OT: RIP Bobby Doerr, was oldest living Hall of Famer

[mrtailgate]

For those looking for a good short read, check out The Teammates. It's a book detailing the relationship of Red Sox players from back in the day including Ted Williams. The group visited Ted one last time before he passed. Great read.

Doerr was a fine gentleman from the golden days of the game.

 

[Mister Magoo]

Greatest Generation loses one of their best. RIP

 

[harbest]

I looked into the statistics of Ted Williams. In his long major league career, he never struck out more than 100 times in a season and his all time high in strikeouts was his rookie year where he did it all of 64 times. In 19 seasons he only struck out 709 times in 9788 plate appearances. Even more remarkable was Joe DiMaggio. 13 seasons, 7672 PA's, 369 strikeouts. For the 1941 season, where Williams hit .406 and DiMaggio had his 56 game hitting streak, COMBINED they both struck out a total of 40 times. Even your best players today will do that in one month let alone one season. This was done with an 8 team league where pitching isn't as watered down as it is today with 14 teams. And each lost time dur to military service, DiMaggio to WWII, Williams to WWII & Korea.

 

[Ranger Dan]

I wish we could see baseball like it was back then... this is not true with all sports, but I really think baseball is gone to heck with all of the PED enhanced home runs. It's really focused on either the pitcher striking out someone or the batter hitting a home run. It's take the soul out of the game, IMHO, and I'm not even a real avid baseball fan.

 

[WDLion]

I looked into the statistics of Ted Williams. In his long major league career, he never struck out more than 100 times in a season and his all time high in strikeouts was his rookie year where he did it all of 64 times. In 19 seasons he only struck out 709 times in 9788 plate appearances. Even more remarkable was Joe DiMaggio. 13 seasons, 7672 PA's, 369 strikeouts. For the 1941 season, where Williams hit .406 and DiMaggio had his 56 game hitting streak, COMBINED they both struck out a total of 40 times. Even your best players today will do that in one month let alone one season. This was done with an 8 team league where pitching isn't as watered down as it is today with 14 teams. And each lost time dur to military service, DiMaggio to WWII, Williams to WWII & Korea.

Two Dodgers will do that in one World Series.

 

[WDLion]

I wish we could see baseball like it was back then... this is not true with all sports, but I really think baseball is gone to heck with all of the PED enhanced home runs. It's really focused on either the pitcher striking out someone or the batter hitting a home run. It's take the soul out of the game, IMHO, and I'm not even a real avid baseball fan.

Agree. Today's players are home run happy.
In the Dodger Cub series the Cubs scored seven runs, all by way of the home run. Five solo and one with a man on.

 

[Ranger Dan]

Agree. Today's players are home run happy.
In the Dodger Cub series the Cubs scored seven runs, all by way of the home run. Five solo and one with a man on.

I blame it all on Sportcenter. and the transition from eloquently written stories in print (newspapers and magazines) to the 5 second highlight clip. It's not like ESPN will show a series of plays that set up a manufactured run. They want to show strike outs and home runs.

 

[mrtailgate]

I looked into the statistics of Ted Williams. In his long major league career, he never struck out more than 100 times in a season and his all time high in strikeouts was his rookie year where he did it all of 64 times. In 19 seasons he only struck out 709 times in 9788 plate appearances. Even more remarkable was Joe DiMaggio. 13 seasons, 7672 PA's, 369 strikeouts. For the 1941 season, where Williams hit .406 and DiMaggio had his 56 game hitting streak, COMBINED they both struck out a total of 40 times. Even your best players today will do that in one month let alone one season. This was done with an 8 team league where pitching isn't as watered down as it is today with 14 teams. And each lost time dur to military service, DiMaggio to WWII, Williams to WWII & Korea.

The closest we get currently for all time dinger guys is Pujols. Check his stats out.

 

[WDLion]

I blame it all on Sportcenter. and the transition from eloquently written stories in print (newspapers and magazines) to the 5 second highlight clip. It's not like ESPN will show a series of plays that set up a manufactured run. They want to show strike outs and home runs.

I blame it on the opportunity to celebrate, who celebrates a single.

 

[mrtailgate]

I blame it all on Sportcenter. and the transition from eloquently written stories in print (newspapers and magazines) to the 5 second highlight clip. It's not like ESPN will show a series of plays that set up a manufactured run. They want to show strike outs and home runs.

The game has certainly changed. I remember Ricky Bo once saying that if you threw mid 90's in high school you were an automatic high first round pick. Now everyone out of the pen throws 100.

The pitching dominance has fostered an attitude of all or nothing. If pen pitchers have good secondary pitches and throw 100, you better be swinging fastball out of the arm every time. So, you have a lot of guys who figure that they might as well swing hard to catch up and when they do make contact, chances are you might hit more dingers as a result.

The biggest change for this old baseball guy is that every team has an army of pitchers who throw 100.

 

[Omar81]

I looked into the statistics of Ted Williams. In his long major league career, he never struck out more than 100 times in a season and his all time high in strikeouts was his rookie year where he did it all of 64 times. In 19 seasons he only struck out 709 times in 9788 plate appearances. Even more remarkable was Joe DiMaggio. 13 seasons, 7672 PA's, 369 strikeouts. For the 1941 season, where Williams hit .406 and DiMaggio had his 56 game hitting streak, COMBINED they both struck out a total of 40 times. Even your best players today will do that in one month let alone one season. This was done with an 8 team league where pitching isn't as watered down as it is today with 14 teams. And each lost time dur to military service, DiMaggio to WWII, Williams to WWII & Korea.

Thought I'd throw in Stan Musial. He lost a year to military service (1945) had 12,718 plate appearances in 22 seasons (!!), and only struck out 696 times (the most in a single year was 46 in 1962 -- his 21st season). Add in his lifetime batting average of .331, 475 home runs, 725 doubles, 177 triples, and 3,630 hits). Made the All-Star game 20 times and was 3-time MVP. Unbelievable across the board -- yet he is often a forgotten man when speaking of the all-time greats.

 

[Mister Magoo]

I wish we could see baseball like it was back then... this is not true with all sports, but I really think baseball is gone to heck with all of the PED enhanced home runs. It's really focused on either the pitcher striking out someone or the batter hitting a home run. It's take the soul out of the game, IMHO, and I'm not even a real avid baseball fan.

Do you think football players take PED's? Or, are there physiques just from hard work?

 

[harbest]

Thought I'd throw in Stan Musial. He lost a year to military service (1945) had 12,718 plate appearances in 22 seasons (!!), and only struck out 696 times (the most in a single year was 46 in 1962 -- his 21st season). Add in his lifetime batting average of .331, 475 home runs, 725 doubles, 177 triples, and 3,630 hits). Made the All-Star game 20 times and was 3-time MVP. Unbelievable across the board -- yet he is often a forgotten man when speaking of the all-time greats.

Bottom line is they don't make them like Williams, DiMaggio and Musial anymore. We may never see their like again. The detestable DH rule that the American League uses, IMO, has contributed to players not working to make themselves a "complete" player. He can't field so instead of working or the player not taking the initiative to improve his defense, we just stick him at DH.

 

[LionJim]

Thought I'd throw in Stan Musial. He lost a year to military service (1945) had 12,718 plate appearances in 22 seasons (!!), and only struck out 696 times (the most in a single year was 46 in 1962 -- his 21st season). Add in his lifetime batting average of .331, 475 home runs, 725 doubles, 177 triples, and 3,630 hits). Made the All-Star game 20 times and was 3-time MVP. Unbelievable across the board -- yet he is often a forgotten man when speaking of the all-time greats.

For what it's worth Bill James in his first Historical Baseball Abstract had Musial the #1 Left Fielder. I can remember his exact phrasing: "I'd take Musial in the field, Musial on the basepaths, Musial in the clubhouse, and Williams only with a bat in his hands. And Stan Musial could hit a little, too."

 

[Ranger Dan]

Do you think football players take PED's? Or, are there physiques just from hard work?

This has nothing about football, or cycling, or steer wrestling, or log chopping.... its my complaint about baseball being ruined by the desire for either a strikeout or a home run. And, I'm not saying that PEDs ruined baseball, they were/are just a tool.

 

[phillybillyreprise]

I blame it on the opportunity to celebrate, who celebrates a single.

Move ‘em over. Bring ‘em home.

 

[LionJim]

Move ‘em over. Bring ‘em home.

Yeah, well, with every relief pitcher throwing 100 mph, it's a lot easier said than done.

 

[WDLion]

Yeah, well, with every relief pitcher throwing 100 mph, it's a lot easier said than done.

Can't it be done against starters and relievers who don't throw 100 mph?

 

[WDLion]

Yeah, well, with every relief pitcher throwing 100 mph, it's a lot easier said than done.

It's a lot easier to just make contact than hit a home run regardless of the pitch speed.

 

[artsandletters]

Pro sports suck. And this guy Goodell really makes me sick. $50 million a year and a private plane for life? Is that right? Nauseating. Why fans keep paying for pro sports tickets is beyond me. Suckers is what they are.