1980 Headline – ‘Rickey Henderson Debuts For The A’s’

It all started on this day 30 years ago…

Rickey Henderson’s debut with the Oakland A’s on June 24, 1979 is when it all began.  In the game, Henderson’s A’s team took on the Texas Rangers in Oakland, CA.  The A’s lost the game 5-1, but Rickey gave us a glimpse of what was to come..

In the game Henderson batted lead-off and went 2-for-4 with a single and a double.  He also picked up the first stolen base of his career, which as we all know was just the start of his amazing run as the game’s greatest lead-off hitter!!

Happy Anniversary Rickey!!! 

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 10

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 10

5 straight games with no action must have Rivera chomping at the bit!!!!

We’ll see if luck gets back on is side as his New York Yankees team takes on the Braves for a 3-game series starting tonight. 

497 saves and counting!!!

Andre Dawson Certified Autpgraph #6

I recently scored 7 Andre Dawson certified autographs off of Ebay for less than $30 delivered.  This is card #6 of the 7.

And look at this beauty.  Here we have a perfect image of ‘The Hawk’ taking a mighty swing!!  This card is part of the 2003 Donruss “Legends of Summer’ series and is numbered 138/165.  Obviously the great looking Andre Dawson autograph would be enough for this player collector, but having the added inscription of ‘#8′ with his signature made this card a ‘MUST HAVE’ for me!!! 

Josh Johnson Takes The Title Of ‘Ace’

With the fast decline of Ricky Nosalsco’s status as the top hurler for the Florida Marlins, the few Marlins fans that remain had to wonder who would be the guy to step up for the team and take over that #1 spot in the pitching rotation.  Anibal Sanchez – No.  Andre Miller – No.  Hayden Penn – No.  Chris Volstad – No.  Shane West – No.

It was Josh Johnson, and is has been clear for quite some time that he is the prize of the Marlins’ pitching crew.  With a 7-1 record so far this season, Johnson has won 4 of his last 5 starts while taking each game deep into the 7th inning or more.  His K:walk ratio is 3.5:1 and his era has hovered around the 2.6-2.7 mark consistently.

After coming off of major surgery, the Tommy John kind, Johnson has been nothing less than stellar for ‘The Fish’.  In 2008 he resumed his spot in the pitching rotation and went 7-1 to finish the ’08 campaign.  He has started in ’09 the way he left off in ’08 and he’s proving to be the Marlins’ most valuable weapon in their rotation.

Hopefully the baseball world will get to see Josh play during a more marquee event.  I’m thinking that he would fit in very well alongside the greatest players in the game.  Maybe he’ll be able to show off his skills in the middle of July in St. Louis!!  He’s got my vote!!! 

Did You Know…

On September 25, 2001, Jeromy Burnitz and Richie Sexson of the Milwaukee Brewers became the only players in major league history to both hit three home runs in the same game for the same team. 

**factoid courtesy of ‘Armchair Reader – Grand Slam Baseball’

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 9

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 9

Unable to get into a single game during their 3-game series in Miami, Mariano Rivera and the New York Yankees have the day off on Monday as they take 1-95 North to Atlanta to battle the Braves for a 3-game stint.

Now that ‘Mo’ and the team are out of town, I can start cheering for them again.  Go get those Braves!!!

Cameron Maybin Is Turning ‘It’ On!!!

I have considered dropping my ‘Maybin-Meter’ feature from the blog a few times.  It’s easy to check box scores and report how Cameron is doing in AAA ball, and I would probably do this even if I hadn’t set up the ‘Maybin-Meter’.  But it is really hard to get excited about it since the pictures and video are very hard to come by.  Still, the Florida Marlins have a lot invested in Cameron and when they sent him to AAA after a rough start to the 2009 baseball season, nobody really knew what would happen.

When Cam arrived in New Orleans, he did well.  Not amazing, but good enough to continue to get starts and earn playing time.  2 good games were followed by 3 bad ones and it appeared that he was unable to find a consistent rhythm at the plate.

That is until June 11…

Cameron Maybin has been tearing up the Pacific Coast League South for the last week and a half.  In his last 9 games with the Zephyrs, Cameron has been 17/37 at the plate which is good for a .460 batting average.  He has collected 4 RBI from the lead-off spot while scoring 9 runs.  His ‘eye’ seems to be getting better too as he has picked up 7 walks and only struck out 6 times.  Maybin has raised his batting average over 40 points and his on-base percentage over 60!!! 

This is the Cameron Maybin that thrilled Marlins fans during the last 8 games of the 2008 season!!!.  This is the Cameron Maybin we need to be our saviour from the Miguel Cabrera trade!!!

‘The Maybin’Meter’ is alive and well my friends.  Oh yes, and it feels great!!!

Florida Marlins Inter-League Mid-Season Report Card

We’re 3/5 of the way through the 2009 Inter-league baseball season and I thought I’d offer up a little status report on how the Florida Marlins have taken on the mighty American League East.

Series 1 – Toronto Blue Jays – The Marlins managed the ‘rare, road sweep’ of the one-time unbeatable Blue Jays.  While scoring runs in bunches, the team was able to get early leads and never look back.  While the bullpen was a little shaky, the starting rotation did well and the offense provided the support it needed to in order to capture 3 wins.

Series 2 – Boston Red Sox – ‘The Fish’ ended up this series with a 1-2 record.  At times, the team looked completely over-matched by Boston’s starting pitching.  Had it not been for a rain-shortened game, they could have been swept by the AL East leaders.  In 3 games the team managed to score just 5 runs against the more dominant pitching staff.

Series 3 – New York Yankees – The Marlins managed to win the series with a 2-1 record.  The attendance for this series was the highest the Marlins have had all season, while the Yankees sat A-Rod for 2 of the 3 games in Miami.  The Marlins starting pitching looked pretty good while the Yankees struggled at times.

So far, so good.  The team has a day off today before they conclude inter-league play against the Orioles and Rays.  With a 6-3 record while battling against the top 3 teams in the division, I would say that the Marlins have done more than held their own during this annual competition against the ‘other’ league.  Who knows, if we’re still playing in the fall that could be an extreme confidence booster for this very young team!!!

Go Fish!!! 

1987 Headline – ‘Tom Seaver Retires’

On this day in 1987 Tom Seaver hung up his spikes.

On of the most decorated pitchers of his era, Seaver was a dominant force in the game of baseball for 20 seasons.  A Rookie of the Year award winner.  A 3-time Cy Young Award winner and 2-time runner-up.  A 12-time all-star.  A World Series Champion.  A member of baseball’s elite 300 wins club.  A member of the 3,000 strikeout club.  The list goes on and on. 

When a pitcher like Tom Seaver calls an end to their career, one has to wonder how someone will fill the very big shoes left by such an absence in the game.  It’s simple really, very few players could ever replace Tom Seaver in their pitching rotations.  Many have tried, and few have succeeded!!

Happy Anniversary Mr. Seaver!!! 

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 8

Mariano Rivera’s Race To 500 Saves!!! Part 8

Rivera couldn’t get into the game last night, which brings the total to 4 straight games with no action. 

I need to re-visit my stance on this a little now, because I would hate to have one of the greatest closers in the game’s history play my team for a 3-game series and not have the chance to see him do what he is famous for…  But I don’t want to see him beat the Marlins either.

This is a tough one…  Enjoy Atlanta, Mo!!!