Every Sunday, MLB FanHouse empties out its notebook in Baseball Brunch.
CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. – The cleanup hitters in Thursday's game were Preston Wilson and Carl Everett. They have combined to play in more than 2,500 major-league games, hit 391 homers and make more than $80 million.
Wilson and Everett were on opposite sides in the 2003 All-Star Game in Chicago, but this night they were far, far away from U.S. Cellular Field. They were the DHs for the Long Island Ducks and Newark Bears of the Atlantic League, respectively.
And they weren't the only former big-leaguers on the field.
The 2009 Hall of Fame headlines rightfully belong to Rickey Henderson, who was elected the first year he was eligible, and Jim Rice, who was elected the very last year he was eligible. As for everyone else, well, there's always next year, right?
The short answer: it depends.
In Tommy John's case, no, there is no next year. Like Rice, this was John's 15th year on the ballot, the most that the Baseball Writers Association of America allows before ruling a player ineligible to be included on future ballots. Now, the only way John will ever be inducted is if the Veterans Committee votes him in -- that's the same committee that has inducted exactly one player since 2001.
Mark Grace is easily my all-time favorite baseball player. I loved him as a player -- I grew up rooting for fellow left-handers -- and I loved his off-field personality. He's just a really likable guy. Still, his baseball career, while a very nice one, is hardly Hall of Fame worthy.
Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune disagrees, otherwise he just felt like tossing Grace a vote. Either way, Mark Grace has garnered a vote for the prestigious Hall in Cooperstown. One of Rogers' thoughts was that he doesn't like to be "a curmudgeon with a ridiculously high standard" when filling out his ballot. I agree with that stance, but you still have to maintain high standards for the Hall of Fame.
Rogers discusses Grace's postseason -- albeit a small sample -- prowess, when he threw up insane stats in the 1989 NLCS and kick-started the series-winning rally off Mariano Rivera in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. He brings up the fact that Grace lead the majors in hits for the '90s. Rogers also points out Grace's outstanding defense and leadership in the clubhouse.
From the Windup is FanHouse's extended look at a particular portion of America's pastime.
The 2009 Hall of Fame ballot was released Monday, and with it is certain to come heated debate right up until and after the voting results are revealed on Jan. 12, 2009. This year's class of candidates is similar to last year's, in that it's a shallow group.
There is only one sure-fire Hall of Famer among the 23 candidates, which means this is a critical vote for the borderline players who have been up for election on multiple occasions. Now is the time for those borderline guys to get over the top or make a big push to lay the groundwork for election in future years.
After the jump is a breakdown of the ballot, complete with what I think will happen and what should happen with this year's class of Cooperstown contenders.
There's a little mini-scuffle in the political realm today about Barack Obama's big paid half-hour closing argument tonight. Obama will be on all three major networks laying out his final case for the presidency, something John McCain can't afford to do because he doesn't know how to use the internet.
Anyway, the baseball game will begin around 8:37, 20 minutes later than usual, prompting John McCain to say that as president he'd never allow baseball to be pushed back, or something. Interesting proposal. FOX? They're noticeably less concerned (HT: Shysterball)
"By no means did they push to get us to accommodate them with Game Six," said Coppola, whom the Obama campaign suggested I call. "We're just missing the pregame, which isn't a big deal for us. It was a business decision."
That might seem strange at first, but it really makes perfect sense. Any network that sets Jeanie Zelasko, Mark Grace, and Kevin Kennedy in the same frame and mandates them to talk baseball can't possibly consider the program to be a "big deal." That would imply some sort of interest in what your analysts are saying, and ... ha! FOX clearly doesn't have that.
The above video, via comprehensive vid maven Awful Announcing (and yes, I realize that description makes AA sound like an internet porn entrepreneur; he is not), is of Arizona Diamondbacks play-by-play guy Darren Sutton getting really excited about Justin Upton's solo home run today. Home runs are always enjoyable, but Sutton seems a little too pumped for a relatively inconsequential solo home run in the sixth inning.
It's been nearly six years since the Arizona Diamondbacks won the World Series, defeating the Yankees in seven games for their first and only title. Lots of things have changed in the desert since then, including the name of the stadium, the ownership group, the team colors and logo, and the overall business plan for the team. Such change was apparently necessary, considering current ownership is still paying for the World Series team (Jerry Colangelo pictured along with Curt Schilling):
One of the key players who agreed to deferred payments and won a ring was Mark Grace, the former first baseman who now does television color commentary for the Diamondbacks.
"It wasn't fiscally endearing, maybe," Grace says of the big spending that produced a title. "I'm not going to say irresponsible. Jerry got what he paid for, a World Series champion. Was it worth it? To me, d--- right. To Jerry [Colangelo], d--- right. But when it comes to pay the piper, the banks will probably say "d--- no.' "
That debt has been reduced to $100 million but has forced a halt to pricey free-agent signings, resulting in a $52 million payroll that ranks in the bottom third.
"The economics," [managing general partner Ken] Kendrick says, "would not allow us to go for the long term with free agency as the primary focus of our business plan."
Larry Broadway couldn't withstand a late charge by Dmitri Young to become Nick Johnson's understudy this season while Johnson is still recovering from injury. And Broadway is a tad confused as to why he was sent to the minors today.
"I was very surprised. They said they wanted to see what Dmitri Young could offer," Broadway said. "They didn't see enough power out of me. I felt this was one of my best springs. I was getting hits. I was patient at the plate. I was trying to put together good at-bats, working on my eye. I'll get my work done in Triple-A and force them to do something."
And if that doesn't work, it just might force Broadway to punch out Jim Bowden (That's a reference I'm running into the ground until it's roadkill ... just to warn you.)
Now I'm hardly an expert on those "new-age" stats that Murray Chass loves so much. But I do know this: when your on base percentage is higher than your slugging percentage, chances are you're not showing enough power (Broadway has a .391 OBP, and only a .381 SLG). Maybe it's an unfair stereotype, but first basemen are supposed to be more powerful individuals.
Unless you're Mark Grace, it's always going to be a harder road for a singles hitter to get a fair chance to be a first baseman. Remember 1990, when the Mets felt they had to get a power hitter to play first base when they had a perfectly good first baseman in Dave Magadan? The result ... was quite possibly the worst 163 at bats in Mets history: which belonged to Mike Marshall. (Magadan, meanwhile, batted .328 that season and almost led the Mets to the playoffs after Mets brass realized their ungodly mistake).
The 2009 Hall of Fame headlines rightfully belong to 
There's a little mini-scuffle in the political realm today about 
It's been nearly six years since the Arizona Diamondbacks won the World Series, defeating the Yankees in seven games for their first and only title. Lots of things have changed in the desert since then, including the name of the stadium, the ownership group, the team colors and logo, and the overall business plan for the team. Such change was apparently necessary, considering 
Larry Broadway couldn't withstand a late charge by Dmitri Young to become Nick Johnson's understudy this season while Johnson is still recovering from injury. And Broadway is a tad confused as to why he was 
