Pudge recovering a foul ball.

Though it was announced a few days ago, Ivan Rodriguez officially retired from baseball today.  The announcement was made in conjunction with the Rangers, no surprise there considering he spent 13 of his 21 MLB seasons in Texas.  While there’s no doubt he’ll be best remembered (and probably be inducted into Cooperstown as one) I naturally like to remember him for his 5 seasons as a Tiger.

Pudge joined the team in the winter of 2004 -following a 2003 season that saw him win his only World Series ring, while the Tigers set an AL record with 119 losses.  Of course, the media had fun with the tag-line “first to worst”.  still, Pudge said all the right things: he believed in Mike Ilitch and Dave Dombrowski; that he believed the pieces were in place; that he envisioned the Tigers in the World Series within a few years (or words to that effect).  Pudge’s signing with the Tigers was a risky move for both parties: the Tigers were desperate to become relevant and probably overpaid him. To many, Pudge looked like a mercenary – cashing in on a huge payday from a down-in-the-dumps franchise. Fans couldn’t help but think that this would wind up like the signing and departure of Juan Gonzalez.

Fortunately for the Tiger front office, the acquisition of Pudge paid off huge dividends.  He instantly became the team’s marquee player.  2004 saw a 29 win improvement for the team. Other players  around the league started to take notice. 2006 saw the Tigers win their first AL pennant since 1984.  In fact, the Tigers return to baseball prominence started with the acquisition of Pudge.   The signings of Magglio Ordonez, Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder may have never happened had Pudge not decided to take a chance in the D.

As a fan, I would like to say to Pudge:  Thank you, for making Detroit Tiger baseball matter again.

We’ll see you in Cooperstown in 2017.

Today is Jackie Robinson Day – with this year being the 65th anniversary of Robinson breaking baseball’s color barrier.  I could sit here and extol the virtues of Robinson and his then-general manager Branch Rickey, but countless other writers have done that far more eloquently than I have; so I won’t even bother trying.  Instead, I want to talk about the number 42 itself.

It was 15 years ago today that Comissioner Bud Selig decreed that the number 42 would be retired  by ALL MLB clubs in honor of Robinson.  2009 was the first year that all uniformed MLB personnel would wear 42 on Jackie Robinson Day.  Some people, including many MLB player at the time, have said that they think having all MLB players and coaches wear 42 on JR day somehow dilutes its significance.Nothing could be further from the truth.  Not only is Jackie Robinson‘s debut the most important moment in the history of Major League Baseball; but it is, in my opinion, on a short listed of the most important moments in American history as well.

There is something almost surreal about seeing people wear 42 in MLB now.  Aside from Mariano Rivera, no one EVER sees the number anymore…except on April 15.  Then EVERYONE wears it.  MLB has managed to elevate this number to an iconic status, not unlike the Superman S shield.  It has become a symbol, of everything that Robinson represented.  Look at the photos and tweets on this page and you can sense the genuine reverence players feel not only for the man, but for the number and everything it represents.

Courage.  Determination. Teamwork. Persistence.  Integrity.  Teamwork.  Citizenship.  Justice.  Commitment.  Excellence.  Is it even possible to dilute the legacy of a man who dedicated  his life to these 9 values?

From what I’ve seen on TV and on-line, the new video board looks great!  Even though the new board retains the footprint of the original display, the team greatly improved upon it by making the video display bigger – and HD, as well as making the whole display taller.  These alterations should make the score board much easier to see, especially from the first base side of the park.

As for the game itself, a win is a win.  My biggest complaint has to be the blown save by Valverde.  Verlander pitched an absolute gem for eight innings, only to be deprived the opportunity to be the pitcher of record.  Even in that, fans were treated to a real pitcher’s duel, capped off by a walk-off victory for the Tigers.  A silver lining to every cloud…

Even before signing Prince Fielder, this was a truly formidable Tigers team.  His addition has only convinced even more experts that the Tigers will win the AL Central in a rout this season.  I however, am trying not to get TOO excited about this year’s edition of Motown’s Boys of Summer.  Not to sound like “the glass is half empty” but I’m always reluctant to set my expectations too high for the Tigers. I’ve seen the proverbial rug get pulled out from under them. The bold pre-season predictions of 2008 still ring freshly in my ears.  Likewise, the images of the Twins walk-off victory on 2009′s Game 163 are forever burned in my mind.  On the flip side, I’ve seen too many seasons where this club has taken the filed known they are more-than-likely to lose. Who can forget cellar-dwelling seasons  of the early 2000′s?     Having said that, I too hope to see them hoisting the trophy-with-all-the-little-team-flags-on-it (Does the World Series trophy HAVE a name?) this October.

I’m also glad to see that Saturday’s game will be broadcast locally here in Charleston, on the local FOX affiliate.

Stanton’s record of all 81 home games is inter-cut with stories of his family; painting a picture of a multi-generational love affair with a sport, a team and of course, a stadium. The author spend much of his time at the stadium talking, both famous and otherwise.  He hears many of the same stories, before understanding how and why a place becomes more than just a ballpark.

I’m not sure how many fans outside of Detroit, or outside of Tiger fans more to the point, can appreciate a premise such as this.  However, as Michigan native and a lifelong Tiger fan, I instantly connected with this story.  Thousands, if not millions, of fans have been lucky enough to pass through the turn styles at Tiger Stadium, and therefore, can appreciate the full scope of this story.  For that matter, any fan with deep feelings of any team can at least relate and find his an enjoyable read.

Recommended to any passionate sports fans; but particularly to Tiger fans.

Fans are still conflicted over Interleague baseball

Opponents of  ILP commonly complain that IL games count as part of the regular season NL East contenders like the Phillies and the Braves have to play the Yankees 6 times each season; whereas an NL Central team like the Brewers would play AL Central counterparts like the Royals or Indians the same 6 times. Okay, not the best example given Cleveland and KC’s surprising starts, but you get the idea.  Furthermore, AL teams are at a handicap when playing in NL parks since there is no DH in the NL and pitchers must therefore, bat.

Those in the pro-ILP camp say that IL games add a little spice to the regular schedule.  Attendance figures suggest that fans still like the gimmick – particular in the two-team, two-league cities like Chicago, New York and Los Angeles.  Despite the fact that the White Sox and Cubs play 6 times each season (3 at Wrigley, 3 at US Cellular) the hometown fans still love it.

I, of course, have some suggestions on how to rejuvenate Interleague play:

1.  Come to a universal ruling, once and for all, on the designated hitter.  I used to consider myself a baseball purist, longing for the days when the AL pitchers had to bat – forcing AL managers to be more “strategic”.  However in recent years, I’ve come to the realization that offense is what appeals to the casual fan and also attracts new fans to the game (see: The Steroid Era).  Also, high schools, college, and Minor Leagues use the DH.  Why not the NL?   More to the point, it’s high time the AL and NL stop pretending they are separate baseball entities.  The two have not been rival leagues for over a century.  They have functioned, in theory at least, as a combined league for decades.  In 2000, the Commissioner’s office absorbed both the AL and NL offices, officially bringing both under the MLB banner.It makes no sense that the NL doesn’t utilize the DH, especially when everyone else does.  Of course, I’m not married to the DH. I would be just as happy if everyone at all levels of the game dropped it; so long as there was one universal rule.  Until or unless there is such a ruling.  We could…

2.  Reverse the DH rule for Interleague play:  use DHs in National League Parks and have pitchers bat in American League parks.  I’ve actually heard this idea from a lot of different people and if MLB insists on keeping the DH in the AL -only, this could be very popular with the fans.  The whole notion of Interleague play was to do something fresh and new for the fans.  As a Tiger fan, I would get a kick out of seeing games played under NL rules at Comerica Park; likewise, it would be neat to see DHs used at a game in Turner Field.

3.  Change the ILP scheduling structure, allowing rivalries to remain fresh. Okay, I won’t pretend to understand the complexities of making a 162 game schedule for 30 different teams.  In the early days of ILP, scheduling was  AL East vs NL East, AL West vs NL west, AL Central vs NL Central.  That got old quick, so the league began sprinkling in road trips outside of the divisional match-ups, giving fans classic rivalries like Tigers- Diamondbacks along with the aforementioned Cubs-White Sox.  I suggest the league adapt a rotating schedule in which teams rotate divisions that they play against each year in ILP.

• Year one:  AL Central plays NL Central during ILP (these could be home-and-home series, or a AL Central team could hit the road and play the entire NL Central
• Year two:  AL central teams play NL East teams (same rules would apply as in year one for scheduling)
• Year three:  AL Central teams play NL West teams (same rules)
• Year four:  AL Central plays NL Central teams again (at this point they would EITHER play NL Central teams they didn;t play in year one, or they play NL Central teams at home)
• Year five: AL central teams play NL East teams (see rule for year four)
• Year six.  AL Central teams play NL West teams (same rules as year four)

#10 – A’s @ Dodgers 1988 WS Game 1.  Hollywood could not have scripted a better ending than  a gimpy Gibby’s pinch-hit walk-off home run.  But  again, was this really a great GAME, or a game remembered for a great MOMENT?

#9 – Yankees at Diamondbacks 2001 WS Game 7 – Another game 7 nail-biter, and maybe the last time the Yankees ever played America’s sympathetic heroes.  I heard this one on the radio while driving from Maryland to Michigan, so I never saw it live.  This one is definitely a keeper. I remember my surprise as a non D-Backs fan listening to Gonzalez’s series-ending walk-off single.  A Yankees win would have huge for New York in the aftermath of 9/11, but they certainly had their own magical moments in this series.  Finally, how does Craig Counsell end up in all these great World Series moments?  History is thrust upon this guy in a Forrest Gump-like manner.

#8 – Red Sox @ Angels – 1986 ALCS – I don’t remember a lot of the details from this game, but I do remember the outcome.  Many have speculated that this game started a personal downward spiral that ultimately led to pitcher Donnie Moore’s suicide.

#7 – Marlins @ Cubs – 2003 NLCS game 6 – The Steve Batrman game.  Sorry Cubs fans.  Bartman didn’t cost you the pennant; your Cubs lost to a better team who got an incredibly lucky break.  Deal with it.

#5 – Red Sox @ Yankees – Game 7 2003 ALCS – More of the Yanks/Sox rivalry.  Bret Boone would earn a new nickname in Boston and Grady Little, not Pedro Martinez, would get thrown under the bus for this loss.  The curse of the Bambino would live…at least for one more year.

#4 – Mets @ Astros – Game 6 – NLCS – a 16 inning epic and another near-pennant win for the Astros.  Many speculate that had the Astros managed to win this one, Mike Scott and the Astros would have beaten the Mets in game 7.

#3 – Pirates @ Braves – 1991 NLCS – Game 7 – This was, at the time, the most excited I was about the end of a non-Tigers game.  The Braves were upstarts at the time, the Pirates 3-time division winners (my, how the baseball landscape has changed since then).  This game would also end the Pirates last winning season.

#2 – Braves @ Twins – Game 7 – 1991 World Series – The conclusion to perhaps the greatest World Series ever played.  Definitely worthy of this list.

#1 – Reds @ Red Sox – Game 6 1975 World Series – Does anyone remember this game, aside from Fisk’s walk-off home run?  Again a great moment does not  a great game make.  Fisk’s home run was also a milestone in sports broadcasting since it was the first time the network kept a camera on Fisk as he “waved” the ball fair, creating a lasting image in the collective consciousness of baseball fans.

All in all, not a bad countdown.  I would have had some of the games in a different order, had it been up to me alone.  By the way – Kudos to the MLB Network for letting the fans vote on this countdown.  There are some games that I would have excluded, since I felt that they were remembered more for a single highlight, rather than the entire game.

Maybe I’ll put together my own countdown…

What follows is a blog I wrote over the weekend – my response to MLB Network’s 20 Greatest Games Countdown.  This first post includes my comments on numbers 20-11.  Another entry will be following with my thoughts on games 10-1.  

While there’s a break in the action, I decided to take this opportunity to respond to MLB Network’s 20 greatest games countdown.  Granted #1 won’t air until Sunday night but ads for the last episode have already let us know that it is Game 6 of the 1975 World Series – best remembered for Carlton Fisk’s walk-off home run.

As one might expect, there were a lot of recent games in this countdown.  I attribute this to younger fans and the fact that more recent games are fresher in our collective memories.  In any case, I’m impressed that some pre 1990 games made the final cut.

I think it’s important that the network stipulated that none of these be “milestone games”.  However my biggest criticism of this countdown is that several games on here are defined by a single moment, thought there are still many games on here that are what I call “top-to bottom great”.

#20 – Phils @ Cubs 45 run game.  A wacky game, not so much a great game; this game does prove that ANYTHING is possible in baseball.

#19 – 2003 ALDS Giants @ Marlins.  Definitely one of the greatest games of the 2000s.  Best remembered for the final moment when Pudge held on to the ball; with the Marlins winning on the giants final out of the game.  Of course, anytime you can see a jam-packed Joe Robbie/Pro Player/Dolphin/Land Shark/Sun Life Stadium for a baseball game, it’s a cool thing. Only now are we starting to realize how much talent was on the 2003 Marlins roster.

#18 – Phils @ Astros – Game 5 NLCS.  I’m a little young to remember this one the first time around, but I do remember how good these Astro teams of the early 80s were.  They came close to the pennant several times, but fell just short.

#17 – Yankees @ Red sox – 2004 ALCS Game 4.  I would’ve put this up higher on the countdown.  A stand-alone classic, but this game also sparked the greatest comeback in Postseason history.

#16 – Tigers @ Twins – AL Central Tie-breaker.  A great see-saw battle; but I would have preferred a different ending.  Had the Tigers won, I would have put this in my top 3.  Worth noting, this is the only Tiger game that made the countdown.

#15 – Yankees @ Mariners – ALDS 1995.  Clearly the defining moment in Mariners history.  It has been said that this game saved baseball in Seattle and paved the way for the construction of Safeco Field. And of course, it’s always fun to see someone, anyone, take down the Yankees.

#14 – Phillies @ Blue Jays 1993 WS Game 6 – Another game best remembered for one highlight:  Joe Carter’s Series winning walk-off home run.  This particular episode was hard to watch: I could see Mitch Williams squirming in his chair as they reflected on the game.  Who says these things don’t stay with players?

#13 – Indians @ Marlins – 1997 WS Game 7 – everything is turned up a notch in a game 7.  Though I had no vested interest in this game, I remember being on the edge-of-my-seat as the game went on; truly experiencing the drama that a close ball game could provide.  This should have been ranked higher.

#12 – Diamondbacks @ Yankees 2001 WS Game 4.  November baseball. The specter of 9/11  was hanging over America, President Bush threw out the first pitch and Derek Jeter was dubbed “Mr. November”.  Hollywood would have had trouble creating such story lines.

#11 – Yankees @ Red Sox AL Tiebreaker.  Three words: Bucky f@#$in’ Dent.  A great chapter in the Yankees/Red Sox feud.  Definitely belongs on this countdown.

• I’m impressed by the overall feel of the park.  The place may only be slightly smaller that Charleston’s Joe Riley Park.
• This scoreboard/video display blows Joe Riley Park away!
• NO BEER??  It is a college game after all…
• Cocky – USC’s mascot may be the funniest i’ve seen at any level of sport.
• The stadium’s dugouts are huge – they may well be the same size as those a Comerica Park.
• I like the left field bleachers and the flags across the top, in order of the SEC standings.
• Of course, I dig the 360 degree accessto throighout the seating bowl.  I walked the circumference of the seating at least twice during the game.
• Naturally, an old wrestling mark like me would get a kick out the Ric Flair “Woooo1″  sound bit played after a USC pitcher struck someone out.
• About the only suggestions i would make for the whole a/v presentation is more pitcher data – pitch count, name, etc  and less country music!
• Overall, a vey Major League-style presentation with musc, replay on the big screen, and the occsional t-shirt toss.
• Had a guy enter in front of me who flashed a San Diego Padres business card.  Ya gotta wonder how many scouts are crawiling around this place.
• The replays have sponsors onthem…cha-ching!
• “The John Deere Drag”  at the top of the 6th…cute…
• Gotta review th balk rule for both college and pros.
• The stadium is located way-off campus.  a bit off the beaten path, but its situated so that it provides a nice lttle view of the part of the Columbia skyline.
• Aneat little touch, and maybe its a college thing:  I noticed that when  apitching change is made, the manager doesn’t take the ball and give it to the new pitcher.  Rather, the outgoing pitchers gives it to the incoming pitcher.
• I will never get used to the “PING!” of the aluminum bats…

All in all, I was very impressed.  I dont think it was hype when USC claimed they had one of the best college ballparks in the US.  They also have a very strong fan base.  No wonder the team formerly known as Capital City Bombers (now the Greenville Drive) moved.

Just heard a chilling stat on the MLB Network,  the Tigers are 0-5 at night this season,