My weekly opinions, observations and rants about some Canadian baseball stories:
No, Victoria, B.C., native Rich Harden wasn’t there to celebrate when the Rangers upset the Rays to win their American League Division Series, but there was a Canadian flavour to the celebrations. Josh Hamilton, a recovering alcoholic, was showered with Canada Dry ginger ale by his teammates. For trivia buffs, Canada Dry ginger ale was created by John J. McLaughlin of Enniskillen, Ont., and introduced in 1904.
I know it’s legal, but that substance on Cliff Lee’s hat just doesn’t look right. It’s supposed to be rosin, but has anyone examined it closely? If I’m Rays manager Joe Maddon in Game Five of ALDS, I’m asking the umpires to check Lee’s hat. If nothing else, it might frazzle the ace lefty a little.
The only Canadian that will be on a major league field in the second round of the playoffs is Corunna, Ont., native Rob Thomson, who will be coaching third base for the Yankees. Thomson is also considered a candidate to be the Blue Jays skipper in 2011.
Whenever I see Ron Washington, I think of the game at Exhibition Stadium on September 14, 1987. Not only did the Jays belt a record-setting 10 home runs that day, but it was the day that Cal Ripken, Jr. ended his consecutive innings streak at 8,243. Washington was the player that replaced Ripken at shortstop for the ninth inning.
Thanks to Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame volunteer and accountant extraordinaire Phil Parkinson for sharing a link about Wayne Gretzky’s son Trevor. Trevor Gretzky is a first baseman who will be playing for Tony Gwynn at San Diego State in 2011.
I like the Phillies in six over the Giants. Both clubs have great starting staffs, but Philadelphia’s offense is much stronger.
I learned my lesson in the first round of the playoffs: I won’t bet against the Yankees again. Although facing the frightening prospect of having to start A.J. Burnett in Game Four, the Yankees, even with their aging core and shaky rotation, will likely beat the upstart Rangers. Reports indicate that Cliff Lee will not start until Game 3, which means he will make a maximum of two starts in the series. Yankees in seven.
Jeff Mallett from BC is one of the owner of the Giants so that’s a bit more Canadian flavour!
Great article and interesting about Wayne’s son.
I forgot about Mallet. Thanks for reminding me.
And, some Ottawa “born” Canucks will show their wares in the ALCS & NLCS as Sam Holman’s “Sambats” still seem quite popular in the bigs. It isn’t hard to recognize the maple bats as they have a black bat (as in Hallowe’en) on the label. I’ll go out on a limb and bet my heart – Rangers in five and G-men in six.
Tough loss for the Rangers last night. I’m not sure how they’ll recover from that. Nolan Ryan looked like he wanted to pitch in the 8th inning. Thanks for the reminder about the SAM bats.
We’re definitely looking at the possibility of another New York – Philadelphia World Series. I think they’re the two best teams, but the weather in the northeast at the end of October can be very cold for baseball. They could even get snow. When I was a kid, the World Series would have been over by now. The playoffs are exciting, but after such a long season it’s too bad that the outcome of the most important games could be directly affected by the temperature.
Is there a solution? Starting the season earlier wouldn’t help, because the end of March is even colder
I wonder what others here think about it.
Thanks a good question. I know that the Yankees faithful have taken to calling Derek Jeter “Mr. November.” I think this is something that MLB is studying though. Perhaps, they can start the season a week earlier.
That is just dust on Cliff Lee’s ball cap. He used it to dust off the Rays and the Yankees are next. It would have been Texas in 5 if the Rangers had not gone 5 games in the first series. It goes 7 with Lee winning 2 but you’ve got the wrong team winning.
DUST thought I’d tell you.
I suppose whatever Lee has on his hat would have to be legal because it’s not like he is hiding it. Tough loss for the Rangers last night. I thought Nolan Ryan was going to take the ball and pitch in the 8th.