Bring in the Robot Umpires!
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Championship, Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
The umpires have been heavily scrutinized in this year’s MLB playoffs, and Game 2 of the World Series was no exception, with each team benefiting from a blown double-play call. Whether or not the Philadelphia Phillies’ blown call was more harmful to the outcome of the game or not is irrelevant at this point, but the debate on whether wider use of instant replay in baseball is needed. Some argue that it’s more important to get the “right” calls; some argue that baseball needs a “human” element. MLB Commissioner Bud Selig argues that more instant replay would slow down the already sluggish-pace of the game.
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Simp-Lee Amazing; Phils Take Game 1
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, Championship, Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
The World Series has officially begun, and in a surprising break from expectations with the New York Yankees, the game was over before midnight. But that was probably because Phillies starter (and finisher) Cliff Lee was used to not playing and wanted to get back to it. The last time Lee had pitched was Oct. 18 in Game 3 of the NLCS. His Phillies clinched the series three days later and then had six days off before last night’s game. There’s no doubt that Lee wanted to get back to his comfortable bed.
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Cleveland’s Tears Land at World Series
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, Championship, Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
The first pitch of the World Series flies Wednesday night, and it will be thrown by the New York Yankees’ own CC Sabathia. Opposite him will be the Philadelphia Phillies’ Cliff Lee. The two will be dueling in the biggest game of their careers. These are two of the best pitchers in baseball, and both are throwing in their first World Series. Perhaps the most interesting part of this matchup is that these guys are former teammates with the Cleveland,Indians and both won Cy Young Awards with the Indians, Lee in 2008 and Sabathia in 2007. Fans in Cleveland must be watching this World Series with two black eyes.
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The Tortoise and the Hare and Major League Baseball
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Championship, Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
If the start of the baseball season is the unofficial beginning of summer, then the start of the World Series has to be the unofficial beginning of winter. The 2009 edition of the so-called “Fall Classic” begins this Wednesday, and features the New York Yankees against the defending champion Philadelphia Phillies. This will mark the first time that any of the first four games will be played in November, as game four is scheduled for Nov. 1. The only other time a World Series champion was named in November was in 2001, due to the postponement of games from Sept. 11.
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Yankees Rolling Towards The Show
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
Talk about a workhorse. CC Sabathia just may be one of the only pitchers in baseball who can pitch on short rest and make it seem like there’s nothing out of the ordinary. This was proven last year when he was with Milwaukee and pitched each of his final four starts of the year on three days’ rest. The New York Yankees put his arm to the test again for Game Four of this year’s ALCS against the Los Angeles Angels.
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Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the New York Yankees move on
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
The American League Championship Series is set. The Los Angeles Angels will take on the New York Yankees. As half of the nation turns their collective support from the Minnesota Twins to the Angels, the other half will continue to battle against the opposition’s growing fan base as the playoffs roll on. The Yankees and their 103 regular season victories will welcome the Angels into New Yankee Stadium on Friday night for a weekend of “Bronx cheers”, if you will, and serenades by Frank Sinatra.
The Yankees versus anybody is like the classic battle between good versus evil… or evil versus good. They are arguably one of the most fan-polarizing teams in professional sports. What’s to like about a team that spends almost twice as much as the rest of the league in order to buy their way into the playoffs, stall games to put them near the four-hour mark on average, and basically beat their opponents with nothing more than their sense of entitlement.
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The 2009 MLB Playoffs Exposed
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Editorial, MLB, Playoffs
With the Minnesota Twins and Detroit Tigers extra-inning division game nail-biter in the books, we now know the eight playoff teams. With that, here’s a Gear Live exclusive detailing exactly what is going to happen in each respective league in the 2009 MLB playoffs. Some may shock you, but it’s all true, so pay attention.
In the National League, the St. Louis Cardinals and their best three-man rotation in baseball, led of course by Chris Carpenter and his near-unanimous “Comeback Player of the Year” award; will make short work of the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup. The St. Louis starters will each flirt with perfection, but L.A. will manage to score three measly runs in the three game series; one per game. Each run will be come via a solo blast by Manny Ramirez, still trying to show the baseball world that he can ruin anything special that baseball has to offer. The other series will be much the same, with the Philadelphia Phillies starting Cliff Lee in three games against the Colorado Rockies, just to see if he can finally prove that he actually is better than Roy Halladay. He’ll win two, but it will take a group effort for Philadelphia to clinch the divisional series.
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Joel Pineiro gets it done
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, Editorial, MLB
Here’s a fact you probably don’t know: Joel Pineiro is the third-best pitcher in baseball. Sitting behind dual-aces Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter on the St. Louis Cardinals’ starting pitcher depth chart, Pineiro has racked up a career year, worthy of top spot in the rotation on many other teams throughout baseball.
To this point in the season, Pineiro has a 15-11 record with a 3.24 ERA over an amazing 203 innings pitched. The only disappointing thing for those numbers is how they stack up against Wainwright and Carpenter, who each have more wins with a lower ERA. Now while his numbers do make him look like one of the best the National League has to offer, the journey for Pineiro hasn’t been easy.
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The Art of Switch Pitching
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, MLB
Pat Venditte is a right-handed pitcher who throws left-handed. Or if you prefer, he’s a left-handed pitcher who throws right-handed. To settle it, he’s a switch-pitcher; and he’s the only of his kind currently throwing in professional baseball.
Born on June 30, 1985 in Omaha, Nebraska, Venditte began throwing right-handed, but at the age of three tried with his left as well, and the legacy of this switch-pitcher began. With his right arm he throws over the top with a fastball and a curveball, while his left comes in side-arm with a slider and a slower fastball. His six-fingered glove has two thumbs and can be worn on either hand, which saves him the trouble of having to switch gloves every time a batter comes to the opposite side of the plate of the one he faced previously.
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Francisco Cabrera killed the Pittsburgh Pirates
Posted by Rob Boudreau Categories: Athletes, MLB
With a 2-0 lead in the ninth inning of Game 7 of the 1992 National League Championship Series, the Pirates were on the brink of eliminating the Atlanta Braves and heading off to Toronto to face the Blue Jays in the World Series. The Braves had managed to score a run and load the bases while giving up two of their remaining three outs when Braves manager Bobby Cox sent his final bench player to the plate; Francisco Cabrera. Bucs pitcher Stan Belinda threw a 2-1 pitch to Cabrera, who singled into left, scoring David Justice and Sid Bream, winning the game and the series for the Braves. It was the eleventh at-bat for Cabrera of the season, and undoubtedly the greatest of his career. The Pittsburgh Pirates were not only expelled from the playoffs, they were basically eliminated from baseball altogether.
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