Sports Then and Now

Frank Chance

The Sports Then and Now Vintage Athlete of the Month is a former Chicago Cubs player and manager who is best remembered as part of a sports trio forever immortalized in verse.

Known as “The Peerless Leader”, Frank Chance was not only the starting first baseman for the Chicago Cubs, but as their manager he led the team to four World Series appearances between 1906 and 1910. Read the rest of this entry →

Officials in any sport can turn into an enemy of the state with one blown call.

Umpire Mike Everitt will not be able to step into Tampa, Florida after this HORRIFIC strike three call to end the Rays-Rangers game.

The call was so mind boggling that the Rangers pitcher, Joe Nathan even said “WOW”.

Time to check those bi-focals ump!

Oh he did say he was sorry….

Tip Of The Cap To GameDayR!

Stan Musial joined the Cardinals in 1941 and was named an All-Star 20 times during his career.

The history of baseball is filled with legendary figures from Cobb, Ruth, DiMaggio and Williams to Aaron, Mays, Clemente and Griffey. One baseball legend who transcended generations was the great Stan “The Man” Musial, who passed away Saturday at the age of 92.

Musial made his debut during the magical 1941 season, which seems fitting for a player who would become an all-time great.

In the months before Pearl Harbor and America’s entrance into World War II, the country was fixated on baseball and captivated by a pair of stars who were doing magical things with a bat.

Joe DiMaggio of the New York Yankees parlayed a record 56-game hitting streak into the MVP season. Ted Williams “The Splendid Splinter” ran away with baseball’s batting crown with a .406 average. No one could have predicted that more than 70 years later both records would remain unmatched across the annals of baseball.

Musial’s major league debut came in the second game of a doubleheader on September 17, 1941. He got two hits as the Cardinals defeated the Boston Braves 3-2.

That debut occurred barely a year after it was feared Musial’s career might be over before it started. Originally signed from his hometown of Denora, Pennsylvania as a pitcher and outfielder, Musial was playing for Daytona in the Florida State League when he jammed his left shoulder diving for a ball and was no longer able to pitch. However, little more than a year later he was thrust into a playoff race as a late-season call-up of the Cardinals.

When Musial made his debut, the Cardinals were on their way to an impressive 97-56 record, but were a game behind the first place Brooklyn Dodgers. They were 7-5 in the final 12 games, with Musial playing in all 12, and ended the season 2.5 games behind the Dodgers and their 100-54 record. Read the rest of this entry →

Earl Weaver won 1,480 games in 17 seasons managing the Baltimore Orioles.

The baseball world has lost one of its great characters with the passing of former Baltimore Orioles manager Earl Weaver at the age of 82.

A fiery manager whose legendary arguments with umpires led to nearly a hundred ejections during his career, Weaver was the leader of baseball’s most consistent team from the late 1960s through the mid 1980s.

Weaver spent nearly 20 years as a minor league player and manager before joining the Baltimore Orioles as their first base coach in 1968.

Less than four months later with the Orioles struggling, Weaver replaced Hank Bauer as manager and the rest was history. The Orioles went 48-34 over the rest of the 1968 season and the next year won 109 games and reached the World Series.

After losing the 1969 World Series to the Mets, the O’s would not be denied the following year as they went 108-54 and defeated the Cincinnati Reds in five games to win the second World Series in team history.

Baltimore won more than 100 games for the third straight year in 1971, but for the second time in three years dropped the World Series to an underdog opponent with a seven game loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

After falling back with an 80-74 record and third place finish in 1972, the Orioles rebounded with consecutive division titles in 1973 and 1974. They finished second in the division three straight years before placing fourth in 1978 despite winning 90 games. Read the rest of this entry →

In his 14th year on the ballot, Jack Morris will try to finally earn a spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

When the Baseball Hall of Fame announces its 2013 Induction Class on January 9th it is legitimately possible that not a single player will receive the 75% of the votes needed to gain entry. That would seemingly make the class of 2013 arguably the worst in the history of the Hall of Fame.

Funny thing is, if it were not for the steroid controversy that surrounds many of the eligible players, the class of 2013 would likely go down as the greatest since the initial Hall of Fame Class in 1936.

The baseball record books are littered with the names of players eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2013.

From first time candidates Roger Clemens, Barry Bonds, Mike Piazza, Craig Biggio, Sammy Sosa and Curt Schilling to holdovers Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro and Jeff Bagwell, the list of players with seemingly Hall of Fame worthy statistics on the ballot is amazing. And that list doesn’t even include long-time candidates Jack Morris, Fred McGriff, Tim Raines and Lee Smith, who all posted careers that are at-least close to being considered Hall of Fame worthy.

Unfortunately, because many of the players listed above have been tainted by steroids and those that haven’t been actually implemented have suffered from guilt by era, which players will actually receive enough votes to get into the Hall of Fame is anyone’s guess. Read the rest of this entry →

Roberto Clemente was a legend on and off the baseball field.

It was 40 years ago this New Year’s morning that sports fans woke up to the shocking news that one of baseball’s greatest stars had lost his life trying to bring relief to others.

Roberto Clemente was not only a national hero in Puerto Rico, but after 18 years and two World Series Championships had become a favorite among sports fans in Pittsburgh.

On September 30, 1972, the 38-year-old Clemente became just the 10th player in Major League Baseball history to reach the prestigious 3,000 hit mark. He then hit .235 as the Pirates lost the National League Championship Series in five games to the Cincinnati Reds.

No one could have imagined that less than three months later this baseball legend would be lost in a tragic accident.

The events that led to Clemente’s death started on December 23rd when a massive earthquake hit Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua. Clemente had been in the country just three weeks earlier conducting baseball camps and was determined to lend a hand. He organized three flights of aid packages, but soon learned that all three planes had been diverted by corrupt officials of the Somoza government and had not reached the victims.

He then coordinated a fourth flight and was going to accompany that flight to ensure that it reached those impacted by the earthquake. Unfortunately, the plane that he chartered for the New Year’s Eve flight was a Douglas DC-7 that had a history of mechanical problems.   Read the rest of this entry →