Posted on
January 05, 2014 by
Dean Hybl
![Greg Maddux could become the first unanimous selection to the Baseball Hall of fame.](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/greg-maddux-braves-hof-300x215.jpg)
Greg Maddux could become the first unanimous selection to the Baseball Hall of fame.
After no modern candidates were selected for the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013, Cooperstown should have a slew of new additions in 2014.
They are already guaranteed of three quality inductees as former major league managers Bobby Cox, Tony LaRussa and Joe Torre have already been announced as members of the Class of 2014.
Now on Wednesday we should see at least two, and likely more, modern era players earn baseball immortality.
If the baseball writers who vote for the Hall of Fame weren’t so self-righteous, the Class of 2014 might include the first unanimous selection in Hall of Fame history.
Any writer who believes he can legitimately justify leaving Greg Maddux off his Hall of Fame ballot should be immediately awarded a Pulitzer Prize, though it would be more a work of fiction than of fact.
During his 20 year career, Maddux won 355 games, including 17 straight seasons with at least 15 wins, four Cy Young Awards and posted a career ERA of 3.16 despite playing primarily during an era when many hitters were using Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs).
If that isn’t enough to justify Hall of Fame induction, consider that Maddux won 18 Gold Glove awards as the top fielding pitcher. His total eclipsed the previous record of 16 Gold Gloves set by third baseman Brooks Robinson and matched by pitcher Jim Kaat.
While Maddux is a Hall of Fame lock, his longtime teammate Tom Glavine might have a little tougher time getting in during his first year of eligibility.
Interestingly, Glavine had more 20+ win seasons (5) than Maddux (2), but finished with fewer wins (305) and a higher ERA (3.54). Glavine was a two-time Cy Young winner and teamed with Maddux and John Smoltz to form one of the greatest starting pitching trios in baseball history. Read the rest of this entry →
Tags: Baseball Hall of FameCraig BiggioFrank ThomasGreg MadduxTom Glavine
Category
Baseball, Sports History
Posted on
December 31, 2013 by
Dean Hybl
![Baseball legend Stan Musial passed away in 2013 at age 92.](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/Musial-swing-300x178.jpg)
Baseball legend Stan Musial passed away in 2013 at age 92.
Unfortunately, one of the inevitable aspects of every year is that we must say goodbye to some memorable greats from the sports world who passed away during that year.
2013 was no different as the sports world lost a number of all-time greats along with many others who may not have ended their careers in a sports Hall of Fame, but who left their own marks on the history of sports.
During the year we reflected on the passing of several athletes at the time of their death including Stan Musial, Pat Summerall, Earl Weaver, Deacon Jones, Art Donovan, Bum Phillips and Ed Herrmann. You can remember the legacies of these sports stars by clicking on their name to read the original articles.
In addition to these seven, there were many other well-known figures from the sports world that we lost in 2013. Below are brief remembrances of some of those greats.
Miller Barber – Professional Golfer – 82 years old
After winning 11 PGA Tour tournaments, but never finishing better than fourth in any Major, Barber was one of the early stars of the Senior Tour. He won 24 Senior Tour tournaments, including the Senior PGA Championship in 1981 and three Senior U.S. Open Championships in a four-year period.
Walt Bellamy – NBA Hall of Famer – 74 years old
The first pick of the 1961 NBA Draft, Bellamy averaged 31.6 points per game as a rookie, but still finished nearly 19 points per game behind NBA scoring champion Wilt Chamberlain (who averaged 50.4 ppg). He went on to average 20.1 points and 13.7 rebounds per game during a 14 year career in which he played for five different franchises.
Paul Blair – Major League Baseball Outfielder – 69 years old
An eight time Gold Glove winner, Blair was a key member of two World Series Champion teams with the Baltimore Orioles. He also won two World Series as a member of the New York Yankees during his 17 year career. Read the rest of this entry →
Tags: Art DonovanBum PhillipsDeacon JonesEarl WeaverEd HerrmannFrank TripuckaKen NortonPaul BlairSports DeathsStan MusialWalt Bellamy
Category
ABA, Baseball, Basketball, College Football, Football, General, NBA, NFL, Sports History
Posted on
December 22, 2013 by
Dean Hybl
![Ed Herrmann played 11 seasons in the majors and was an All-Star in 1974.](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Herrmann-Sox-300x280.jpeg)
Ed Herrmann played 11 seasons in the majors and was an All-Star in 1974.
Very sad to learn this morning that former Major League Baseball catcher Ed Herrmann has passed away at the age of 67 following a battle with cancer.
Though I never personally met Ed, I remember getting his baseball cards and reading about him and the Chicago White Sox pitching staff in Sports Illustrated in the mid-1970s.
Then, through the wonderful modern world of social media, we became “Facebook Friends” a few years ago soon after I started Sports Then and Now.
There isn’t a lot that is cooler than getting a glimpse into the world of our sports stars and through Facebook I learned that 30+ years after the end of his baseball career, Ed “Hoggy” Herrmann loved riding motorcycles and enjoying life.
Since he was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year, what I have learned through Facebook posts first from Ed and then over the last few months primarily from his family is the story of a fighter who channeled the same determination that helped make him a baseball All-Star into his battle with cancer.
The dignity and love shown in the posts from Ed’s family reporting his condition and especially the many visits from family and friends (including Chopper the Biker Dog) have been inspirational and heartening.
While I, and many others who follow sports, knew Ed primarily as a tough catcher who handled knuckleball pitchers and collisions at home plate with grit and guile, it is clear that behind his persona as a baseball player and later as a biker was a loving man who was deeply loved by his friends and family. Read the rest of this entry →
Category
Baseball, Sports History
Posted on
November 27, 2013 by
Joe Gill
![MV5BMTI1MTIxOTUyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjE4NTkzMg@@._V1_](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/MV5BMTI1MTIxOTUyMV5BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwMjE4NTkzMg@@._V1_-199x300.jpg)
Dan Lauria
ST&N was lucky enough to sit down with actor Dan Lauria of “Lombardi“ and “The Wonder Years“ fame to talk sports and acting. Lauria is currently narrating the musical version of “A Christmas Story”.
We asked him about his latest project, his incredible resume and even his interactions with Patriots head coach Bill Belichick:
ST&N: When did you know you wanted to become an actor?
Dan Lauria: It was actually when I was in college playing football at Southern Connecticut. Constance Welch, a respected acting coach at Yale who also taught speech at Southern came up to me one day on campus and asked me if I wanted to be in a play. They needed a big guy to play Caliban in a production of William Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest.'” It then went from there. Read the rest of this entry →
Tags: a christmas storydan lauriajoe gilllombardi musicalSports Then and Nowst&n
Category
Baseball, Football, General
Posted on
October 31, 2013 by
Dean Hybl
![The Boston Red Sox slid past the St. Louis Cardinals to win Game Six and the 2013 World Series.](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/2013-World-Series-300x200.jpg)
The Boston Red Sox slid past the St. Louis Cardinals to win Game Six and the 2013 World Series.
After a 2012 season filled with internal bickering, a trade that removed three of the best players from the roster and a record that was the third worst in the American League, who could have predicted that just 12 months later the Boston Red Sox would be the 2013 World Series Champions?
Yet, despite basically starting from scratch with a roster that included a dozen new faces, there were the Red Sox defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 6-1 in game six to claim their third World Series title in a decade and first being clinched at Fenway Park since 1918.
The final game was perhaps the least dramatic of a World Series that had two “first ever” endings.
Game three, a 5-4 Cardinals victory, was the first World Series game ever ended on a fielder obstruction play. Then the next night, the Red Sox tied the series at two games each when Koji Uehara picked off Kolten Wong with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to preserve a 4-2 victory.
As was the case throughout the season, the key for the Red Sox against the Cardinals was timely hitting, strong starting pitching and a lights out bullpen. Read the rest of this entry →
Tags: 2013 World SeriesBoston Red SoxDavid OrtizJon LesterSt. Louis Cardinals
Category
Baseball, General, Great Moments, World Series
Posted on
October 29, 2013 by
Ryan Kuketz
![Jon Lester's second masterful performance of the World Series has the Boston Red Sox needing just one win for their third title since 2004.](http://sportsthenandnow.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Lester-WS-2013-300x200.jpg)
Jon Lester’s second masterful performance of the World Series has the Boston Red Sox needing just one win for their third title since 2004.
With the World Series tied at 2 games apiece, Jon Lester proved to the world that he is truly an ace, as the Red Sox defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 3-1 in game five of the World Series, which gives Boston the 3-2 series lead.
Lester pitched 7 and two third innings, giving up just one run on four hits. The one run he let up was a home run to leftfielder Matt Holliday in the bottom of the 4th that tied the game at 1. Lester then retired 13 straight hitters before giving up a double to David Freese in the 8th inning, and was taken out after Pete Kozma flew out, and closer Koji Uehara shut the door with a 5 out save.
The Red Sox offense started early as they scored their first run in the first when Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz had back to back doubles to take a 1-0 lead. With the game tied at 1, the Red Sox took the lead for good in the top of the 7th when David Ross hit a ground rule double that scored Xander Bogaerts.
Ross’s ground rule double, may have stayed in the yard at Fenway, and had it not bounced into the stands, Bogaerts would have easily scored from first base. After Jon Lester struck out on a bunt foul, Jacoby Ellsbury, who is most likely playing in his final games with Boston, hit a bloop single into centerfield which scored Bogaerts. Ross tried to score on the play but was thrown out at the plated by Shane Robinson. The tag at the plate was close, but Yadier Molina was just able to tag Ross out. Read the rest of this entry →
Tags: Boston Red SoxDavid OrtizJon LesterSt. Louis Cardinalsworld series
Category
Baseball, World Series