O Holy Cow: The Baseball Solstice coincides with Christmas

The high priests have looked to the sky and determined that the Baseball Solstice will coincide with Christmas this winter, to be celebrated from sundown on Christmas Eve to sundown Christmas Day. The Baseball Solstice, noted in this blog a year ago, marks the midpoint of the long layoff in play between the final out […]

Who’s the more aggrieved Bay Area athlete – Alex Smith or Brian Wilson?

There’s nothing “tender” in the dispensing of major league contracts to baseball players. San Francisco last week declined to offer a contract to Brian Wilson, the fierce and funky closer who in 2010 helped the Giants win their first World Series since the franchise bolted New York for the West Coast. Wilson has been rehabbing […]

Time to get back onto the field!

It’s hard to believe that a San Francisco fan like me has failed to post anything since the Giants swept their way to the World Series title, but so be it. This morning I resolve to shower off all that celebratory champagne spray and head back out onto the blogging field with a few general […]

Will we ever see someone pitch a complete World Series game again?

We’ve seen some outstanding performances by starting pitchers in the league championships and the World Series this year, but has anyone pitched a complete game? No. The closest anyone came was Justin Verlander, who went 8 and two-thirds as the Tigers defeated the Yankees in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series. Barry Zito […]

Top pitchers and MVP for the National League 2012

In fulfillment of my Baseball Bloggers Alliance obligations, here are my ballots for the Walter Johnson and Willie Mays awards, which are the organization’s equivalents of the Cy Young and Most Valuable Player awards. I’m posting for the National League only, as I follow it more closely than the American League. Walter Johnson Award 1. […]

Top National League rookies, relief pitchers of 2012

Here’s are my picks for the top rookies and relief pitchers of the National League for 2012. This post serves as a ballot for my votes in the Baseball Bloggers Alliance annual Willie Mays and Goose Gossage awards, respectively. Note that I am posting a National League ballot only, as that is the league which […]

Manager of the year in baseball? Bob Melvin

Who was the best manager in baseball in 2012? I’m going with Bob Melvin of the Oakland Athletics. My criteria are twofold: I go with the skipper whose team is a winner and whose team achieved its success in disproportion to its expectations and talent. By those standards, Melvin is a slam dunk (and I […]

Baltimore-Washington wins the 2012 Major League Baseball metro-area title

Which metro area had the most successful baseball season? After listening to the Athletics overtake the Rangers on my way home from work last evening, I was all set to declare the Bay Area the cross-league, total victory champions. But then I remembered that Baltimore-Washington is eligible, and a check of the standings this morning […]

Red Sox Nation shows its pride on Massachusetts license plates

Red Sox fans are crazy for their team, and as I traveled New England while on vacation last week I was struck by the number of BoSox specialty Massachusetts license plates I saw. They were a common site on Cape Cod, on Boston area highways, and I even spotted them in New Hampshire and Vermont. […]

Which former Philly is faring worse on the West Coast?

Listening to the Dodgers-Giants game last evening (thanks, ESPN Radio!), I got to wondering which of the Phillies traded to the two NL West teams was performing worse: Shane Victorino or Hunter Pence? Neither has set the world on fire. Pence is hitting just .225 for the Giants and has an on-base percentage of .290, […]