Youth dominates at the catching position in the NL. The veterans should make way in the AL roster as well, but whether they will or not is far from certain. Even so, there are several worthy candidates to discuss.Â
The working week starts off slowly for us Brits looking to catch some live baseball during evening time over here, but it ends with a host of games on Friday. All times are listed in BST.
Monday 30th – No early games today. Later on there’s a Joba start against the Rangers from 00.05 and then five minutes later it’s a battle from the top of the AL East, as Justin Masterson and the Red Sox face James Shields and the Rays.
Tuesday 1st – We draw a blank again. There are several interesting pitching match-ups later on: Zach Duke versus Edinson Volquez (00.10), Clayton Kershaw versus Wandy Rodriguez (01.05), Cliff Lee versus John Danks (01.11), Rich Harden versus Ervin Santana (03.05), Jesse Litsch versus Felix Hernandez (03.10), and Jason Marquis versus Matt Cain (03.15).
Wednesday 2nd – Our live early evening baseball this week begins today with three contests to enjoy. At 17.10, the Nationals face the Marlins with Odalis Perez and Ricky Nolasco scheduled to start. At 18.10, the Tigers take on the Twins. At 20.35, the A’s play the Angels with Dana Evelend and Joe Saunders taking the mound.
Thursday 3rd – Normally we can count on Thursday to bring us a decent group of games to choice from, but we only have two today. At least they should both be worth watching. First up we have a game between the Dodgers and the Astros from Minute Maid Park, with first pitch set for 19.05. The second game begins at 20.40 and Chase Field is the setting. Brandon Webb looks for win number 13 on the season as the D-Backs take on Manny Parra and the Brewers.
Friday 4th – If Thursday was something of a disappointment, Friday will more than make up for it. The fourth of July is, of course, Independence Day in the States and us Brits should enjoy watching America’s National Pastime on the holiday celebrating America declaring its independence from us! There are seven early(ish) games: the Red Sox versus the Yankees (18.05 – Beckett vs Rasner), the Nationals versus the Reds (18.15 – Bergmann vs Arroyo), the Pirates versus the Brewers (19.05 – Gorzelanny vs Sheets), the Dodgers versus the Giants (21.05 - Lowe vs Sanchez), the Tigers versus the Mariners (21.10 – Rogers vs Bedard), the Rangers versus the Orioles (21.35 – Padilla vs Guthrie), and the Royals versus the Rays (22.10 – Bannister vs Jackson).Â
The Wednesday night game on Five begins at 01.45, while NASN’s MLB schedule for the week can be found here.
Number six on your scorecard, the spot between second and third base on the Yankee infield is certain to be occupied by a familiar figure for one half of the opening inning. Who plays there when the NL are on the field is much more open to debate and that doesn’t mean the AL has an outstanding nominee while the senior circuit has a group of mediocrities. Far from it.
All good things must come to an end
The Twins’ ten-game winning streak came to an end last night as Manny Parra and the Brewers defeated them 5-1. While logic tells you that the run was always going to be halted at some stage, the confidence that developed in the Minnesota clubhouse must have made them think otherwise.Â
Winning is contagious. It’s an old sporting cliché, but like most sporting clichés it contains a large element of truth. All sportsmen need to be confident to play at their best and in baseball, more than most sports, the strong performances of one or two players can lift the games of everyone else around them.   Continue reading
The ASG nomination process is always fun because it allows every fan to make up their own mind on who they believe to be a star and how exactly they define such a thing. Although fans may have strong opinions about who should be a Hall of Famer, we don’t get any say in the final decision. With the ASG, the majority rules. Continue reading
(White Boucke Publishing, 1995) 250 pages.
Review updated 20 February 2011
Many Americans have found themselves in Britain and been surprised to learn of the existence of organized baseball here, but few have become as involved in the game’s running as Jeff Archer did in the 1970s. Given the sparseness of literature on this, or any other, period of British baseball, I was delighted to be tipped off by a friend about Strike Four, which is a light-hearted account of Archer’s experiences that was published in 1995. The chronicle also covers the author’s subsequent trip to The Netherlands as a manager in the Hoofdklasse, the country’s top tier of competitive baseball, and the theme of cultural differences runs throughout the publication. Continue reading
To follow on from Joe’s post below, more details about the name change can be found in the latest edition of the British Baseball Federation’s Baseball Bulletin. This brings you all of the latest news, from both on and off the field, relating to British baseball and softball. Highlights include features on the Northern Knights’ participation in the Zulpich Tournament in May, the Great Britain national team’s second place finish in the Four Nations cup and the GB Juniors roster. Joe’s own great work in compiling and publishing statistics for the Southern League is given a well-deserved plug and there’s also a mention for BaseballGB as well. If you’re visiting the site for the first time having read about us in the Bulletin, thanks for giving us a look and I hope you enjoy reading our thoughts and opinions on the sport.
The one other main item to highlight is the news that the IBAF have announced tentative plans to create a professional European baseball league, which should debut in 2010. More thoughts on this can be found at Mister Baseball.com. It certainly sounds like something that will be of great benefit to baseball in Europe, both in developing European players and providing a high-level competition that can help sell the sport in this continent.Â
A new name for the top flight of competition in British baseball was unveiled today. So what was previously known as the “National League” is now the “National Baseball League”, which makes sense really.
As a website with stories on both British baseball and the Major League variety, BaseballGB will benefit immediately from this name change, as the ambiguity of having National League in titles of posts can from now on be avoided.
American League – With All Star selections, it’s up to the competition to take the starting spot away from the holder. Placido Polanco started for the AL last year and he’s having a decent season so far in 2008, which means that another second baseman needs to make a very strong case to take his place.
Dustin Pedroia looks to have got this position wrapped up thanks to the Red Sox Nation, but his performances (relatively speaking) don’t really justify his seemingly inevitable nomination. Playing well on a winning team is certainly worth something and there’s no doubt that Pedroia played his part in the Red Sox’s success last year. However, compare his contribution to that of Ian Kinsler’s in 2008 and there’s only one winner: across the board, the Texas Ranger has outperformed Pedroia. So, is that enough to push Kinsler ahead? I think so. Pedroia is the bigger ‘star’ thanks to playing for Boston, but he’s not been a ‘star’ performer in any other way. As a result, it’s fair to allow Kinsler’s excellent three months to take precedence as Pedroia doesn’t have a longer track record to fall back on. Whether it’s enough to take the jersey from Polanco is the only question left to answer. Kinsler brings a lot more power and speed, while Polanco is the better all round hitter at this moment in time. The deciding factor for me is that the ASG is an exhibition game (regardless of Selig’s attempts to claim otherwise). In such a contest, you have to place a higher value on the home runs and stolen bases that Kinsler brings to the table; therefore he just gets my vote.
Outside of those three, Brian Roberts continues to perform at a high level for the Orioles, while Robinson Cano’s slow start has put him out of contention this year.
National League – If we’re being honest, the two ASG second base spots have basically been decided by the voters already. In Pedroia’s case, I don’t agree with the majority. In the case of Chase Utley, I certainly do. Yes he is streaky at the plate, but when he is hot there are few batters in the Majors that are capable of beating a team on his own in the way that Utley can. Combine that with his improved defense and you’ve got a perennial MVP candidate for many years to come. That’s an All Star in anyone’s language. Dan Uggla can feel a little hard done by and he would be a worthy All Star were it not for Utley standing in his way.
Elsewhere, Brandon Phillips is quietly enhancing his reputation with the Reds and Kelly Johnson continues to be a solid performer for the Braves. Orlando Hudson could well see himself jumping to the top of the second base pack in the AL in 2009 if he switches leagues over the off-season, but for now he has to sit on the sidelines.
The All Star game nomination process should be celebrated by international MLB fans. It’s one of the few occasions where we can really interact with the sport in the same way as our North American cousins. Over 100 million votes have already been cast, which is a phenomenal figure. The voting period comes to an end next Wednesday (well, 04.59 on the morning of Thursday 3rd for us Brits) and every day between now and then I will be looking at a different position giving my thoughts on who I think should be starting at Yankee Stadium on July 15th. We begin with the sluggers: first baseman and the DH.Â