeve of Players’ Weekend uniforms will be adorned with a patch on which the players can honor individuals who inspired them on their way to “The Show.” Players’ Weekend caps will also feature the baseball “Evolution” logo –showing a progression of five player images reflecting the progress from Little League to youth leagues to the major leagues.

Perhaps of greatest interest, however, will be the names on the back of the jerseys, as players can choose a nickname for display that reflects their own personalities, passions or sense of humor. We’ll be seeing such monikers as “LATE LIGHTNING” (Steve Pearce); “THE CONDUCTOR” (Chris Sale); and “UNDERPANTS” (Hunter Pence). In this post, Baseball Roundtable will take a look at its favorite nicknames from each team and suggest nicknames for a number of players who have chosen to stick to current regular-season practice and use their surname on the back of their Players’ Weekend uniforms. (Side note: I do miss the days … in my youth … when nicknames like Stan the Man, The Splendid Splinter, The Commerce Comet, Spaceman, Dr. Strangeglove, Yogi, Duke, Sudden and many more were commonplace in MLB.) For a look at BBRT’s take on the best and worst MLB nicknames of all time, click here.

EVEN MORE FUN WATCH – THE LITTLE LEAGUE CLASSIC

Players’ Weekend will be a fun time to be at the ballpark. There is another event planned for this month that will also add some “life” to the game – particularly for a group of very young ballplayers.

The Second Annual Little League Classic – a regular-season, major league game played in Williamsport, PA (home of the Little League World Series) – will be played (and televised on ESPN) on Sunday, August 19, at 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

The game, which will feature the Mets and Phillies, will take place at Bowman Field (a minor league park not far from the LLWS site) and attended by a crowd made up primarily of Little Leaguers and their families. The MLB players will attend a Little League World Series game earlier in the day and will also take part in a number of formal and informal interactions with the youngsters. Tune in for the coverage, particularly if you are up for a day of handshakes, autographs, laughs, smiles – and a great combination of Little League and Major League baseball.

BASEBALL ROUNDTABLES PICKS FOR

THE BEST PLAYERS’ WEEKEND NICKNAMES

American League

Angels – Cam “BEDROCK” Bedrosian

Astros – Josh “RED DOG” Reddick

A’s – Andrew “TRIGGONOMETRY” Triggs

Blue Jays – Curtis “GRANDYMAN” Granderson

Indians – Shane “NOT JUSTIN” Bieber

Mariners – Nelson “BOOMSTICK” Cruz

Orioles – Paul “PAPA FRITA” Fry

Rangers – Nomar ‘BIG CHILL” Mazara

Rays – Kevin “OUTLAW” Kiermaier

Red Sox – Steve “LATE LIGHTNING” Pearce

Royals – Danny “CHILL SERGEANT” Duffy

Tigers – Michael “THE PLUMBER” Fulmer

Twins – Trevor “LURCH” May

White Sox – Yoan “YOYO” Moncada

Yankees – Aroldis ‘THE MISSILE” Chapman

LIFE FATHER – LIKE SON

Prince Fielder followed in his father Cecil’s powerful footsteps. Photo by RLHyde

It seems appropriate to mention a father-son baseball connection in the same post as the Little League Classic. So, here we go.

On this day (August 17) in 2012, Tigers’ first baseman Prince Fielder played in his 1,000th major league game. He cranked a pair of home runs as Detroit topped the Red Sox 10-0 – giving him 232 career roundtrippers. Notably, his father Cecil Fielder also had exactly 232 home runs after playing in 1,000 MLB contests. (And, like Prince, hit that 232^nd roundtripper as a member of the Tigers.)

Cecil Fielder, the father, went on to hit 319 regular-season home runs in his 13-season MLB career. Prince Fielder played one less MLB season than his dad – but also cranked 319 regular-season homers. They are also the only father-son combination to each put up a 50-home run campaign (Cecil hit 51 in 1990 and Prince bashed 50 in 2007).

National League

Braves – Ender “GAME ENDER” Inciarte

Brewers – Jacob “KING COBRA” Barnes

Cardinals – Michael “WACHMOLE” Wacha

Cubs – Carl “STRINGBEAN SLINGER” Edwards, Jr.

Diamondbacks – John Ryan “CHOIR BOY’ Murphy

Dodgers – Kenley “KENLEYFORNIA” Jansen

Giants – Madison “MAD-BUM” Bumgarner

Marlins – Jarlin “JARLIN THE MARLIN” Garcia

Mets – Jose “JOEY BATS” Bautista

Nationals – Erick ‘FEDDICCINI” Fedde

Padres – Joey “JOEY FUEGO” Luchessi

Phillies – Aaron ‘WOLF” Loup

Pirates – Ivan ‘SUPER NOVA” Nova

Reds – Michael ‘ZENMASTER” Lorenzen

Rockies – Charlie ‘CHUCK NAZTY” Blackmon

BBRT gives the Giants the overall title for the best package of nicknames – from actual nicknames like Madison “MAD-BUM” Bumgarner to Pablo “PANDA” Sandoval to Hunter “UNDERPANTS” Pence – to some unique monikers like Tony “TONE RANGER” Watson to Derek “LAST NAME” Holland to Ray “BLACKOUT” Black.

A few other established and one-weekend-only nicknames on the Giants’ squad: Evan “LONGO” Longoria; Jeff “SHARK” Samardzija; Ty ‘THE PREACHER” Blach; Chase “Cheetah” d’Arnaud; Nick “HUNDO” Hundley; Gerald ‘BUSTER” Posey; Derek “D-ROD” Rodriguez; and Johnny ‘EL JUCHO” Cueto. I could go on, but you get the idea, the Giants knocked it out of the park when it comes to Players’ Weekend nicknames.

A number of players have reportedly chosen to use (as usual) their surname on their jersey backs. BBRT is offering up some potential nicknames for future use by a “BAKER’S DOZEN” of the players from this group.

Jandel Gustave –Astros –GUSTO

Ryan Burocki – Blue Jays – THE ROCK

Wes Parsons – Braves – PARSNIPS

Tommy La Stella – Cubs – BELLA

Zack Greinke – Diamondbacks – GRINDER

Corey Kluber – Indians – CLUBBER LANE

Alex Cobb – Orioles – SWEET CORN

Tres Wingenter – Padres – BIG BIRD

Pat Neshek – Phillies – THE COLLECTOR

Tyler Danish – White Sox – SWEET ROLL

Ryan LaMarre – White Sox – PITCHER’S NIGHT MARRE

Jacob Ellsbury – Yankees – SWELLSBURY

Ben Heller – Yankees – MELLER YELLER

Primary Resources: MLB.com; Baseball-Reference.com

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT

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Member: The Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Home Runs Off Two Bob Millers – Ronald Acuna’s Streak – Some BBRT Rants and Raves

August 15, 2018 by David

Double Vision – Or, “That’s Your Uncle(s) Bob.”

On August 15, 1962, the Phillies topped the Mets 9-3 in the first game of a doubleheader at the Polo Grounds. No big surprise there, as the Mets’ record going into the game was 30-88. What was more surprising was that Phillies’ outfielder Don Demeter hit his 19th and 20th home runs of the season in the game – off a right-handed and a left-handed “Bob Miller.” Oh yes, and he did it while playing two different defensive positions.

In the third inning, with the Phillies’ up 2-0, Demeter (who had started the game in left field and in the five-spot in the order) smacked a solo shot off starter (right-hander) Robert Lane Miller. Then in the ninth inning, Demeter – who had moved to center field in the seventh – hit a three-run homer (extending the Phillies’ lead to 9-2) off southpaw reliever Robert Gerald Miller. Two homers, in one game, off two Bob Millers, a right-hander and a port-sider.

Demeter, notably, was on the way to his best-ever major league season. In 1962 (his sixth of eleven MLB seasons), he achieved his career highs for average (.307), home runs (29), RBI (107), runs scored (85), hits (169) and doubles (24). The two Millers? Starter Bob Miller went 1-12, 4.89 in 1962 (69-81, 3.37 with 52 saves in 17 MLB seasons). Reliever Bob Miller went 2-2, 7.08 in 1961, the last of his five MLB seasons (6-8, 4.72).

Now, events like Don Demeter’s home runs in the same game off a righty and lefty both named Bob Miller are just the kind of thing that catches BBRT’s eye. But, even more eye-catching is the recent work of Atlanta Braves’ 20-year-old rookie outfielder Ronald Acuna, Jr. As of Tuesday night, Acuna was hitting .288, with 19 home runs and 43 RBI in 67 games. And, he’d tossed in eight stolen bases in ten tries. And, there is more. See the bullets below for just a few of the landmarks Acuna has reached.

In the past five games (August 11-14), the Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. has hit .500 (10-for-20), with six home runs, 12 RBI and nine runs scored. He’s walked three times and fanned just twice.

Acuna has homered in five straight games – becoming the youngest player to accomplish that feat.

Acuna homered, in his first at bat, as the leadoff hitter, in the three most recent of those contests – becoming the youngest player ever to accomplished that feat (and just the second all-time … Brady Anderson had leadoff homers for the Orioles in four straight in 1996).
As part of the three-game leadoff homer streak, Acuna led off both games of a doubleheader (August 13) with a home run – becoming the youngest ever and just the fourth player in MLB history to accomplish that feat (Harry Hooper in 1913; Rickey Henderson in 1993; Brady Anderson in 1999).

—THE OLD AND NEW OF IT – SOME RANTS AND RAVES—

Yep, I’m kind of old school, but after returning from my annual Ballpark Tours trip (seven games in three cities in ten days) here are few random observations (that readers may or may not agree with):

I don’t care much for the DH or challenges/replays. My gut says bad calls even out – and it is still a “game.”
I’m okay with defensive shifts. Good hitters should learn to “hit the other way.”
I can’t stand the “wave ‘em to first” intentional walk. Too much like slow-pitch softball.
The food options at ballparks are better than ever. I do NOT miss the days when the extent of the menu seemed to be hot dogs, beer, popcorn, cotton candy, licorice ropes and Frosty Malts. Let’s eat!

I’m all for more emotion on the ball field.

On Sunday, Cubs’ rookie David Bote came into Chicago’s contest against the Nationals as a pinch-hitter with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, the sacks full of Cubs (Jayson Heyward, Albert Amora and Kyle Schwarber) and the Cubs trailing 3-0. With the Cubs down to their last strike (a 2-2 count on Bote), Bote took Ryan Madson deep for what is termed an “Ultimate Slam” – a walk-off Grand Slam when your club is down by three runs.

An excited Bote celebrated with what could best be described as a “subdued” bat flip. The rookie later apologized for the show of emotion. From Baseball Roundtable’s point of view, no apology necessary. The nation’s “game” could use more on-the-field emotion – from bat flips, to high fives to fist bumps.

I like the drama of a “closer” coming into the game with ominous or aggressive walk-on music (not as enthusiastic about having seventh- and eighth-inning specialists).
I care about how many home runs a player has hit and how far the long ball I just witnessed traveled. Launch angle and exit speed? Not so much.
Today’s crop of young ballplayers is the best/most-exciting I’ve seen in decades. I’m reminded of the group I witnessed coming up in the ‘50s.
I’m disappointed by the ever-declining number of people who keep a score card at the game – and the ever-increasing number of people who seem glued to their smart phones.
I kind of like the video board activities between innings, especially those that focus on fans having fun – Kiss Cam, Air Guitar, etc. (With the condition that it be between innings.)
Three hours doesn’t seem that long to me when I’m in a ballpark.
Bunting seems to be a lost art – although National Leaguers appear to be marginally better at the sacrifice.
I’m not much for video boards urging fans to “make noise.” Fans should know when there’s a reason to cheer, shout or clap.
I don’t care for the characters in costume races (sausages, presidents, dental care products, etc.). The one exception is “The Freeze” in Atlanta. I love that guy. (I also like when they have a youngster come out between innings to “steal” a base in 20-or-30 seconds. Let’s get the kids involved.)
Ban the wave – Or, please, don’t start it with two on and no outs in a one-run game (that happened on my recent baseball trip).
It’s great to see youngsters running the bases on Kids’ Days at various ball parks – and also great to see an adult snag a foul ball and give it to a kid.
Fireworks Fridays work for me.
Players who sign autographs for fans are good for the game.
Any more than three ceremonial “first” pitches are too many. One minor league game on our trip featured 17 folks making tossing a first pitch (with varying degrees of success and comedy).
The national anthem is supposed to be sung at a brisk pace.
Walk-up music is great, especially when you can make the connection to the player.
If I catch a home run, I’m not throwing the ball back, no matter which team hit it.
Players’ Weekend nickname jerseys? Genius! I wish MLB players had more regular nicknames – miss the days of Stan the Man, The Splendid Splinter, Dr. Strangeglove, The Mad Hungarian, etc. Who knows, maybe some of the Players’ Weekend monikers will stick.
Don’t people know that you stop walking to your seat and turn and face the flag when the National Anthem begins?
I understand those 50-50 or 60-40 charity raffles support good causes, but they seem a little “carnival-like” to me.
Not a fan of pitch counts, especially when the starter is cruising along with a shutout (or even a no-hitter.)
The biggest differences observed between Triple and Major League ball was pitchers’ control and fielding skills.
Possible dumbest rule ever? Starting extra innings with a runner at second.
Robot umpires calling balls and strikes? Please, NO! Pitchers and batters adjusting to the umpires “zone” is part of the game. I, personally, like to watch how pitchers and catchers work to try and expand the zone.
In general, it seem to me that we need more vendors in the stands.
I really like concourses thet let you go all around the ballpark/playing field.
Not fond of the areas you seem in some parks that have everything from mini-golf, to merry-go-rounds to batting cages. Who’s watching the game?
Team Hall of Fames are a great place to visit – before the game.
I appreciate fans who arrive early and stay until the last out. At one contest, I saw a group take their seats in the bottom of the third and then leave (their squad was down by four runs) in the seventh.
Best play in baseball? Tough one. I love the ballet of the 6-4-3 and 4-6-3 double play. Stolen home runs are spectacular. Triples (or the rare inside-the-park home run) always get me up out of my seat – as does a steal of home (only seen three of those). Side note: Through July, about 35 percent of MLB plate appearances ended in a trot (to first base on a walk, hit by pitch or catchers’ interference; back to the dugout on a strikeout; or around the bases on a home run). I prefer more actions in the field or on the basepaths.

Well, now that I’ve gotten all that off my chest. Have a great day and “Play Ball!”

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT.

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: BB Fun Facts

Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux Days 9 & 10 … More Baseball, Vodka Snow Cones, World War I and Buddy Holly.

August 13, 2018 by David

Days Nine and Ten of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux were filled with varied activities – another Cardinals/Royals I-70 Series tilt (which played out a lot like the first one); museum visits covering topics from The Great War to The Day the Music Died; vodka-infused snow cones; jalapeno-enhanced hot dogs and pizza; and even a bit of a baseball pitcher-umpire dustup. And, of course, there was the long bus ride home, during which we shared stories from the trip, beer and snacks, and rock and roll music (from the back of the bus). Here’s a look at how it went for me.

DAY NINE – BASEBALL AND BATTLEGROUNDS

After breakfast at the Holiday Inn Country Club Plaza, my roomie and I hopped the hotel shuttle for a ride to The National World War I Museum and Memorial – open since 1926 and “dedicated to remembering, interpreting and understanding the Great War and its enduring impact on the global community.” It’s an emotional and educational experience, as the story of (and behind) World War I is told through a series of films, sound recordings, art, artifacts and interactive displays. I can almost guarantee that the only regret you will have is that you didn’t have more time to spend there. (Some of the Ballpark Tours trekkers actually visited the museum on consecutive days.)

Being a bit more specific, you will find: hundreds of uniforms of the day; weaponry from sabers to rifles to artillery pieces; medical equipment and a 1918 Ford Model T ambulance; aircraft; a Renault FT Tank; and a replica of the World War I trenches. There are also: video presentations of the battles, tactics and strategies of the conflict; moving (and educational) documentary films; sound booths with music, news broadcasts and propaganda from the period; related art work (from paintings to posters); and state-of-the-art interactive displays that let you select which aspects of the Great War you wish to focus on. At $16 (discounts for seniors, college students and youngsters), it’s a bargain.

THE GAME – CARDINALS PROVE “CLUTCH” AGAIN.

Saturday evening, it was back to Kaufmann stadium for a second Cardinals/Royals tilt – and again there was plenty of Cardinals’ red in the stands and Cardinals’ firepower at the plate (more on that to come.) Our seats were in the lower deck, right-field corner – good view, except for the occasional loss of the second baseman or shorstop behind the foul pole.

The Redbirds won – this time 8-2. A few observations:

The Cardinals once again put together some clutch two-out hits. In Firday night’s game, St. Louis accounted for four of its five second-inning runs with a series of four straight two-out hits – and also scored five of its their seven total runs with two outs. Saturday, the Cardinals again jumped to an early lead. This time scoring four third-inning runs on a string of five straight two-out hits – and also scored six of their eight runs with two out.
There were a handful of defensive gems: 1) In the third inning, Royals’ 3B Alicides Escobar leaned into the dugout to snag a foul off the bat of Cards’ 1B Matt Carpenter; in the seventh, with one on and no outs, Royals’ SS Adalberto Mondesi saved a hit with a diving grab of a Yadier Molina grounder, getting the force out at second; in the ninth, another fine play by Mondesi retired Carpenter 6-3.
Matt Carpenter ran his streak of game getting on base to 29 games, with a seventh-inning walk.

TREAT OF THE DAY – SNOW CONES FOR BIG KIDS – THE PICTURES TELL THE STORY

$10.25 and – on a hot day – worth every penny.

We saw a pair of traditional around-the-horn double plays. In the seventh, with runners on first and second and one out, a grounder (by Cardinals’ cleanup hitter Marcell Ozuna) was turned into a third (Escobar) to second (Whit Merrifield) to first (Ryan O’Hearn) twin killing. In the eighth, with runners on first and second (no outs) for the Royals, Whitt Merrifield hit into a third (Jedd Gyorko) to second (Kolten Wong) to first (Matt Carpenter) double play. There was also an unassisted double play in the bottom of the first, as the Royals’ Alex Gordon lined to Cards’ firSt-sacker Matt Carpenter, who caught Whit Merrifield off the bag.
In the ninth inning, Cardinals’ reliever Justin Hicks brought the heat when facing Royals’ CF Brett Phillips. In a five-pitch at bat that ended in a ground out to first, Hicks’ pitches were clocked at 101 m.p.h.; 101 m.p.h.; 102 m.p.h. 88 m.p.h.; 103 m.p.h. Hicks recorded a four-out save.
The Cardinals’ 22-year-old righty Jack Flaherty evened his record at 6-6 (with a 3.22 earned run average), went seven innings, gave up just two runs and fanned nine Royals.
I briefly visited the “Outfield Experience” (see yesterday’s post) between innings and was surprised by the number of people on the min-golf course, riding the carousel or involved in other activities and games that took them away from the game.

THE DOGFATHER AND THE TEFLON DON

My Kaufmann Stadium supper came from The Dogfather – a gourmet hot dog emporium near Gate D. My “Teflon Don” featured a hot dog topped with chili, jalapenos, chopped onions, parsley and yellow mustard – on a “garlicky” bun and accompanied by homemade chips. Spicy hot – great with cold beer – at $10.25. Hint: Take a fork and extra napkins for the chili.

The stand also offers the: “Sweet Tooth Lucky” – a dog topped sweet beans, maple-pepper bacon, chopped onions, yellow mustard and parsley; “KC Boss” – topped with mac-n-cheese, sweet barbeque sauce, maple-pepper bacon and parsley; and for the traditionalists the “Made Man” – just a nice hot dog topped relish, chopped, onions and yellow mustard.

The highlight of the contest – at least in terms of emotion on the field – was the ejection of Royals’ starting pitcher Danny Duffy in the sixth inning (Side note: Duffy was probably going to pulled at that time anyway.) After giving up a one-out single to Cardinals’ 3B Jedd Gyorka, Duffy (with the Royals trailing 4-2) got ahead of CF Harrison Bader 1-2. Duffy then thought he had fanned Bader on an 80-m.p.h. change up, but first base umpire Adam Hamari ruled that Bader had checked his swing. Three pitches later, Bader hit a two-run home run and Duffy let his frustration get the better of him.

There was a bit of remorse as we left the ballpark, as our group realized it was the last of the seven games on our ten-day baseball journey. Still, there was the hotel bar and live music (XPARTE) at The Levee to ease our pain over the remainder of the evening – and sure to be some surprises on Day Ten’s drive from Kansas City back to Saint Paul.

DAY TEN – THE LONG RIDE HOME AND A TRIBUTE TO BUDDY HOLLY

As I’ve noted before, Ballpark Tours is dedicated to great baseball and to getting participants close to the action and the attractions (as well as the cuisine and culture) that define the cities and towns tourers visit – whether it’s Denver, Colorado and Kansas City, Missouris or Hays, Kansas and Clear Lake, Iowa.

On the Day Ten bus ride from Kansas City, we took our lunch break in Clear Lake, Iowa – the site of the last performances by rock and roll icons Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper (J.P. Richardson). Early on the morning of February 3, 1959 (now immortalized as The Day the Music Died), after a concert at Clear Lake’s Surf Ballroom, the three were among those who perished in a small plane crash just outside Clear Lake. (They were headed to Fargo, North Dakota, with their next show scheduled at nearby Moorhead, Minnesota). The Surf Ballroom – still operating as a music venue (seating just over 2,000) – now includes a museum of music memorabilia. In 1998, the Surf Ballroom, in fact, was inducted into the Iowa Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame; in 2009, the (national) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame designated the Ballroom as an historic landmark; and, in 2011, the Surf Ballroom was added to the National Registry of Historic Places.

Our lunch stop was at the Surf District Rock and Roll Grill, right across the parking lot from the Surf Ballroom and Museum (which we had time to visit over the lunch “break from the bus.” The Ballroom offered a great look at r0ock and roll history – as did the the Surf District Grill. The bar and grill (itself a live music venue) was filled with autographed memorabilia from acts that had performed ath the Surf Ballroom. Here are justa FEW exmaples; a Fabian-signed photograph; a Blue Traveler harmonica; a top hat signed by Alice Cooper; a Hootie and the Blowfish mike; guitars signed by such artists as Slash, B.B. King and Willie Nelson.

If you are looking for a baseball connection, thre is a signed baseball from Kevin Costner – whose rock/country band Kevin Costner & Modern West has released four albums.

I should add the lunch was accompanied by rock and roll videos featuring a wide range of musical acts.

A great stop – and great addition to our hardball adventure.

FOR THE FOODIES

The Surf District Rock and Roll Grill had a varied menu – lots of salads, sandwiches, pizzas (and a full bar). I went with the La Bamba Chicken Avocado Flatbread – tomato sauce, sharp cheddar, grilled chicken, jalapenos, avocado and cilantro. ($10.95, and yummy). Washed it down with a nice cabernet.

Overall, the return trip was smooth – lots of sharing of memories from the trip, plenty of music blaring form “the back of the bus,” the beer didn’t run out and there were still snacks to share. – and, of course, the group Awards Cermony at our final rest stop. Thanks , Julian, for another great trip.

Now, it’s back to more traditional Baseball Roundtable posts.

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT.

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux Days 7 & 8 … From Satchel Paige to Arthur Bryant to Raul Mondesi’s Kid … and more.

August 11, 2018 by David

The Royals provided the fireworks after Friday night’s game. The Cardinals were responsible for all the in-game fireworks.

Days Seven and Eight of Ballpark Tours’ Rocky Mountain High Redux included plenty of bus time (Day Seven) and plenty baseball (Day Eight) from yesterday and today. Day Eight also marked the day I completed the Ballpark Tours Quadruple Crown – Blues, Brew, Barbeque and Baseball (more on that later.)

To review where we’ve been: Day 1, click here; Days Two and Three, click here; Day Four, here; Day Five, here. Day Six, here. Now, to the past two days.

DAY SEVEN – ROLLIN’ … ROLLIN’ … ROLLIN’ TOWARDS THE RIVER

Our Hays, Kansas lunch stop.

Not much to write about Day Seven of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux, about a ten-hour bus ride to Kansas City (where we are staying in the lively Country Plaza Area. We did enjoy a mid-morning, mid-bus Mimosa Bar – and a lunch stop at Gella’s Diner and Lb. Brewing Company in Hays Kansas. Great food and service and much more variety than one might expect in mid-Kansas.

Again for foodies, I selected a “not-very-Kansas” combination of deep-fried calamari with jalapeno tarter sauce and Mexican Street Corn (topped with homemade mayo, cotija cheese, lime juice and chili powder).

Regular readers know how much BBRT likes a “coincidence.” Okay, so here’s an unusual one that, for some strange reason, both interested and intrigued me. On my visit to the National Ballpark Museum in Denver, I was drawn to a display focused on the now-gone Detroit Tiger Stadium. There was a note pointing out that exactly 11,111 home runs were hit in that park during its lifetime. Note all the numeral “one’s.”

Then when I go my ticket to our first game in Kansas City, it was in Section 111, Seat 11 in Row K – K being, of course, the 11th letter of the alphabet. Who’s number one, now?

DAY EIGHT – BACK TO BASEBALL … PAST AND PRESENT

Day Eight started with a 10:00 a.m. cab ride to 18^th and Vine – and a visit to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

If you are a baseball fan, you can’t afford to miss the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, which gives you a look at some of the richest – and most poignant – times of American baseball history. The museum takes you through the history of the Negro Leagues – and individuals of color – across baseball’s timeline. It all starts with a short, but powerful, documentary on Negro Leagues’ baseball – narrated by the unmistakable voice of James Earl Jones. The film ends appropriately the thought that “They were all stars.”

As you go through the museum, the story of both the Negro Leagues and the trials faced players of color faced as they took their place in the major leagues is told with a wide range of films, audio visual exhibits, photographs and memorabilia of all kinds. It is indeed a history lesson. You’ll learn a lot not just about baseball, but also about American history, race relations and attitudes.

Satchel Paige pitches to Martin Dihigo, with Josh Gibson catching – on the Field of Legens.

And, you hear a great deal of this history in the words of the men and women who lived it. In one film, Hank Aaron describes some of his early days, noting that Black players had to be better than their white counter parts – that Blacks were not brought on to be on the bench, but had to be good enough to be starters. “You had to try harder and player harder.”

While the museum includes a wide range of exhibits honoring Negro League greats, its centerpiece is the Field of Legends – a museum-sized baseball field manned by nearly life-sized bronze statues of key figures from the Negro Leagues’ history. What is so special is that this is not a tribute hidden behind glass or on the other side of the fence. You can walk onto the indoor field and stand among the stars immortalized there.

There is also a unique display of 35 lockers – each stocked with artifacts and information honoring the Negro League players and officials who are enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

The Geddy Lee collection at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

New, since the last time I visited here, is a display of more than 300 baseballs autographed by Negro League players. It is the largest collection of its kind anywhere and – if the fans poring over the signatures when I was there are any indication – a very popular museum exhibit. Here’s an added tidbit. It was donated to the museum by Geddy Lee – frontman for the rock band Rush.

There is so much here – honoring players and teams – that it is impossible to do it justice in the space of this blog. My recommendation, when you are in Kansas City, take the time to take this trip through a very important part of the history of our national game. In fact, if you have to, make a special trip – and maybe consider becoming a supporting member of the museum.

Arthur Bryant’s for Lunch

After visiting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, our group walked about five blocks to Arthur Bryant’s Barbeque, considered by many to be Kansas City’s (or, perhaps, simply THE) best barbeque retaurant – with a history that traces back to 1908. Along the walls of the (very) casual dining area, you’ll see photographic evidence of some of the celebrities who have eaten at this landmark establishment. These include notables from the sports world like Tom Watson, from the entertainment world like Harrison Ford and Jack Nicholson, and from the political world like Harry Truman, Barack Obama, Jimmyy Carter and Bill Clinton.

As usual there was a line – you order and pick up your food at the edge of the kitchen. Also as usual, it was worth the wait. I opted for the baby back ribs, but others swear by the burnt ends and brisket. A final thought. This stop completed my Ballpark Tours Quadruple Crown journey – Blues, Blues, Barbeque and Baseball. (See the box at the end of this post for more.)

—–YES, THERE WAS A GAME … BUT IT WAS OVER EARLY—–

If you are headed to Kauffman Stadium to take in a Royals’ game, a word to the wise, get to the ballpark early. Two reasons: 1) The lines for the security check in Kansas City are always long; 2) You’ll want to visit the Royals Hall of Fame Museum, beyond left field, before game time.

The game on Friday night featured the Royals versus the Cardinals (a rivalry known among locals as the I-70 series). As we made our way through the long (and tedious) security lines, we saw plenty of Cardinals’ red. Redbird fans clearly were not deterred by the 3 ½ drive up I-70 between the two cities.

The game looked to be a mismatch, with the visiting Cardinals standing at 60-55 and in the NL Wild Card hunt and the Royals floundering at 35-79 (last place in the AL Central). We got pretty much what we expected, as the Cardinals jumped out to a 5-0 lead after two innings and coasted to a 7-0 win. There also didn’t seem to be a lot to choose from among the starting pitchers. None of our group knew much about either Austin Gomber (Cardinals) or Burch Smith Royals – and, by the sixth, neither was around (although Redbird’s rookie southpaw Gomber did give the Cardinals five scoreless innings in just his second start among 20 major league appearances).

More on the game results in a bit, I also want to point out that it was – as usual – a good game experience. Kauffman Stadium – The K – opened in 1973 and (with a notable renovation in 2007-2009) has stood the test of time. It offers a combination of picturesque (the renowned fountains in right field) and high-tech (the massive, high-definition “crowned” score/video board in left field.) The stadium also has good site lines and gets you close to the action (the 2007-2009 renovation actually reduced the stadium capacity by about 2,500 – to just over 38,000). It also has a great concourse – that allows fans to walk all the way around the stadium in comfort.

The Outfield Experience and Royals Hall of Fame

This area, beyond and above the outfield fence from left to right field includes: the Royals Hall of Fame Museum (a must visit); a kids’ area with lots of activities (batting, pitching, base running); a miniature golf course and a carousel; lots of shopping opportunities; and plenty of food and beverage options (like the Blue Moon Tap Room, Blue Moose Sausage Emporium and Rival Sports bar).

The Royals Hall of Fame Museum (free) covers the history of Kansas City baseball from the 1884 Kansas City Cowboys/Unions to (and with emphasis on) the current Royals’ franchise. On display are such items the Royals Hall of Fame player plaques; the team’s World Series and American League Championship trophies; and a host of Royals players’ Cy Young and Gold Glove Awards. George Brett is a centerpiece with his 1980 MVP Award and first and 3,000^th base hit baseballs on display. The Dugout Theater film highlights the 2015 World Championship squad.

As I note earlier, the game got out of hand quickly. The Cardinals opened the scoring with five runs in the top of the fifth and coasted to a 7-0 victory. A few observations:

Fridays are Bang for Your Buck Night at Kauffman Stadium, so our hardy hardball travelers were able to pick up hot dogs and peanuts for just a buck. Now, that’s a bargain – and one that did not go neglected.
Friday is also Fireworks Night – and the display was major league all the way.
Each fan also received a pack of Topps baseball cards – all KC players, of course.
We heard the longest (slowest) rendition of the National Anthem on the trip so far.
The Cardinals proved truly “clutch,” scoring five of their seven runs with two outs. They had four-straight two-out hits in the second inning (plating four of their five tallies that frame).
We witnessed the continued hot streak of Cardinals’ leadoff hitter and first baseman Matt Carpenter, who hit his MLB-leading 32^nd home run (a 425-foot, two-run shot in the second). Carpenter has reached base in 28 straight games – going .353-16-27 over that time. Carpenter’s 32 long balls already surpass his highest-ever season – 28 home runs in 2015.

The Baseline Bar Bloody Mary

Here is your traditional Bloody Mary review, this one from The Baseline Bar. The word here is “average.” Unlike Denver, I was not offered a choice in terms of pour or “heat.” It was basically vodka with mix poured on top. The person who served me suggested, “You’ll want to mix it up, dear.”

There did seem to be a touch of celery salt and pepper (it may have been in the mix) – which was welcome. It was also garnished with a wedge of lemon and a wedge of lime. (Doesn’t anybody add a touch of “salt,” like a pickle spear or olive anymore?) On the plus side, it did come in a bio-degradable cup. About a 6.0 on a 1-10 scale. Oh yes, it went for $10.25. It’s time to get back to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers Bloody Mary Bar.

Kauffman Stadium gets a plus for the number of active vendors working the aisles – everything from beer and margaritas to peanuts and cotton candy.
The Royals’ Scorecard ($1.50) gets a plus for having twelve rows (each row could hold two players), providing room for the player substitutions particularly common in NL games. There also was a readily available free Royals’ mini-magazine.
We did get to see three double plays – two of the traditional groundball version. This included a rally-killing, inning-ending, twin-killing in the bottom of the seventh. After two walks with one out, the Royals’ Salvador Perez hit into a very smooth short (Paul DeJong) to second (Kolten Wong); to first (Carpenter) double play.

Futility Thy Name is Casey

In the third inning. Trailing 5-0, the “KC” Royals got a leadoff triple from SS Adalberto Mondesi – but failed to score. (actually leaving the bases full). It went like this: Mondesi’s triple; DH Ryan O’Hearn, the number-nine hitter, strikes out; 2B Whit Merrifield flies out to center, but Mondesi does not test Cardinals’ CF Harrison Bader’s arm; RF Rossell Herrera walks; C Salvador Perez walks (bases now loaded); 3B Hunter Dozier flies out to right. Score stays 5-0 and the tone is set.

Side mote on Adalberto Mondesi, he is the only player whose first MLB at bat came in the World Series. Mondesi (who was just 20 and had never played above Double A) was added to the Royals’ World Series’ roster on the basis of his versatility (a middle infielder who could also play outfield) and speed (19 stolen bases in 81 games at Double A in 2015). The Royals called on Mondesi to pinch hit for reliever Danny Duffy in the fifth inning of a 9-3 loss to the Mets. Mondesi went down swinging, but became a trivia star.

Mondesi’s full name is Raul Adalberto Mondesi, but he has a reason for going by his middle name. He is the son of former MLB outfielder Raul Roman Mondesi, who played 13 MLB seasons for the Dodgers, Blue Jays, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Angels and Braves. The elder Mondesi was the 1994 NL Rookie of the Year, an All Star in 1995 and a Gold Glover in 1995 and 1997. “Mondesi The Elder,” however, never played in a World Series. BBRT likes the iron of The Younger starting where The Elder never ventured.

During a break in the action in the top of the sixth inning, a fan in the center field seats dropped his sunglasses onto the field. Royals’ CF Brett Phillips retrieved team and got them back to the fan in one well-aimed toss. Side note: Phillips has a cool middle name – Maverick.
A final observation/rant. Lots of people moving in and out of rows and up and down aisles during game action. What ever happened to waiting for a break in the actions to leave or return to your seat?

Baseball Been Berry, Berry Good to Me

Ballpark tours trekker Dan Shepherd endorsed the ($7) Berry Kabobs (strawberries and banana chunks on a stick drizzled in white and dark chocolate). The Kabobs also come in a strawberry, banana and brownie version. Dan liked them so much, he had two.

Mike Bailey from our group gave his thumbs up to the brisket sandwich – in particular the side of baked beans which, he said, had big pieces of bacon and just the right amount of barbeque sauce. ($13 for the sandwich and side.)

Tomorrow, a visit to the World War I National Memorial and Museum and a second Cardinals/Royals game. I’ll post that day’s action on Monday. Saturday’s game is another night tilt and we get up early Sunday morning and begin the long ride back to Saint Paul.

Here’s the Ballpark Tours Quadruple Crown combination …

I tweet Baseball @DavidBBRT

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Basebaall Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

Day Six of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux – An Immaculate Inning … Lou Gehrig’s Watch … a Virtual Ski Jump … and more.

August 9, 2018 by David

Yesterday marked Day Six of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux – and tourers celebrated with a day game (in beautiful baseball weather, museum visits and a night on the town. BBRT Highlights for the day included an “Immaculate Inning;” a look at Lou Gehrig’s; a virtual ski jump; a 438-foot home run; and a Rocky Mountain Oyster Po’ Boy. Read on for details.

Day Six – Game Five – The Immaculate Inning

There is lots to write about for Day Six of Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain Redux, but we’ll start with the game – won by the Pirates 4-3 – because it included a first for me as a fan.

In the top of the fourth inning, Rockies’ starter German Marquez – who had already given up eight hits and three runs (in three innings) pitched an “Immaculate Inning.” Yes, Marquez, who had been battered around pretty well to that point, retired the side in order, notching three strikeouts on just nine pitches (becoming the 85th pitcher in MLB history to throw an immaculate frame). Not only that, he did it against the top of the Bucs’ order – LF Corey Dickerson, CF Starling Marte and RF Gregory Polanc0 – three of Pittsburgh’s most dangerous hitters. Marquez, who fanned ten Pirates in six innigns of work (and got the loss), indicated all three fourth-inning whiffs came on curveballs. In his six innings, Marquez gave up ten hits and three walks (three earned runs).

MULTIPLE IMMACULATE FRAMES

While “Immaculate Innings” aren’t exceedingly rare, multiple Immaculate Innings are pretty unique. On April 18, 1964, Sandy Koufax became the first (and still only) MLB pitcher to throw three immaculate innings in his career. Four other pitchers have tossed multiple (two each) immaculate innings: Lefty Grove – who did it for the Athletics; Nolan Ryan – Mets & Angels; Randy Johnson – Astros & Diamondbacks; and Max Szcherzer – Nationals. BBRT note: Nolan Ryan is the only pitcher to throw an immaculate inning in both the AL and NL. The Astros were in the NL when Johnson threw his for them.

The Pirates put up two runs in the first, on three singles (Marte, 3B Colin Moran, 2B Adam Frazier) and a double (Polanco). They added one in the third on a single by Moran and a double by Frazier. The Rockies fought back with a two-run homer (off Pirates’ starter Chris Archer) by LF David Dahl in the fourth. The score stayed at 3-2 until the top of the eighth, when the Pirates played small ball and touched Rockies’ reliever Adam Ottavino for a run on a walk (1B Josh Bell), a rare error by five-time Gold Glove winner 3B Nolan Arenado (SS Adeiny Hechavarrria), a pinch-hit bunt single (Josh Harrison) and sacrifice fly (Dickerson). The Rockies got the run back in the bottom of the inning when reliever Kyle Crick hit Arenado with a pitch, SS Trevor Story singled him to third and 1B Ryan McMahon brought Arenado home with a single. Crick and reliever Felipe Vazquez then shut the door and preserved a Pirates’ 4-3 win. (Vazquez’ 26th save in 30 opportunities.)

We had great seats for this day game – just 37 rows from the field, to the left field side of home plate. Note that despite all the video boards and technology providing info around the part, out-of-town scores are still posted by hand on the old-style scoreboard in right field.

BBRT saw a couple of turning points in this tight contest.

In the sixth, down by a run, the Rockies’ Charlie Blackmon – who had opened the inning with a single – attempted a one-on, no-out stolen base, and was tossed out at second (on a challenged play) by Pirates’ catcher Francisco Cervelli. BBRT’s playbook says you should attempt the steal if you are ahead by one, but not when you are down by one. (The Rox did not score that inning).

Then, in the eighth, with the score 4-3, the Rockies had runners on first and third, with two outs and pinch-hitter Chris Ianetta the plate. Ianetta hit what looked like a run-scoring single between first and second, but Pirates’ 2B Adam Frazier made a diving (game-saving) stop and threw him out at first. Game – Set – Match.

A few other highlights from a tight game:

Rockies’ LF David Dahl‘s 438-foot home run in the fourth.
Pirates’ 2B Adam Frazier’s three-hit day.
The fact that the Rockies first hit (bottom of the third) came off the bat of pitcher German Marquez – who is now hitting .357 on the season (15-for-42). #More WhyIHateTheDH.
A little NL ball for us AL fans – five pinch-hitters.
A rare error for five-time (every season he has been in the NL) Gold Glover Nolan Arenado.
A great Rockies’ 7 (LF David Dahl) to 6 (SS Trevor Story) to 1 (C Tony Walters) relay to nail the Pirates’ Francisco Cervelli at the plate in trhe fifth inning.
On ball four of a walk to Rockies’ LF David Dahl in the fifth, Chris Archer’s errant pitch got past catcher Francisco Cervelli, smashed hard into the stone behind home plate and shot past Cervelli (appearing to go through his legs) going back into the infield. Dahl did not take second, so there was no wild pitch.

The Coors Field Bloody Mary

Coors Field’s Bloody Mary came from the Smirnoff stand (Section 136) at a price of $9. A plus right away is that they asked if I wanted a single or a double and if I wanted mild, medium or hot. Choice is always good. Among the other positives, good vodka, fair pour and plenty “hot.” On the negative side, it could have used a dash of salt and the only condiments were lime and lemon wedges. Something salty like a pickle spear or olive would have added a lot. Still a nice Bloody Mary, and a 7.5 on a scale of ten.

Well, I did it. I had the Rocky Mountain Oyster Po’ Boy ($9.25) at Coors Field. Right up front, it’s not seafood, but it’s great. Loads of deep-fried, breaded “Mountain Oysters” on a hoagie bun – with sweet/sour garlic slaw, creamy guacamole, green chile ranch dressing, pico de gallo and a healthy topping of cotija cheese. Delicious. If you go to Coors Field, try it, you’ll like it.

The Garlic Fries and Helton Burger also got good reviews from our group.

And thus ends BBRT and Ballpark Tours Coors Field adventure. More to come on this trip, as we move on to Kansas City – and read on for more from Denver.

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The Colorado History Center – and other museums.

A Ballpark Tours Kind of Story … from the Colorado History Center

On June 27, 1870, the final spike was driven connecting Denver to the transcontinental railroad line – and the ceremonial spike (in silver) was to be sent to former Governor John Evans, president of the Denver Pacific Railroad, to be used in an official ceremony.

The actual spike never made it. The miners responsible for its safe transport pawned it in Denver, drank away the proceeds and slept through the ceremony. John Evans used a substitute spike and later recovered the silver spike form a Deniver pawn ship.

Now wouldn’t that group fit in to the “back of the bus.”

—-THE PLAY BALL EXHIBIT—

Before Wednesday’s Rockies game, a group or BPT trekkers, myself included, headed out (walking distance) to the Colorado History Center, which just happened to be featuring a Play Ball Exhibit – the Marshall Fogel Collection (billed as one of the greatest sets of baseball artifiacts ever). We went ($12) and it was.

I knew we were in for a treat when the first thing we saw were game-used (and mostly autographed) bats of 43 Hall of Famers and baseball stars – from
Ty Cobb to A-Rod. I was very pleased to see my personal favorite Eddie Mathews’ (signed ) bat in the collection – and Twins’ fans will be glad to hear that the bats of Rod Carew, Harmon Killebrew and Kirby Puckett (Puckett’s unsigned) were also in the collection.

The exhibit also included artifacts from such icons as Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio,Ted Williams, Jackie Robinson, Willie Mays, Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, and Sandy Koufax – each with uniforms and unique items, like Ruth’s glove, Gehrig’s 1936 MVP pocket watch and Hank Aaron’s bat.

GAMBLERS AND CHEATERS

The Play Ball exhibit included a “Gamblers and Cheaters” display case with signed uniform tops from Pete Rose and Mark McGwire, as well as artifacts from the 1919 “Black Sox.”

______________________________________

We also visited the Colorado Centennial State in 100 Objects Exhibit – which covered Colorado history with one item from each of 100 years. Some that caught my eye: a shotgun (1869) from stage coach driver John Cisco; John Denver’s (1986) Special Edition Yamaha Guitar; and a Pot Smoking Water Pipe made especially for the 2014 Denver County Faor.

Then there was the Colorado Stories A-Z; Living West; and Destination Colorado exhibits – informative (lots of history, culture and current Colorado information) and, at times, even interactive – like a vitual ski jump, a trip down an 1850’s mine shaft and a chance to wear a bit of legendary Colorado sports apparel.

All in all a great pre-game visit. I should add that other trekkers highly recommended both the American Museum of Western Art and the Denver Art Museum – with emphasis on Native American art.

FOR THE FOODIES

For the foodies among BBRT readers, I went with a small group to the 5280 Burger Bar on the 16th Street Mall for supper. My choice was a pair of jumbo sliders: The Mediterranean (Colorado-raised lamb, butter lettuce, marinated cucumbers, feta cheese and a Calabrian Chilio Aioli) and The Durango (Black Angus Beef, pecan-smoked bacon, jalapeno cream cheese, red leaf lettuce, roasted red pepper and fried onion straws). I washed it down with Malbec. Other fanned out across the area for both casual and fine dining – as well as live music and late-night cavorting.

Now it’s on to Kansas City and the Cardinals/Royals. More reports from the road to come.

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux (Day Five) – Charlie Blackmon’s 1000th Hit … Don Drysdale’s 1961 Dodgers uniform … Taco Tuesday … and more.

August 8, 2018 by David

Day Five (Game Four) of the Rocky Mountain High Redux started with the familiar complimentary hotel breakfast – and moved on to a trip to the National Ballpark Museum. Before I get to that, however, a couple of observations on Denver and our tour group.

In Denver (on a visit) the 16th Street Mall is the place to be (stay near there if you visit). As noted earlier, the free up-and-down the Mall shuttle runs from 5 a.m. until 2 a.m. – and most of the eating, drinking and entertainment locations remain open until 2 a.m. There are also plenty of shopping opporunities for luxuries, souvenirs and even essentials. (Hey, Minnesotans, there’s a Target right on 16th Street.) Near the 16th Street Mall you will also find a host of museums – ranging from the National Ballpark Museum to the American Museum of Western Art to the Colorado History Center. (More on museums coming.) The Holiday Inn Express our Ballpark Tours stayed at was within walking (or free shuttle) distance of all of the above. That’s one of the advantages of BPT’s lodging philsophy of always staying near the action and attractions.

There are other advantages when traveling with a group like BPT. For example, yesterday – at about lunch time – I received a text from a fellow BPT trekker that informing me of Taco Tuesday at a nearby Mexican Taverna – great tacos for a dollar, and walking distance. My roomate and I were there to enjoy this “find” within 20 minutes. To your left, is an example of the dollar tocos, which were available in hard or soft, flour or corn and beef, chicken, carnitas, seafood and vegetable. The only requirement? You had to buy a beverage – which was no problem for our group.

THE GAME – PIRATES 10 – ROCKIES 2

Now, we did go to the National Ballpark Museum before the Pirates/Rockies game, but let’s take a look at the game first. Viewing baseball is, after all, the number-one purpose of this trek.

Game four of our seven-game trip was another 6:40 p.m. Pirates at Rockies contest. Contest may be a misnomer, as the Pirates jumped out 10-0 lead after five innings and held on to win 10-2. A few observations and highlights (or low-lights) from the game:

Power was the order of the day. Both teams had ten hits, but the Rockies had eight singles (two doubles), while the Pirates had six singles, a double and three home runs (Starling Marte – solo in the first; Jody Mercer – three-run shot in the fourth; Josh Harrison – two-run dinger in the fifth).
We did see a 2018 rarity, Pirates’ starter Jameson Taillon pitched a complete game, despite giving up ten hits. (He finished off the Rockies on 107 pitches (70 strikes), walking just one and fanning three, while allowing two runs.)

HOW THE GAME HAS CHANGED

Last night, Jameson Taillon became the first National League pitcher to log two complete games in 2018.

I got to see a pair of double plays (1-4-3 and 5-4-3) both off the bat of Rockies’catcher Chris Ianetta.
Pittsburgh scored ten times and left just two men on base.
The game – despite 20 hits and 12 runs – moved right along, wrapping up in two hours and 34 minutes. The pitchers deserve the credit. For the most part, they practiced a “get-the-ball, throw-the-ball” mound style.
Despite ten hits, the Rockies were a woeful one-for-twelve with runners in scoring position.

CHARLIE BLACKMON’S 1000^th SAFETY

Photo by jenniferlinneaphotography

Rockies’ CF Charlie Blackmon lined a single to right with one out in the top of the sixth inning (eventually coming around to score the Rockies’ first run). It was Blackmon’s 1,000^th career base hit. Blackmon had been zero-for-twelve since collecting his 1, 999^th hit. The Rockies’ leadoff hitter and 2017 NL batting champion (.331) ended the game hitting .279-21-49 on the season and .302 over is eighth-season MLB career. He got a nice standing ovation that he seemed reluctant to bask in. (The Rockies were down 10-0 when he got the base hit and he is “gamer.”)

You can buy “outside” food, beverages and souvenirs at bargain prices right up to the main gate. Just look for the vendors tall signs.

A few additional thoughts. You can save a lot of money on snacks if you buy them outside the game – and the Rockies have few rules about outside food or beverage. In fact, amateur vendors work the area right up to the main gates.

For this game, our seats were in right field and (for those Minnesotans who remember sitting above the RF “baggie” at the HHH Metrodome) we did miss a two or three plays in deep right or center.

BBRT’s new, semi-official correspondent Mike Bailey tried one of the Rockies’ newest concessions – the Triple Play Dog (hot dog topped with pulled pork bacon bit and purple slaw). Just $7, he said it was a meal in itself and gave it two thumbs up. “It was so good, I didn’t even want to put mustard on it. I just wanted to enjoy the taste.” The sweet Berry Kabobs ($8) also drew kudos. More on concession in my next post; when I will look at (consume) the Rocky Mountain Oyster Po’ Boy and Baseball Roundtable’s traditional ballpark Bloody Mary.

Now, let’s step back in time to BBRT’s pre-game visit to the National Ballpark Museum.

The National Ballpark Museum

We made it down to the National Ballpark Museum – 1940 Blake Street, just a half-block from the stadium. A great visit ($10 Adults – $5 Seniors – Kids under free). Here, you enter through a 1909 entrance turnstile from Shibe Park and are treated to artifacts from 14 classic ballparks and more. Among the most prominent displays are: Shibe Park/Connie Mack Stadium (Philadelphia); Crosley Field (Cincinnati); Tiger Stadium (Detroit); Comiskey Park (Chicago); Sportsman’s Park (Saint Louis); Fenway Park (Boston); Yankee Stadium and The Polo Grounds (New York City); and Ebbetts Field (Brooklyn). And that’s just the tip of the iceberg in this store front-sized museum.

Minnesota Fans May be Interested in this Harmon Killibrew Item

Museum Manager Raelee Frazier, who you are likely to find on site, is a knowledgeable historian and adept story teller. I came across a poster of old Griffith Stadium (one-time home of the Washington Senators) signed by Harmon Killebrew. It read “A whiff of ‘Bond Bread’ for B’s Ballpark Museum, Harmon Killebrew, HOF ’84.” Ms. Frasier filled me in on the notation. The “B” was for Bruce (B or Mr. B) Hallerstein, who created the museum. The reference to a whiff of Bond Bread was noting Killebrew’s appreciation of the sweet smell of the product of the General Baking Company, which was located near Griffith Stadium.

The museum visit was a wild and wonderful trip back in a baseball time machine, thanks to the museum’s creator and curator Bruce “B” Hallerstein. You’ll find such items as seats and usher uniforms from classic (and, in many cases, long-gone ballparks); concourse lights from Ebbetts Field; and a piece of the Fenway Wall. You can also spot more personal items like autographed baseballs and bats from stars of the past, like Don Drysdale’s 1961 Dodgers uniform and a Reggie Jackson commemorative bat. And, there are unique and quirky items like a commemorative statue of Don Larsen’s World Series perfect game; a Chicago Cubs pinball machine; and menus from Mickey Mantle’s New York City restaurant.

There is all of this and much more. Definitely worth a visit if you are a baseball fan or a history buff. You should leave yourself plenty of time to peruse this jam-packed, but well-organized and labeled collection. Here are a few photos to help tell the story.

Sign from Shnibe Park from the days when kids of all ages came to the ballpark on thier own,

Sign from Shnibe Park – from the days when kids of all ages came to the ballpark on their own,

These usher’s uniforms were once a common sight at Fenway Park.

Concourse lights from Ebbetts Field.

Seats and histotic information from parks long gone. Did you know, for example, that exactly 11,111 home runs were hit at old Tiger Stadium?

Tomorrow, another Pirates-Rockies game, food and beverage reviews and a a museum visit that covers everything from Babe Ruth’s baseball glove to John Denver’s guitar to the 2014 Denver County Fair’s “World’s First Pot Pavilion.”

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours, BB Fun Facts

Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux – Day Four – Going Yard in LoDo

August 7, 2018 by David

ROCKY MOUNTAN HIGH REDUX – MEET “BREAKFAST AND A SHOW” REDUX

The day started with the complimentary breakfast at the Denver Downtown Holiday Inn Express. And, as Yogi Berra said, “It was deja vu all over again.” First, the breakfast was solid. All the usuals: omelets, biscuits and gravy, bacon, sausage, fruit – you get the idea. There was also the pancake machine, which spit out pancakes, like a copy machine, at the press of the button. BBRT first wrote about the pancake machine while on a June 2012 Ballpark Tours trip (click here for that post); lauding the joy of starting the day with “breakfast and a show.” Now, it’s even better. They’ve added a window on the side, so you can watch as your (pancake) batter prepares to come to the plate.

LUNCH – GOING YARD BEFORE THE GAME

Dozens of taps keep the beer flowing at The Yard House.

There are about 400 bars and restuarants within walking distance (depending on your stamina and stride length) from out hotel, so various BPT groups planned lunch (it was a night game) at varying distances. Our small contingent made it just over a block to The Yard House – which boasts an interesting menu and 137 beer choices. (Note: It turned out to be 136; my first choice – Boulder Hazed and Infused – was unavailable. I settled for Colorado Native Lager.)

Yard House has great atmosphere and outdoor seating for even better people watching. You can buy your brew by the glass, goblet or half-yard.

Shitake and Garlic Noodles with a Clam Chowder side – delicious and just $9.95.

Guess what I went for? Well, aren’t volume purchases the most economic? Again, I had the Colorado Native Lager – nice and hoppy, with a crisp, fresh taste. ($14.00 a half-yard.) Another of our group had the House Honey Blonde goblet and gave it postivie reviews ($6.50). The lunch menu was both extenive and interesting. I went with a house lunch special (Shitake Mushrooms over Garlic Noodles, with clam chowder as my selected side). Out table also had a Philly Steak sanwich with a salad side – both of these lunches were $9.95; while the final member of our group had the Blackened Chicken Torta ($12.45). We were all impressed.

A ROCKY MOUNTAIN BLOODY

At Denver’s Yard House, my roomate started lunch with a Bacon and Egg (Bloody) Mary (sounds like breakfast to me): Tito’s handmade vodka, filthy Bloody Mary Mix, spiced and candied bacon, seasoned boiled eggs, olive, lime and a five-ounce Honey Blonde chaser. Just $11.50 and rated as worth every penny. It was given an 8.5 on a ten-point scale. Kudos, Yard House.

We headed out for the ballpark at about 5:00 p.m. for a 6:40 game – many of riding the free Mall Shuttle which takes you down 16th Street through the hopping LoDo (lower downtown) shopping and entertainment area to within about four blocks of Coors Field. Who says theres no such thing as a free ride.

Denver has come up with a new solution for public restrooms downtown. Movable “facilities” built into what appears to have been horse trailers. At times, there were lines. Emptied daily (I hope.)

THE GAME – WELL PLAYED … EVEN IF THERE WAS ONLY ONE DOUBLE PLAY

We got to Coors Field at about 5:30 p.m. for a 6:40 game, plenty of time to cruise the concourse, pickup (and fill in) a scorecard and soak up some atmosphere. It was Dollar-A-Dog Night and I had enjoyed a rather large beverage at lunch, so I won’t get into concessions in this post. (However, I will note that the Dollar-A-Dog promo was sponsored by Nathan’s, so that bargain-priced wiener was pretty good quality – especially after adding raw onions and ketechup.)

The brick façade of the ballpark is impressive as you approach – and entry lines move quickly. Once inside, you see there are plenty of concession stands, but they are set a bit deep in the enclosed (a bit dark) concourse. Game watching while in line is not an option. Don’t know if it was our seat location, but I did not see a single vendor busking the aisles the whole game. Our seats were in row 11, lower deck, right-field corner. Good sight lines.

I should again note that we traveled through Denver’s LoDo (Lower Downtown) area to get to the park – and passed literally dozens of dining and shopping opportunities. It is a very lively area that deserves multiple visits. (I’m thinking Uncle Joe’s Honk Kong Bistro and the 5280 Burger Bar on this trip.)

It promised to be a good contest – two teams over .500 (a plus if you’re from Minnesota) and in the post-season hunt. In addition, both starting pitchers had earned run averages under 3.75 – Pirates’ righty Joe Musgrove (4-5, 3.63) and Rockies’ southpaw Kyle Freeland (9-7, 3.20). Neither the teams nor the pitchers disappointed.

Side note: I stopped for a program and scorecard on the way to our seats. I got in line and most of those ahead of me were purchasing a program ($5) and a scorecard ($1.50) – so, I had my $6.50 ready when I “approached the bench.” On a hunch, my request was “I’ll have a program and a scorecard. (Pause) Unless, of course, there is a scorecard IN the program.” The vendor pulled back the scorecard and replied. “That’ll be five-dollars and our little secret.”

Spoiler alert: It was my kind of game … a 2-0 final with some sweet tension along the way.

Over the first 4 ½ innings, the pitchers dominated. Musgrove had retired 12 in a row with one strikeout, Freeland had fanned four. He’d also allowed two walks and two hits (one a double to Musgrove – more #WhyIHateTheDH), but pitched out of trouble, inducing: 1) a nice pitcher-to-second to first double play (RF Starling Marte, not an easy guy to double up) batting after Pirates’ LF Corey Dickerson opened the game with a single; and 2) a pop up to first by catcher Elias Diaz with two on and two out in the fourth.

By the time we got to the fifth, we seen a handful of very nice fielding plays – a sliding catch and a Rockies’ CF David Dahl for the second out in the second; Rox’ SS Trevor Story ranging far to snag a Jody Mercer ground ball headed for center in the third and making a nice “spin-move” throw to get him at first and then later in the inning making a charging play on a low roller by Dickerson. On the Pirates’ side, second baseman Josh Harrison made a diving stop on grounder by Rox’ RF Carlos Gonzalez, nailing him at first to end the inning.

BBRT observation: Perhaps the biggest difference I consistently see between minor league ball and “the show” is the quality of the defense.

NO!!!

In the seventh inning – of a tight 2-0 game – Colorado fans apparently lost interest, starting an annoying (isn’t it always) wave. It made the rounds at least a half dozen times.

In the bottom of the fifth, the rain (which had been anticipated) began and it seemed to affect Musgrove, who (as noted earlier) was perfect through four. He gave of single to the first two batters (Rox star 3B Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story). Then with runners on first and third, CF Gerrardo Parra hit what looked like a sure double play grounder to Pirates’ 2B Harrison. Don’t know if the now wet (the rain was picking up) ball and field contributed, but Harrison booted is and Arenado scored. Then the storm came on in earnest, drenching fans scurrying for cover and leading to a half hour (32 minute it was reported later) rain delay.

Once play resumed, Musgrove hit Rox first-sacker Ian Desmond with a pitch (loading the bases). Catcher Chris Ianetta’s sacrifice fly to left scored Story. Freeland then popped up a bunt for the second out, bringing up Rox’ leadoff hitter CF Dahl, who singled to left. We then saw another of those defensive plays that separate the major from the minors. Pirates’ LF Dickerson charged the ball and threw a one-hop strike to the plate to nail Parra (trying to score from second) for the final out.

Over the final three innings, Rockies’ starter Freeland and relievers Seunghwan Oh and Wade Davis (who got the save) held the Pirates to two walks, while fanning four. On the other side of the ball, Musgrove and Edgar Santana held the Rox to a Dahl double. We did see one more sparkling defensive play. This one by Pirates’ SS Mercer, who handled a tough short hop off the bat of Rockies’ 2B DJ LeMahieu.

Side note: It’s been awhile since I’ve seen both starting pitchers make it through the seventh inning. Musgrove did it on 87 pitches (65 strikes), while Freeland used 103 pitches (65 strikes). As you might expect the pitch count difference can be attributed to walks and whiffs. Freeland fanned five and walked three. Musgrove whiffed two and didn’t walk a batter. Overall, the game saw just seven hits (two doubles and five singles, plus three walks and two hit batters).

After the game it was back to the hotel, to rest up for the Tuesday (August 7) Pirates/Rockies rematch and a pre-game visit to the National Ballpark Museum. Four games left on the trip, two here in Denver and two in Kansas City. Life on the baseball highway is great.

Watch this space for more from the road with Ballpark Tours.

For the tour Day One wrap, click here.

For Days Two and three, here.

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT.

Follow/Like the Baseball Roundtable Facebook page here.

Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

BALLPARK TOURS ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH REDUX – DAYS TWO AND THREE

August 5, 2018 by David

DAY TWO – BLUES, BREWS AND BASEBALL

Rocky Mountain High Redux Day Two featured another game at Omaha Werner Park … the big, little ballpark in the soybean sea. This time, it was the Las Vegas 51s (Angels) visiting the Omaha Storm Chasers (Royals) in a 6:05 p.m. tilt. But wait, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Our dedicated trekkers started the day with the complimentary DoubleTree breakfast buffet and then headed out on the town. The most popular destination? Old Market Street for the “In the Market For Blues” festival. Eight venues and more than thirty blues bands from around the country (as well as Canada and even Italy) – with live music from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m. Not to mention ice cold beer and, of course, Rye Manhattans. A happy coincidence or great planning by our tourmaster? We may never know.

But the music was great – with plenty of BPT folks found in the Old Market taverns before and after the game. One of the hottest bands -playing at the Dubliner Pub – was Kurt Allen & Titanium Blue from Kansas City (and they will be back in KC when our group is there). Our cadre was also impressed with a group of local high schoolers – Blue Sunday – who could really bring the blues. A member of the wait staff informed us that the group “really packs them in, but they have to leave by 9 o’clock.”

PS: Julian found a cigar bar.

Good seats great view.

At 5:00 p.m., it was back on the bus to Werner Field, where the Las Vegas squad topped the Storm Chasers 4-3 in a game that was closer to what BBRT expects of the national pastime. (More on that to come). We had even better seats than yesterday – right behind home plate, less than ten rows from the field. It was Dad-Daughter Princess Night and all the Disney princesses were there and even one of our BPT group was spotted wearing a tiara.

A few observations on contest number-two of our trip:

There were a total of 17 ceremonial “first” pitches (ouch);
Unlike last night, with its 23 runs, 32 hits and nine home runs; this contest featured just 15 hits and 13 of them were singles.
There were four wild pitches in the game, three by Las Vegas hurlers.
Our group sang a hearty Happy Birthday to me – as I celebrated 71 at the ballpark.

As regular BBRT readers know, I love the 6-4-3 or 4-6-3 double play – and that combination provided the highlight of the game for me. The game went into the bottom of the eighth with Las Vegas up 4-1, when a bit of wildness (more than a bit, actually) by Las Vegas’ reliever Williams Jerez contributed to a rally. To start the inning Las Vegas reliever Sean Isaac walked Omaha SS Nicky Lopez and then fanned number-three hitter (DH) Paulo Orlando. Las Vegas brought in Jerez to face cleanup hitter and local hero (lots of chants of “I Like Frank” followed by the reply “Me, too.”) 1B Frank Schwindel. Then things got a little ugly. Sczhwindel doubled putting runners on second and third. This was followed by two singles and a pair of wild pitches (one on a third strike that let the batter reach first) and suddenly it was 4-3 and Omaha had the bases loaded, just one out and Jerez – who had already let two runs score on wild pitches – facing LF Donnie Dewees (four-for-five the night before, but zero-for-two in this game). Dewees grounded to Vegas’ 2B Luis Rengifo, who flipped to SS Alberto Triunfel, who relayed to 1B Matt Theiss for a rally-killing, game-saving double play. My day was made.

Overall, a much crisper game than Friday night and, once again followed by fireworks and a concert. (We skipped the concert and headed back to town for the Blues Fest. (I actually cashed in for the night.)

More Why I hate the DH

On this day (August 5) in 1953, St. Louis Browns’ rookie pitcher Don Larsen – yes, that Don Larsen – rapped three singles in three at bats in a game against the Red Sox. While he lost the game (a complete-game 5-0 defeat), Larsen’s three singles gave him base hits in seven consecutive at bats – the MLB record for pitchers. On the season, the rookie hurler hit .284 (11-for-82), with three home runs and ten RBI.

I had better luck with food at this game (see my first trip post for the Pop Tart Ice Cream Sandwich). The Pulled Pork, Bacon, Cheese hot dog (Hot Dog Nation – $10) was delicious, but also messy to eat. (Plenty of napkins are recommended.) Other BPT trekkers gave solid ratings to the Chicago Dog from the same stand – rating it 70 percent “Chicago.” (The lack of a poppy-seed bun and a little too much relish sweetness brought the score down.) Overall, the food concessions were rated fairly solidly for taste and price by our group.

A few other observations: 1) The ballpark has a nice “walk-all-the-way-around” concourse; 2) a great family play area (complete with carousel) beyond the outfield; and 3) even mini-golf, basketball and Wiffleball.

BLOODY MARY TIME

Here, BBRT will rate a pair of Bloody Marys. One from Day Two and one from Day Three.

Day Two’s Bloody Mary was from the Downdraught Bar, beyond centerfield at the ballpark. The price was right at $8.50, the vodka pour was good. However, there were no spices (no pepper, celery salt or Tabasco) and no “garnishes” (no celery stick, olive, pickle, etc.) The limited combination of just bottle mix and vodka did not stand up to the competition.

Day Three’s Bloody Mary came from Pals Brewery in North Platte, Nebraska (more on the location later). Slightly higher priced at $10, but worth it. Again a good pour, but garnished with squeaky cheese curds, locally made beef stick, olives and pickle – plus a 5-ounce beer chaser. (It was served at a brewery after all.) And, of course, it was delivered to your table. My tour roomate, who ordered it, gave it thumbs up.

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A final look back at Omaha, where they were celebrating 50 years of minor league baseball. Here is their all-time team – a lot of whose names may ring a bell for our veteran crew.

C – Salvador Perez

1B – Eric Hosmer

2B – Frank White

3B – George Brett

SS – Buddy Biancalana

OF – Lorenzo Cain

OF – Willie Wilson

OF – Alex Gordon

DH – Luios de le Santo

Utility – Whit Merrifield

P – David Cone

P – Danny Duffy

P -Paul Splittorff

RP – Dan Quisenberry

Manager – Mike Jirschele

DAY THREE – BREAKFAST, BUS RIDE, BEER, PIZZA and MUSIC

Lots of bus time today, as we made the ride from Omaha to Denver. We started with the complimentary breakfast buffet and today they substituted Kielbasa for pork sausage links and French toast for pancakes – great for this Polish kid. Left Omaha about 9 a.m. Central Time, got to Denver at about 6 p.m. Mountain Time. Pretty quiet time on the bus, but a great stop at Pals Brewery North Platte – where we enjoyed craft beers, spirits, wine and homemade pizza – as well as live music (Mark Daniels Three Wring Circus). The pictures that follow tell the story. Oh yes, I had the Jalapena Light Cream Ale (highly recommended.) Others were fond of the Irish Stout.

Tomorrow, the Pirates at the Rockies – and time in Lodo. More reports to come. Oh yes, and Julian has already found a Denver cigar bar.

Pizza and beer – always a hit with ballpark tours.

The smoking section was a bit far from the bar.

Much as the Omaha ballpark was in a soybean field, Pals brewery was surrounded by corn fields. Here my “Is this heaven?” t-shirt seems to fit right in.

Nuff’ said.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

Ballpark Tours Rocky Mountain High Redux – 2018 BPT Trek – Day One

August 4, 2018 by David

Yesterday, it was all hands (well, 24 pair anyway) on deck as our Ballpark Tours group began our westward bus trek – two minor league games in Omaha, three Pirates/Rockies tilts in Denver and a pair of Cardinals/Royals contests in Kansas City. Along the way, there are also such opportunities as: the Omaha “In the Market for Blues” festival; the National Ballpark Museum in Denver; the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City; and much more. We expect ten great days (and nights) of blues, brews, barbeque and baseball. We also expect all the usual comedy and comaraderie that are part of BPT’s 36-year tradition. And, BPT started to deliver on that tradition even before we left Saint Paul.

Busy hands make a good “Breakfast Bloody.”

We rolled out right on time (9;35 a.m.) and, since we do keep track of things in baseball, it should be noted that the first beer was opened while we were still “in port” (9:17 a.m. to be precise. Shortly thereafter, the mid-bus Bloody Mary Bar opened for breakfast and the music began to blare from “the back of the bus.”

A bit later, our intrepid (he likes to be called that) tour leader announced that the BPT “Tequila for Breakfast” tradition would have to be delayed, as he had left the spirits at home. He said he would have the bottle delivered to the hotel in Omaha via Fed Ex. (Apparently unaware that there would be liquor stores along the way.) Ah, but one of our resourceful trekkers saved the day. He just happened to have a “spare” bottle of tequila in his carry-on. Soon the tequila, lime, lemon and salt were making the usual rounds through the carraige. And, as usual, cookies, Chicago Mix and the like circulated through the bus all morning. It was kind of a “not very good for you” roundabout. (Although there was some gluten-free stuff.)

Other early activities included: delivery of this tour’s K-Kwiz; announcement of the “how many runs will be tallied” contest; explanation of the rules of travel; distribution of the “Port O’ Call” guide; and other announcements from the tour leader that were largely ignored.

The “Rev” delivers the sacred fish to the tour operator – offically blessing our journey.

A couple hours into the trip, the Reverend/Associate Pope/Vatican Lunch-master distributed meat, cheese and cracker snacks to all those hungry souls making this hardball pilgrimage. That was followed by the Rev’s personal delivery of the sacred fish to tour participants – each tidbit (pickled herring) was accompanied by the solemn blessing “Nomar Garciaparra” – which I believe is Latin for “Travel in peace, lay off the curve and enjoy the free fish.”

At around noon, we enjoyed a picnic (bring your own), rest-stop lunch in brisk 93-degree weather. I did note, later, that age seems to be taking its toll on this all-veteran crew. About 25 percent (we love statistics) of the bus were seen napping after lunch.

IN OMAHA

As we rolled into Omaha and up to the DoubleTree (by Hilton), a few things caught my attention:

Our bus (driver) had to displace a group of Hell’s Angels parked in front of the hotel. (We all assured him later, after the bikers were long gone, that we had his back the whole time. He might even have believed us.)
After arriving, we were directed to the other side of the hotel and a manager let us in through what appeared to be a basement door (one floor below the public lobby). Perhaps a bit of a slight, but he gave us each a free cookie (and the hotel bar is open until 2 a.m.), so all is forgiven.
With our room keys we each received complimentary tickets to the $17.50 breakfast buffet – which turned out to be quite tasty: eggs, bacon, sausage, waffles, pancakes, potatoes, biscuit and gravy, fruit, sweetbreads and more. Good move, Julian.

As usual with BPT – fine rooms, located near the heart of the action. Thanks, Julian.

THE GAME

Yes, I’m getting to it. There was a ballgame – Triple A – Omaha Storm Chasers (Royals) hosting the Las Vegas 51s (Mets).

At 6 p.m., we bussed to the ballpark – about a 30-minute ride – located on the outskirts of Omaha, basically in a soybean field. Not sure why, but we did do a “victory lap” around the entire facility before deboarding. On the way into the park, we had a chance to see the team’s tribute to Omaha-native Bob Gibson, as well tributes to the 50th anniversary of the team (under various names).

We had great seats, just beyond third base about a half-dozen rows from the field. BPT delivers again. The seats were, perhaps, better then the ball game. It was in fact, hard to believe this was Triple A – one step from the majors. I won’t go into a lot of detail, but we witnessed (and may be called to testify to):

23 runs – Omaha lost 12-11, but it didn’t seem that close.
32 hits – the batters averaged .381 for the game. The two starting pitchers lasted a combined 7 1/3 innings and surrendered 15 runs (ten pitchers were used, but none were harmed in the making of this game … except for, perhaps, their egos and prospects for a call-up).
20 extra-base hits, including nine home runs.
10 walks.
21 strikeouts.
2 errors.
2 wild pitches.

If you like Nintendo, this was the game for you.

Still, it was baseball, watched with a group of friends and fellow fans – and there was, indeed, plenty of excited, Here are a few more photos. What follows is a few more photos from the evening.

NO POST TOMORROW

I should add here that today’s schedule includes the Omaha Blues Fest (good timing for our visit and walking distance from the hotel) and a ball game. We have an early departure, so I probably won’t post an update on the tour until Monday.

Nice ballpark, even if itx was located in a corn field.

Nice ballpark, even if it was located in a corn field.

There were fireworks and a country concert after the game.

Concession were generally good – the pulled pork hot dog got raves – but I’d avoid the Pop Tart Ice Cream Sandwich. It’s two frosted, sprinkled, jelly-filled, cold Pop Tarts with ice cream in the middle. So sweet that it will make your teeth hurt (and spoil the taste of beer). Not recomended for eaters over nine-years-old. Yes, I had one.

I felt this coach needed a shorter name or broader shoulders.

Woke up this a.m. to my 71st birthdya and this was at the top of my emails.

Woke up this a.m. to my 71st birthday and this was at the top of my emails.

I tweet baseball @ DavidBBRT

Follow/Like Baseball Roundtable on Facebook here.

Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

Filed Under: Ballpark Tours

July MLB – Led By Kiké and the Babe

August 1, 2018 by David

Well, we’ve reached August – and with July’s games, the All Star Game, the Hall of Fame ceromonies and the trade deadine behind us, it’s time for Baseball Roundtable’s monthly wrap-up. So, let’s take a look at the MLB stats and stories that caught BBRT’s eye in the month of July, as well as BBRT’s Players and Pitchers of the month, the standings and 2018’s batting and pitching leaders. But first a look at the July connection between Kiké Hernández and Babe Ruth.

Kiké and The Babe … Sharing the Record Book

Regular readers know how BBRT loves an iconic or ironic coincidence. Well, on July 24, a truly “bad day at the office” for Dodgers’ utility man Enrique “Kiké” Hernández led to just that. So, Hernández will lead off BBRT’s July Wrap.

Hernández started the game (at home against the Phillies) at 2B , moved to RF in the 14th inning and ended up on the mound (as the Dodgers’ ninth pitcher of the game) in the 16th. The results? Hernandez went zero-for-seven at the plate – AND got the loss, giving up a three-run, walk-off home run to Trevor Plouffe, as the Dodgers went down 7-4 in 16 frames. That long ball made Hernández the first MLB full-time position player ever to give up a walk-of home run. (How often are position players on the mound with the game still on the line?)

So, what does this have to do with The Babe?

Only two players in MLB history have played the infield, outfield and given up at least three runs on the mound all in one game. Hernández and George Herman “Babe” Ruth (LF-1B-P on October 1, 1921).

Ironically, Hernández shares another record with the iconic Ruth. They are both among the 10 players top launch a record three-home runs in a post-season game. Babe Ruth (who did it twice) was the first – in Game four of the 1926 World Series. Hernández is the most recent – in Game Five of last year’s NCLS.

Side note: In that 1921 game, Ruth started in LF, later moved to 1B and then took the mound in the top of the eighth, protecting a 6-0 Yankee lead over the Philadelphia Athletics. The Bambino gave up a game-tying six runs in the eighth frame, but pitched a scoreless ninth, tenth and eleventh to get the win (7-6).

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Now it’s time to move on a look at BBRT Players and Pitchers of the Month.

AL PLAYER OF THE MONTH … Jose Ramirez, 3B Indians

Photo by Keith Allison

It was a close contest for BBRT American League player of the month, but – appropriately – speed won the race. The Indian’s Jose Ramirez hit .322 for the month, bashed eight round trippers (fourth in the league), tied for second in July RBI (25) and was third in runs scored (21). The other two top contenders had similar number across all those categories, but did not match Ramirez in the speed department, as the Indians’ third sacker stole an MLB-tops 11 bases (12 attempts) in July.

Other contenders: A’s RF Khris Davis. Whoa. Where did that come from? The A’s Khri Davis came into July hitting just .231 (but with 20 home runs). Davis raked at a .323 pace for the month, launching nine (second in the AL) home runs and driving in an MLB-tops 29. Davis also scored 18 times. And he did all this while striking out in in nearly one of every three at bats (32 whiffs in 99 at bats). The Angels’ Kole Calhoun earned consideration by putting up a .322 average, an AL-leading ten June home runs, 25 RBI (second only to Davis) and 20 runs scored (fourth in the AL).

AL PITCHER OF THE MONTH … Chris Sale, LHP, Red Sox

Photo by Keith Allison

Chris Sale tossed 25 innings in four July starts – and gave up just one (yes, one) earned run. That amounted to an MLB-best (among qualifiers) 0.36 July earned run average. Sale won three games (no losses). In his one no-decision, he went six innings, giving up no runs on three hits and two walks while fanning ten. For the month, the dominating southpaw also fanned 43 batters, while walking just four. All of this made him a pretty easy choice for BBRT AL Pitcher of the Month.

Other contenders: Indians RHP Carlos Carrasco went 4-0 for July, with a 2.59 earned run average and 32 strikeouts in 24 1/3 innings. He started four games and even came on in relief for one appearance – a clean two-strikeout eighth inning against the Yankees on July 15 (that earned him a win). Also considered was Mariners’ closer Edwin Diaz, who saved nine games (tied for the AL lead); pitched ten innings (in ten appearances); fanned 19; gave up just two hits and two walks (one unearned run, which cost him a loss). Diaz now leads MLB with 40 saves; seven more than the next best (Craig Kimbrel).

NL PLAYER OF THE MONTH … Christian Yelich, CF, Brewers

You simply can’t ignore the fact that Brewers’ outfielder Christian Yelich hit at a .400 pace for the month of July (the highest average among players with at least 75 plate appearances). While he popped just four home runs, his 23 RBI tied for the most in the NL for the month and his 20 runs scored were the NL’s third-best. Yelich had an MLB-tops 42 hits in July, and he had 15 multi-hit games (out of 26). In the process, he raised his season average from .289 to .321. Yelich also swiped three bases in four attempts.

Cardinals’ 1B Matt Carpenter’s bat came alive in July. After hitting .259, with 15 home runs through June (76 games), Carpenter upped his game in July (in 26 contests). He hit .333 for the month and led the league in July home runs (11, which led all of MLB), topped the NL in runs scored (22), and was fifth in RBI (21). Nineteen of his 31 hits went for extra bases, and his .774 slugging percentage for the month led MLB.

Other contenders: BBRT also looked at Cubs’ 2B Javier Baez (.343-6-23, with six stolen bases) and the Rockies’ slick-fielding, hard-hitting 3B Nolan Arenado (.307-8-22).

NL PITCHER OF THE MONTH … Zack Greinke, RHP, Diamondbacks

Photo by jnashboulden

Zack Greinke went 4-0 in five July starts for the D-backs. He 1.60 earned run average was the lowest among NL qualifiers (at least one inning pitched for each game his team played) and his 35 strikeouts (33 2/3 innings) ranked fourth in the NL. He walked just five hitters.

Other contenders: Phillies’ RHP Aaron Nola only went 2-1 in five starts for the month, but he tied for fourth with 35 strikeouts (33 innings), while walking just seven and also put up a nifty 1.91 earned run average. BBRT also considered the Brewers’ Jhoulys Chacin, who went 4-0 for the month (five starts), with 27 strikeouts (30 2/3 innings) and a 2.64 earned run average.

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Let’s move on to bit of a July overview.

AMERICAN LEAGUE

Nobody outplayed the Boston Red Sox in July, as they went an MLB-best 19-6 for the month – holding off the Yankees who had the league’s third-best record at 15-10. The A’s had the second-best month in the AL at 17-8.

The Red Sox scored the AL’s fourth -highest run total for July at 134 and gave up the league’s fewest runs (87). Their July offense was led by the likes of Mookie Betts (.330-5-15) and J.D. Martinez (.310-7-22); while Chris Sale (with his July ERA of 0.36) and closer Craig Kimbrel (with an AL-best nine saves) led the mound staff. The Yankees relied heavily on power, launching a league-topping 37 July home runs (scoring 140 times); while surrending the fifth-lowest AL run total (102). Surprisingly, despite leading the AL in home runs for the month, the New York squad had no one in July’s top-ten. Topping New York in home run sfor the month was Aaron Hicks with six, followed by Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge with five each. The A’s surrended the sixth-fewest runs in the AL, and scored the fifth most (133). Critical to the A’s success was Khris Davis with a .323 July average, nine home runs and an MLB-best 29 RBI.

Those closest races in the AL see the Red Sox out in front of the Yankees by 5 games in the East and the Astros, Mariners and A’s separated by five games in the West. The Orioles go into August 42 games off the pace in the tough AL East.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

In the NL, the Rockies and Pirates were July’s hottest teams, each winnnig 17 contests. (The Rockies lost just six gameS, the Pirates nine.)

Pittsburgh scored the fourth-most July runs in the NL, topped the league in home runs (36) and were second only to the Rockies in batting average (.275 to .278). Key to their attack were Starling Marte (.341-7-20) and Gregory Polanco (.301-8-18). The Rockies, as noted, led in batting average and popped the third-most July homers in the league (34). The Rockies spread the offense around, with three players at .345 or above for July – Trevor Story (.358-4-11); Charlie Blackmon (.351-7-14); and Carlos Gonzalez (.345-6-18) – and Nolan Arenado chipped in with .307-8-22. The Rocks also surprised with July’s second-lowest NL earned run average (3.16) – led by Jon Gray (2-0, 1.66 for the month); Tyler Anderson (1-0, but 2.16 in five starts); and Kyle Freeland (2-0, 2.54).

The NL West is the race to watch, as the D-backs, Rockies and Dodgers entered August separated by just 1/2 game. The Wild Card could also be a fight to the finish. We entered August with the Braves, Rockies and Cardinals basically tied for the final NL Wild Card spot.

The Least Successful Squads

The Padres had MLB’s worst July record, winning just five and losing 20. No other team in the NL won fewer than ten games. In the AL, four teams failed to win ten games in July: Rangers (8-17); Royals (8-16); Orioles (9-16); Blue Jays (9-15).

If the season ended July 31, your playoff teams would be:

American League: Red Sox, Indians Astros. Wild Cards: Yankees, Mariners.

National League: Phillies, Cubs, D-backs. Wild Cards: Brewers and Braves, Rockies or Cardinals.

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TROT INDEX … A REGULAR BBRT FEATURE

Through July 31, more than one-third (34.8 percent) of all MLB 2018 plate appearances have ended in a trot (back to the dugout, around the bases, to first base). We are talking about strikeouts (we’ve still seen more strikeouts than base hits this season), home runs, walks, hit by pitch and catcher’s interference – all outcomes that are, basically, devoid of action on the base paths or in the field (unless of course a hit batsman should charge the mound). Here’s the breakout: strikeouts (22.2%); Walks (8.6%); home runs (3.0%); HBP (1.0%); Catcher’s Interference (less than .001%).

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HOW ABOUT SOME TEAM STATS FOR JUlY?

TEAM STATISTICS (leaders) FOR THE MONTH OF JUlY

RUNS SCORED … MLB Team Average – 117

AL: Indians (153); Twins (142); Yankees (140)

NL: Nationals (140); Cardinals (131); D-backs (131)

The Mariners scored an MLB-fewest 77 runs (23 games) in July, while the Padres put up the fewest tallies in the NL (89 in 25 games).

BATTING AVERAGE … MLB Team Average – .255

AL: Indians (.284); Yankees (.281); Rays (.274)

NL: Rockies (.278); Pirates (.275); Nationals (.273)

HOME RUNS … MLB Team Average – 29

AL: Yankees (37); Indians (36); three with 35

NL: Pirates (36); Nationals (35); Rockies (34)

The Giants, with just 16 dingers, were one of only two teams with fewer than 20 long balls in July. (The Mariners had 19.)

STOLEN BASES … MLB Team Average – 12

AL: Indians (26); Red Sox (18); Rangers (17)

NL: Brewers (21); Pirates (19); Padres (17)

The Dodger did not do Maury Wills proud in July, swiping an MLB-low two bags in just seven attempts.

STRIKEOUTS … MLB Team Average – 207

AL: Rangers (257); Royals (230); Twins (227)

NL: Brewers (259); Phillies (251); Padres (247)

The Indians fanned the fewest timesin July at 139, while the Rockies were the most “on the ball” in the NL with a league-low 182 whiffs.

WALKS DRAWN … MLB Average – 81

AL: A’s (101); Yankees (97); Twins (91)

NL: Dodgers (109); Nationals (106); D-backs (102)

The Rays led in the “Ouch Factor,” with 24 hit by pitches – the next highest was 16 (Marlins) and the MLB average was 11.

EARNED RUN AVERAGE … MLB Average – 4.41

AL: Red Sox (3.36); A’s (3.88); Astros (3.95)

NL: Dodgers (3.01); Rockies (3.16); Phillies (3.26)

ERAs North of Five

The White Sox put up July’s worst team earned run average at 5.98. Five other teams were north of five: Royals (5.63); Rangers (5.54); Padres (5.46); Blue Jays (5.31); Marlins (5.03). The six teams mentioned went a combined 51-96 for the month.

STRIKEOUTS … MLB Average – 207

AL: Astros (263); Red Sox (245); Twins (232); Yankees (232)

NL: Dodgers (257); D-backs (239); Brewers (236)

The Astros had MLB best strikeouts per nine inning ratio for July at 10.94. Seven of MLB’s 30 teams recorded a strikeout or more per inning for the month,

SAVES … MLB Average – 6

AL: Red Sox (9); Yankees (9); Mariners (9)

NL: Dodgers (12); Cubs (8); Brewers (8); Rockies (10)

____________________________________________

A FEW JULY HIGHLIGHTS

Here arfe a few things that cuaght BBRT’s eye in July.

More #Why I hate the DH

On July 2, the Red Sox’ Rick Porcello was matched up in a pitching duel with Nationals’ ace Max Scherzer. Porcello not only went seven innings (Two earned runs on seven hits, two walks and five strikeouts) for the win, his bases-loaded, bases-clearing double in the second inning sparked the 4-3 Boston win.

Double-digit RBI

On July 7, Nationals’ 1B-3B Mark Reynolds became just the 15^th major league player to drive in ten or more runs in a game – as the Nationals pounded the Marlins 18-4 n Washington D.C.

Reynolds’ five-for-five, two-homer, ten-RBI night at the ball yard went like this:

Bottom of the second inning – Two-run home run
Bottom of the fourth – RBI double
Bottom of the fifth – Two-run single
Bottom of the sixth – Three-run home run
Bottom of the seventh- Two-run single

TEN OR MORE RBI IN A GAME

12 RBI IN A GAME

Jim Bottomley, Cardinals – September 16, 1924

Mark Whiten, Cardinals – September 7, 1993

11 RBI

Tony Lazzeri, Yankees – May 24, 1936

Phil Weintrub, Giants – April 30, 1944

10 RBI

Rudy York, Red Sox – July 27, 1946

Walker Cooper, Reds – July 6, 1949

Norm Zauchin, Red Sox – May 27, 1955

Reggie Jackson, A’s – July 14, 1969

Fred Lynn, Red Sox – June 18, 1975

Nomar Garciaparra, Red Sox May 10, 1999

Alex Rodriguez, Yabnkees – April 26 2005

Garret Anderson, Angels – August 21, 2007

Anthony Rendon, Nationals – April 30, 2017

Scooter Gennett, Reds – June 6, 2017

Mark Reynolds, Nationals – July 7, 2018

Pujols Move Up The Line

On July 25, as the Angels bested the White Sox 11-3, Angels’ 1B Albert Pujols hit his 17^th home run of the season – which was also the 631^st of his career – moving him past Ken Griffey, Jr. and into sixth place all time. Next up is Willie Mays at 660.

The Diamondbacks had three starters finish in the top four in the NL for strikeouts in July. Zack Godley (first); Robbie Ray (third); Zack Greinke (fourth).

An even dozen – just to get there.

It took Angels’ catcher Francisco Arcia a dozen seasons to get to the major leagues, but only two games to reach double-digits in RBI. And, that is significant. In fact, Arcia’s ten runs plated in his first two MLB games is a major-league record.

The 28-year-old left-handed hitter (throws right, he is a catcher, after all) went two-for-five with a three-run home runs and a run-scoring single in his first MLB game (a 12-8 Angels’ win over the White Sox on July 26) and then (after sitting out a July 27 game) rapped another three-run homer, as well as a pair of doubles – while driving in six runs – in four at bats in a July 28 Angels’ 11-5 win over the Mariners.

The record-setting outburst was hardly expected from Arcia, who put up a .244 average, with 25 home runs, over a dozen minor-league seasons (584 games). At the time of his call up, he was hitting .283-3-26 at Triple A Salt Lake (42 games). Arcia was originally signed by the Yankees , out of Venezuela, as a 16-year-old, in 2006 and granted free agency in 2015. He then signed with the Mariners, who released him after one minor-league season. The Angels picked him up in 2016, granted him free agency in 2017 and re-signed him in 2018.

It’s All About the Long Ball

On July 27, Nationals’ 19-year-old rookie right fielder Juan Soto joined some pretty heady company – rapping his 13^th home run of the season and tying Mickey Mantle for sixth place in MLB history for home runs hit as a teenager. (It was also Soto’s third straight contest with a long ball.) Soto ended the month .313-13-36 on the season. .

The Red Sox’ Tony Conigliaro holds the record for MLB home runs as a teenager with 24. Bryce Harper is the only other player with at least 20 long balls as a teen – with 22.

Also on July 27, Oriole’s second baseman Jonathon Schoop hit his 16^th home run of the season, as the O’s pounded the Rays 15-5. In the process, Schoop tied the record for consecutive games with a home run by a second baseman at five. The streak ended on the 28^th, when Schoop (who hit 32 home runs in 2017) had a single in five at bats versus the Rays. In his five-game long-ball streak, Schoop went 11-for-24 (.458), with five home runs, 11 RBI and sevcn runs scored.

Zack Godley, who led the NL in July strikeouts with 34, kept batters loose – leading MLB in July hit batters with seven.

Or maybe it’s all about the strikeout

On July 27, Red Sox’ ace Chris Sale pitched six shutout innings, with three hits, two walks and ten strikeouts – as the Red Sox topped the Twins 4-3 (Sale got a no-decision). Notably, Sale recorded all three first-inning outs via the K – giving him 200 on the season and giving him (yes, another instance in which baseball counts everything) the record for the fewest innings pitched to reach 200 whiffs in a season (136). Of course, it wasn’t as momentous as one might think. Sale broke his own record of 141 1/3 innings, set just last season.

Photo by Corn Farmer

On the same night as Sale’s gem, Max Scherzer of the Nationals celebrated his 34^th birthday by picking up his 14^th win of the season (9-1 over the Marlins) The eleven K’s Scherzer notched in the game gave him 200 whiffs for the seventh consecutive season – tying him for the second-longest such streak in MLB history. (Walter Johnson and Roger Clemens also have seven straight 200K campaigns, pretty good company) Scherzer went eight innings, giving up just one run (unearned) on three hits, a walk,

Tom Seaver accumulated a record streak of nine straight seasons of at least 200 strikeouts).

Strong and Swift … and more “We count everything”

On July 31, Mike Trout belted his 30^th home run of the season, joining Willie Mays as one of only two players to hit 30 home runs and steal 20 bases in three seasons before their 26^th birthday.

Justin Verlander fanned 46 batters in 30 July innings – and walked just three.

A Moving Experience

A report from baseball analyst Scott Lindholm indicated more than 130 players changed MLB organizations in July – as we approached the MLB trade deadline. There is not space to look at all those moves, but here’s a few BBRT thinks are pretty significant (from the buyers point of view) in terms of the post-season.

The Dodgers picking up Manny Machado and Brian Dozier – more than making up for the (injury) loss of Corey Seager.
The Pirates adding starter Chris Archer and reliever Keone Kela.
The Brewers adding Joakim Soria to bolster their bullpen and Mike Moustakas to add a little power to the lineup.
The Red Sox adding Ian Kinsler (Dustin Pedroia injury); a starting pitcher in Nathan Eovaldi; and Ryan Pressley for late-inning relief.
The Diamondbacks bolstering the infield and lineup with the versatile Eduardo Escobar.
The Indians patching the outfield defense with Leonys Martin and the Mariners doing the same with the pickup of Cameron Maybin.

___________________________________________

________________________________________________

—–LEAGUE LEADERS – TEAMS – YEAR-TO-DATE (through July)—–

RUNS SCORED ... MLB Team Average – 481

AL: Red Sox (572); Indians (547); Yankees (546)

NL: Cubs (531); Rockies (510); Dodgers (506)

The Royals scored the fewest runs through July at 388 – making them the only team to score under 400 tallies on the season. The lowest total in the NL went to the Padres at 405.

BATTING AVERAGE … MLB Team Average – .248

AL: Red Sox (.268); Indians (.259); Astros (.257)

NL: Cubs (.266); Braves (.261); Reds (.257)

The Mets had the lowest team batting average through July (.229); while the Orioles were at the bottom of the AL’s (.234).

HOME RUNS … MLB Team Average – 123

AL: Yankees (168); Indians (150); Angels (148)

NL: Dodgers (144); Rockies (138); Brewers (135); Cardinals (135)

Only four teams had fewer than 100 home runs through July: Tigers (87); Marlins (88); Royals (92); Padres (93).

STOLEN BASES ... MLB Team Average – 52

AL: Indians (84); Red Sox (82); White Sox (77)

NL: Brewers (84); Nationals (76); Padres (63)

The A’s swiped the fewest bases through July (25). The A’s also had the worst success rate at 58.1 percent (25 steals in 43 attempts). The Angels had the highest success rate at 83.1 percent (54-for-65).

BATTERS’ STRIKEOUTS … MLB Team Average – 910

AL: Rangers (1,047); White Sox (1,004); Yankees (936)

NL: Padres (1,043); Phillies (1,028); Brewers (1,000)

The Indians make a practice of putting the ball in play, recording the fewest batters’ whiffs through July at 802.

EARNED RUN AVERAGE … MLB Average – 4.15

AL: Astros (3.08); Red Sox (3.47); Yankees (3.56)

NL: Dodgers (3.47); Brewers (3.60); D-backs (3.65)

Two teams carried ERAs over 5.00 through July: the Royals (5.30) and the White Sox (5.03). Not surprisingly, those two squads finished July a combined 72 games under .500.

PITCHERS’ STRIKEOUTS … MLB Average – 910

AL: Astros (1,151); Red Sox (1,055); Yankees (1,050)

NL: Dodgers (1,039); Phillies (972); D-backs (959)

Through July, the Astros were averaging an MLB-high of 10.55 strikeouts per nine innings – the only team averaging 10 or more. Seven teams were averaging at least one whiff per inning.

SAVES … MLB Average – 28

AL: Mariners (42); Red Sox (36); Yankees (33)

NL: Dodgers (36); Rockies (36); Cubs (31)

BULLPEN AND STARTING STAFF ERAS

The best bullpen earned run average through July belonged to the Yankees at 2.91. The D-backs bullpen ERA was the NL’s best at 3.05. Bullpens putting up ERAs of 5.00 or higher included the: Royals (5.35); Rockies (5.12); Marlins (5.09); Mets (5.07); Indians (5.00).

The Astros put up the best ERA among starters (through July) at 3.03, while the Dodgers’ starters were the NL’s best at 3.35. Six starting staffs put up ERAs over 5.00 through July: White Sox (5.27); Rangers (5.26); Orioles (5.26); Royals (5.26); Reds (5.14); Padres (5.09).

__________________________________________

—INDIVIDUAL LEADERS FOR YEAR TO DATE (through June) —

BATTING AVERAGE (qualifiers)

AL: Mookie Betts, Red Sox (.338); Jose Altuve, Astros (.329); J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (.323)

NL: Christian Yelich, Brewers (.321), Nick Markakis, Braves (.319); Corey Dickerson, Pirates (.318)

The lowest average (through July) among qualifying players belonged to the Orioles’ Chris Davis at .157 (51-for-324). Just three more qualifying players had averages below “The Mendoza Line” (under .200): Joey Gallo, Rangers (.187); Logan Morrison, Twins (.193); Alcides Escobar, Royals (.197).

HOME RUNS

AL: J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (32): Jose Ramirez, Indians (32); Mike Trout, Angels (30)

NL: Nolan Arenado, Rockies (28); Matt Carpenter, Cardinals (26); Jesus Aguilar, Brewers (25);; Bryce Harper, Nationals (25)

The most at bats for any player without a home run is 130 –the Marlins’ J.B. Shuck. Honorable mention should go to the Mariners’ Dee Gordon, who has just one round tripper among his 403 at bats and 117 hits (98 singles). Side note: In 1972, The Twins; Rod Carew won the AL batting crown (.318) and had zero – yes, zero – home runs in 535 at bats.

RUNS BATTED IN

AL: J.D. Martinez, Red Sox (89); Khris Davis, A’s (84) Jose Ramirez, Indians (78)

NL: Javier Baez, Cubs (82); Eugenio Suarez, Reds (81); Nolan Arenado, Rockies (79)

Among players with at least 25 plate appearances with runners in scoring position, the Red Sox’ (former Blue Jay) Steve Pearce had the best average in those spots through July at .464 (13-for-28). The Padres’ Wil Myers topped the NL in this category at .406. Others hitting over .400 with RISP through July were the Twins’ Joe Mauer (.418) and the Astros’ Yuli Gurriel (.416).

RUNS SCORED

AL: Francisco Lindor, Indians (92); Mookie Betts, Red Sox (84); Mike Trout, Angels (82)

NL: Charlie Blackmon, Rockies (80); Ozzie Albies, Braves (77); Christian Yelich, Brewers (72)

HITS

AL: Jose Altuve, Astros (134) Jean Segura, Mariners (130); Eddie Rosario, Twins (128)

NL: Nick Markakis, Braves (130); Freddie Freeman, Braves (128); Scooter Gennett, Reds (123)

The Angels’ Mike Trout had an MLB-best .461 on base percentage (among qualifiers) through July; while the Reds’ Joey Votto topped the NL at .423. Just five players were at .400 or above.

STOLEN BASES

AL: Dee Gordon, Mariners (25); Jose Ramirez, Indians (25); Whit Merrifield, Royals (23)

NL: Trea Turner, Nationals (26): Sterling Marte, Pirates (25); Michael Taylor, Nationals (24)

War, Good God, What is it Good For?

Not a big fan of all the new stats, but I know some readers are. So, your leader in WAR (Wins Above Replacement) through July is the Angels’ Mike Trout at 7.9. The Brewers’ Lorenzo Cain leads the National League at 5.3.

BATTER’S STRIKEOUTS

AL: Joey Gallo, Rangers (144); Yoan Moncada, White Sox (141); Giancarlo Stanton, Yankees (138)

NL: Paul Goldschmidt, D-backs (126); Chris Taylor, Dodgers (125); Bryce Harper, Nationals (117)

Andrelton Simmons of the Angels drew an MLB leading 1.40 walks per strikeout through July (28 walks versus 20 K’s in 398 plate appearanes). Only seven players drew more walks than whiffs. After Simmons are: Jose Ramirez, Indians (1.37); Carlos Santana, Phillies (1.25); Joey Votto, Reds (1.15); Jesse Winker, Reds (1.07); Alex Bregman, Astros (1.03); Mike Trout, Angels (1.02).

WALKS DRAWN

AL: Mike Trout, Angels (98); Jose Ramirez, Indians (70); Shin-Soo Choo, Rangers (68); Aaron Judge, Yankees (68)

NL: Bryce Harper, Nationals (85); Joey Votto, Reds (82); Carlos Santana, Phillies (81)

Mike Trout led all MLB players through July in intentional free passes with 20 – six more than any other player.

PITCHING VICTORIES

AL: Luis Severino, Yankees (14-4); Rick Porcello, Red Sox (13-4); Corey Kluber, Indians (13-6)

NL: Max Scherzer, Nationals (14-5); Jon Lester, Cubs (12-3); Aaron Nola, Phillies (12-3); Zack Greinke, D-backs (12-5)

The Nationals’ Max Scherzer led MLB in quality starts through July at 19. The Astros’ Justin Verlander; Indians’ Corey Kluber; and Indians’ Trevor Bauer tied for the AL lead with 18 QS. each.

EARNED RUN AVERAGE (qualifiers)

AL: Chris Sale, Red Sox (2.04); Justin Verlander, Astros (2.24); Blake Snell, Rays (2.27)

NL: Jacob deGrom, Mets (1.82); Max Scherzer, Nationals (2.30); Aaron Nola, Phillies (2.35)

STRIKEOUTS

AL: Chris Sale, Red Sox (207 – 141 IP); Gerrit Cole, Astros (194 – 141 1/3 IP); Trevor Bauer, Indians (192 – 147 1/3 IP)

NL: Max Scherzer, Nationals (200– 148 2/3 IP); Patrick Corbin, D-backs (166 – 135 1/3 IP); Jacob deGrom, Mets (164 – 138 1/3 IP)

Among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched through June, the Red Sox’ Chris Sale had the highest ratio of strikeouts per nine innings at 13.21. The only other hurlers above 12.00 were Gerrit Cole of the Astros (12.35) and Max Scherzer of the Nationals (12.11). Thirty-six qualifying hurlers struck out at least nine batters per nine innings.

SAVES

AL: Edwin Diaz, Mariners (40); Craig Kimbrel, Red Sox (33); Aroldis Chapman, Yankees (28)

NL: Wade Davis, Rockies (30); Kenley Jansen, Dodgers (30): Brad Boxberger, D-backs (25)

The Wins Above Replacement (WAR) leader through July (among starting pitchers) was the Phillies’ Aaron Nola at 6.7. The AL leader was the Red Sox’ Chris Sale at 6.4. Among closers with at least ten saves, the WAR leader was the A’s Blake Treinen at 2.6. The Nationals’ Sean Doolittle topped the NL at 2.2.

Primary resources for this post: MB.com; ESPN.com; Baseball-reference.com; Society for American Baseball Research.

I tweet baseball @DavidBBRT

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Member: Society for American Baseball Research; The Baseball Reliquary; The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

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