Will we see the NL rookie of the year at Nats Park tonight?

Date: Tue, Jul 27, 2010

Ever since Stephen Strasburg, he of the 100-mph heaters, and Jason Heyward, of the 500-foot rockets, showed up in Florida this spring, the baseball world has been waiting eagerly for the first head-to-head matchup of these storied phenoms. The moment was delayed by the Nationals' decision to keep Strasburg in the minors for the season's first two months, then again by a thumb injury that had Heyward on the DL when Strasburg first faced the Braves in June. But tonight, they finally meet. It seemed like a good opportunity to take stock of the NL rookie of the year race, because Strasburg and Heyward were the overwhelming favorites when the season began (with Heyward far outpacing Strasburg, at least in this poll). As we sit here now, with a little more than two months left in the season, it's safe to say neither Strasburg nor Heyward is leading the ROY


Stephen Strasburg - Jason Heyward - Baseball - Atlanta Braves - Sports

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Roy Oswalt is biggest name on trading block

Date: Mon, Jul 26, 2010

With the trade deadline looming on Saturday, Houston Astros right-hander Roy Oswalt is the biggest name being bandied about. Oswalt reportedly wants to be traded to the St. Louis Cardinals, but the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting that an Astros-Cardinals deal for Oswalt is unlikely, for a number of reasons: On Saturday Oswalt reiterated his wish to be dealt to St. Louis to at least one Cardinals player. However, Oswalt's willingness to restructure a $16 million option for 2012 may not overcome the Astros' steep asking price in personnel. One club official senses squeamishness by Astros management to deal Oswalt within the division. The Cardinals' stipulation that the Astros assume at least a portion of the $32 million due Oswalt the next two seasons offers a further complication.


Roy Oswalt - Houston Astros - St Louis Cardinals - St. Louis Post-Dispatch - Right-handedness

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George Steinbrenner statement from the Clintons

Date: Tue, Jul 13, 2010

A joint statement from Bill and Hillary Clinton: The passing of George Steinbrenner marks the end of an era. Baseball has lost a giant, New York has lost a champion, and we have lost a friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Steinbrenner family today and with all the friends, colleagues, and fans who loved The Boss. George was a fierce competitor who was the perfect fit for the city that never sleeps -- colorful, dynamic and always aiming higher. His Yankees brought home seven World Series championships and provided inspiration and entertainment to people in New York and around the world. He was a generous friend and supporter of the community. And after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, when New York needed it most, George and the Yankees helped lift our battered spirits. He was born on the Fourth of July and loved his country even more than


George Steinbrenner - New York Yankee - World Series - Baseball - New York

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George Steinbrenner videos: Tributes, memories

Date: Tue, Jul 13, 2010

Compiling some of the best George Steinbrenner videos from YouTube: .yt-container{ display:block; position:relative; clear:both; width:450px; margin:0px auto; font-size:14px; } a.lg{ color:#D3D3D3; text-decoration:none; font-size:37px; line-height:133px; } .yt-container h1 { font-size:35px; color:#000000; font-weight:normal; padding:15px 0px; margin:0px; } .yt-container h2 { font-size:24px; color:#333333; font-weight:normal; padding:0px; margin:0px; } .yt-container p { text-align:justify; padding:10px; margin:0px; } .yt-container p ol, #container p ul { margin:0px auto 0px; } .yt-container p.notes { color:#999999; font-size:10px; } /* ----------------IMAGE SLIDER------------- */ #SlideItMoo_outer { width:510px; margin:10px auto 10px; background:#333333 ; display:block; position:relative; padding:0px 10px 0px; border-bottom:5px #000000 solid; } /* create custom forward-backward buttons for this container */ #SlideItMoo_outer .SlideItMoo_forward, #SlideItMoo_outer .SlideItMoo_back{ display:block; position:absolute; cursor:pointer; width:25px; height:200px; bottom:0px; right:5px; background:url(http://www.keithcollins.net/moo/images/slideitmoo_forward.png) no-repeat center; } #SlideItMoo_outer .SlideItMoo_back { left:5px; background:url(http://www.keithcollins.net/moo/images/slideitmoo_back.png) no-repeat center; } /* the width is set to show the number of thumbnails that will be visible */ #SlideItMoo_inner{ position:relative ; overflow:hidden ; width:474px ; /* set a display width to


YouTube - Web Design and Development - Fonts - Hosting - Free

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George Steinbrenner comments on Twitter

Date: Tue, Jul 13, 2010

New York Yankees - George Steinbrenner - Twitter - Myocardial infarction - Tampa Florida

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George Steinbrenner dies

Date: Tue, Jul 13, 2010

New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has died after suffering a massive heart attack. The news was first reported by the New York Daily News. Emergency crews responded to Steinbrenner's home Monday night and he was taken to a Tampa hospital in critical condition. Steinbrenner's 80th birthday was July 4. According to the Associated Press, Yankees spokesman Howard Rubenstein said he died Tuesday morning. He had a heart attack, was taken to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, Fla., and died at about 6:30 a.m, a person close to the owner told the AP. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team had not disclosed those details. From CNN: "It is with profound sadness that the family of George M. Steinbrenner III announces his passing," a statement from his family said. ""He was an incredible and charitable man. First and foremost he was devoted to his entire family


George Steinbrenner - New York Yankees - Tampa Florida - United States - New York

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MLB first-half awards: In pitchers' year, Cabrera stands alone

Date: Thu, Jul 8, 2010

Clearly, someone forgot to tell Miguel Cabrera that this is the Year of the Pitcher. In a half-season full of transcendent performances on the mound -- including perfect games thrown by Dallas Braden, Roy Halladay and Armando Galarraga (*), plus a no-hitter by Ubaldo Jimenez and a 14-strikeout big league debut by Stephen Strasburg -- it is easy to overlook what the Detroit Tigers' resurgent first baseman has done in the season's first three months. We're talking one homer shy of a first-half Triple Crown (through Wednesday). A straight-out-of-the-Steroids-Era slugging percentage of .647. An OPS of 1.070. There aren't many easy calls in picking baseball's first-half award winners, but Cabrera as the American League's MVP is one of them. Even as Cabrera was coasting to an average of 33 homers and 115 RBI per year over the first six full seasons of his career, folks were wondering what he could


Miguel Cabrera - Detroit Tigers - Armando Galarraga - Roy Halladay - Major League Baseball

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What were the Diamondbacks thinking?

Date: Fri, Jul 2, 2010

If I understand this correctly, the ownership of the Arizona Diamondbacks ordered General Manager Josh Byrnes to fire Manager A.J. Hinch last night, and when Byrnes refused, the team went ahead and fired him, too. Where do we even begin to explore all the dysfunction here? You could make a compelling argument that Byrnes, a D.C. native and St. Albans alum, should have done what he was told to do by his superiors, but you give a guy a lot of backbone when you hand him an eight-year contract extension -- virtually unheard of in baseball -- as the Diamondbacks did following the 2007 season, and let him pick his own manager. So now the Diamondbacks have gone from a disappointment to a disaster. They'll be paying Byrnes and Hinch a combined total of nearly $7 million to do nothing -- or to work for someone else. (Byrnes, in particular,


Arizona Diamondbacks - Josh Byrnes - Baseball - sport - General manager

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Catcher from The Heights selected in MLB draft

Date: Tue, Jun 8, 2010

Will Chris Berset be the first professional athlete from a small private school in Potomac? Berset, a second-team All-Met catcher at The Heights School as a senior in 2006, was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 20th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Tuesday. Berset played the past four years at the University of Michigan and was second-team All-Big Ten this past season. When he signs a contract -- which shouldn't take long, given that as a college senior he has little negotiating leverage -- Berset will become the first graduate of The Heights to play sports professionally. The only other former student at The Heights to turn professional? Former soccer prodigy Freddy Adu, who attended as a middle schooler before moving on to pursue his athletic career. The school has 465 students in grades 3 to 12. "I don't know if you even consider


Cincinnati Reds - Major League Baseball - Major League Baseball Draft - University of Michigan - Heights School

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Statement from MLB on blown call in 'perfect' game

Date: Thu, Jun 3, 2010

Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig issued the following statement regarding last night's game in Detroit: First, on behalf of Major League Baseball, I congratulate Armando Galarraga on a remarkable pitching performance. All of us who love the game appreciate the historic nature of his effort last night. The dignity and class of the entire Detroit Tigers organization under such circumstances were truly admirable and embodied good sportsmanship of the highest order. Armando and Detroit manager Jim Leyland are to be commended for their handling of a very difficult situation. I also applaud the courage of umpire Jim Joyce to address this unfortunate situation honestly and directly. Jim's candor illustrates why he has earned the respect of on-field personnel throughout his accomplished career in the Major Leagues since 1989. As Jim Joyce said in his postgame comments, there is no dispute that last night's game should have ended differently. While the human


Detroit Tigers - Jim Joyce - Armando Galarraga - Major League Baseball - Jim Leyland

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Featured Advertiser Expedition Great White

Date: Thu, Jun 3, 2010

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Tigers' perfect* game: You can't change history... or wait, who says you can't?

Date: Wed, Jun 2, 2010

Everyone who saw Detroit Tigers right-hander Armando Galarraga lose his perfect game in excruciating fashion will agree on three things: *Umpire Jim Joyce blew the call. *Galarraga deserved a perfect game. *And something needs to be done. The knee-jerk proposals for what should be done in the wake of Joyce's monumental blown call appear to be falling into two camps: those who would expand replay to include safe/out calls on the bases, and those who would enact tougher accountability standards for umpires -- whereby bad umpires can be replaced, just as bad players are released and bad managers are fired. Both notions have their merits and deserve serious consideration. But I'd like to propose something that is both simpler and more radical at the same time: Go ahead and reverse the call, retroactively. This is Bud Selig's big chance to do the right thing, the just thing -- and the


Jim Joyce - Detroit Tigers - Armando Galarraga - Bud Selig - Perfect game

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Tigers' Galarraga loses perfect game on blown call

Date: Wed, Jun 2, 2010

Armando Galarraga of the Detroit Tigers lost his bid for a perfect game Wednesday night with two outs in the ninth inning on a call that first base umpire Jim Joyce later admitted he blew. Highlights: CLE/DET "I just cost that kid a perfect game," Joyce said. "I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay." "It was the biggest call of my career," said Joyce. poll by twiigs.com


Jim Joyce - Detroit Tigers - Armando Galarraga - Perfect game - Umpire

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Mets-Phillies: Did that just happen?

Date: Fri, May 28, 2010

The three-game series between the Mets and Phillies that concluded Thursday night in Queens produced perhaps the most unfathomable outcome: a three-game sweep by the Mets over the two-time defending NL champs, with all three wins coming via shutout. For the Phillies, who theoretically own the league's best offense (it led the NL in runs in 2009), that's three straight shutouts -- and four in their last five games -- with only a three-run, garbage-time ninth inning during a blowout loss at Boston on Sunday preventing this from being a five-game scorless schneid. What's going on here? Well, it's worth noting the Phillies are 6-8 and have scored one or fewer runs in six times since bullpen coach Mick Billmeyer had his binoculars confiscated. But even I'm not cynical enough to suggest that's behind the Phillies' hitting woes. Just two weeks ago, in the first series after the sign-stealing flap,


Philadelphia Phillies - New York Mets - Win–loss record - Mick Billmeyer - Queens

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