150th anniversary of college baseball

I usually stick to MLB news, but I’d like to share this anecdote about college ball.

Williams College and Amherst College – both Division III schools located in Massachusetts – played each other in the 150^th anniversary of college baseball this past weekend.  The very first college baseball game took place on July 1, 1859, and was played between the same two schools.

Among those in attendance – in addition to yours truly – were Pittsburgh Pirates owner Robert Nutting (Williams ‘84) and former Red Sox (and Expos) GM Dan Duquette (Amherst ’80).  Williams won 8-5.

How ‘bout that?

How about Yovani Gallardo?  On April 29^th, the Mexican-born right-hander threw eight shutout innings while striking out 11, surrendering just two hits and one walk, and hitting a homerun in the bottom of the 7^th inning to account for all the scoring in the Brewers 1-0 victory over the Pirates.

How about Zack Greinke?  I don’t want to jinx the guy, but he’s practically unhittable right now.  The Royals’ ace has a minuscule E.R.A. (0.40) and WHIP (0.844), has not allowed a home run all season, has thrown three complete games including two shutouts, and is 6-0 in 6 starts, averaging 7.5 innings per start.

How about Albert Pujols?  Just when you thought he was your regular superstar, he proves he is THE superstar.  A month into the season, Pujols is slugging an absurd .733 and has more home runs (11) than strikeouts (9).

Baseball says good-bye to another family member

Following the deaths last month of Nick Adenhart, Mark Fidrych, and Harry Kalas, another member of the baseball family – Dom DiMaggio – passed away today at the age of 92.  A Center Fielder like his older brother, Joe, Dom had a solid career himself, being named to seven All-Star teams in just 10 full seasons.  His career totals include a .298 batting average, 1,680 hits, and 100 stolen bases.  He played his entire career with the Red Sox.

Manny – enough said

Between Manny and A-Rod, MLB’s top performers have really been making themselves look bad as of late.  There have been varied reactions to Manny Ramirez’s 50-game suspension without pay for using Performance-Enhancing Drugs, but ESPN’s Jayson Stark was right on par with where a baseball writer should be: “Forget Manny, don’t forgive him.”