Notes #464 — Hardball

                             NOTES FROM THE SHADOWS OF COOPERSTOWN
                                           Observations from Outside the Lines
                                     By Two Finger Carney (carneya6@adelphia.net)
 

#464                                                                                                             NOVEMBER 3, 2008
                                                    HARDBALL
 

            It is easy to lose myself in the fantasyland of APBA baseball, as I move thru the “Sweet Sixteen” all-timers’ tournament, bracket by bracket. It is rolling dice and watching things and making decisions, yes, but it is also baseball , so it takes place outside of time . I’m not in my house, I’m at a ballpark; it’s not Sunday, it’s Game Seven! But the first rounds of these playoffs have unfolded with some competition. Remember, I’m “retired” — no F/T job to take up the bulk of my waking days — and so I’ve been able to follow this year’s presidential election campaigns closely — probably too closely. Hooked.
 

            Lord knows I’m not that political a person. I did get addicted on the 2000 election aftermath — see Notes #226 , for my satirical look back at that — event. But I don’t follow politics that closely. I perk up for elections, though, like those fans who start paying attention to baseball in October, or to football when their playoffs begin, or Stanley Cup hockey fans.
 

            But this time around I got hooked, back before we knew who the two candidates would be. As I said before here, I think, it was almost easy, because the prospect of a Jackie Robinson on the Democratic ticket appealed to that era of baseball in me, an era before my time. Yes, we always knew blacks could play the game and play it well, but on the big-league national level?  Let’s see.  
 

            In some ways, baseball has been anything but progressive, and for a long time was downright oppressive to its workforce, which was almost devoid of minority members. Read a book like John Helyar’s Lords of the Realm (please), and you realize what a dinosaur baseball was, for so many decades. But since Jackie it has never been the same, he opened a door that changed the whole house.
 

            Jackie Robinson, by the way, is now honored in a special way at the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. He now has a statue — along with Roberto Clemente and Lou Gehrig — right by the front door, “Character and Courage” being the theme. I was at the Hall on October 25, and couldn’t help but notice the then-vacuum up front, where previously the wooden statues of Babe Ruth and Ted Williams stood. (The Bambino and the Splinter are now back in the gallery with the bronze plaques.) Make room for “Character and Courage” and if you want to read all about this, look up Bruce Markusen’s column on MLB.com. It’s a curious trio — Jackie, Roberto, and the Iron Horse. Clemente was a great player, but will be forever honored (I guess) because of when and how he died; the same can be said of Gehrig, I think. Jackie, however, did something unique within baseball, changing the game as Clemente or Gehrig never did, changing it more than perhaps anyone else, including Ruth, Cobb and John McGraw.
 

            This is no last-minute pitch for Obama votes, though, it really isn’t. But there is something about the coming E-Day (Elections tomorrow) that has reminded a lot about baseball’s A-Days — A for Arbitration.
 

            Since 1974, MLB has settled salary disputes between players and their teams by this method. An independent arbitrator listens to both sides, then rules in favor of one. There is no appeal, and no compromise, there is one winner. In the fuzzy aftermath of the Selig Strike of 1994-95, some baseball pundits observed that it was unfortunate that arbitration was not jettisoned as the two sides bargained and wrangled — it is something that has its down side, that many players and many in baseball management dislike.
 

            Here’s the problem. In a dispute — let’s say Joe the Player (how come DiMaggio never got that tag?) wants $7 million a year, but Joe’s team thinks he’s worth just $4.5 — both sides prepare their cases. (See Helyar again, pp. 36-38.) As a collective bargaining tool, arbitration kept labor and management from doing physical harm to each other, so it was a positive step ahead. In baseball, it’s a bit different — we see millionaires fighting with billionaires, and it’s not pretty. But in arbitration, it gets even uglier. Players are forced into an adversarial role with their team (this is no doubt softened with the brunt of the work going to agents and team reps, so individual players do not actually have to face down actual managers).
 

            And that is what, in this presidential campaign, reminds me of arbitration. The sides make their cases, “taking off the gloves.” They drag out every bit of ammunition they can find, and fire it at each other. The truth is caught in the crossfire — collateral damage. The team, to justify its offer, minimizes the player’s accomplishments and value. The player, to justify his request, will inflate or bend his statistics, make all kinds of comparison with players earning ‘way more than the lousy $7 million he’s asking, and perhaps he will even go on to question the team’s integrity, loyalty, will to win, and sincerity.
 

            “Why can’t we all just get along?”  I don’t know. But we have ended up with an election process that divides the country into red and blue, causing otherwise good friends to attack and snipe at each other, bending the truth (which is often somewhere between the extremes), smearing characters, bloodying opponents as much as possible. No appeal (Florida in 2000 was an exception), one winner-take-all.
 

            No matter who wins, the process has made nearly half the country sick and disappointed, unlikely to quickly support that winner, no matter what. For many months, we are polarized, and that does not go away quickly. And that’s a problem.
 

            Election Days will always remind me of my mother, who passed away in 1992, before I started doing Notes . She liked baseball, but rarely shows up in these pages. (For the record, I have written at some length about my mother, but the theme was religion. That was at my daughter’s suggestion, after my first book, Dear Patrick , was written in the form of letters to her brother, with a baseball theme.) “If you can’t say anything nice about someone, don’t say anything,” my Mom used to say. She would be appalled, I think, by today’s campaigns. Imagine candidates being kind to each other! (This actually happened on day, this time around — at the Al Smith Dinner in NY, attended by both Obama and McCain. They both turned into comedians, poking fun at themselves and, I think, more the election process than at each other, without any sign of meanness. It was great, and I wish it had gotten more national attention. It was better than all the debates.)
 

            My Mom always worked at the polls on E-Days. It was one of her few days out of the house all year. She loved to catch up on the news of the neighborhoods, loved seeing folks she hadn’t seen in a year or more. What I remember best from those days is the stories she brought home. This was from the 1950s forward, and even back then, every year, without fail, Mickey Mouse would get some votes for President. And I could relate to that, because Mickey was more familiar to me than Stevenson or Eisenhower. “How many this time?” 
 

            Is that such a bad idea — candidates being kind?  Should we make the candidates, maybe a week or so before E-Day (because of the early voting thing), to appear together on TV and say only positive things about their opponents? Score that one, pundits — who was more complimentary? I know this sounds absurd, but think about what it would do to help the country come together after the election .
 

            Hardball. According to the Dickson Dictionary, the term refers to baseball itself (as distinct from the various kinds of softball), but also to the “tough style of play” that we associate with the teams of McGraw or Bill Martin. Dickson notes that Red Smith (in 1981) called the term “misbegotten” because it seems to signify nothing. “Nobody plays hardball.” This was before Chris Mathews (do I have that spelling right?) adopted the term, for his own “tough style of play” on MSNBC.
 

            Don’t get me wrong, I think candidates should play hardball, with each other and with the media. But there is something flawed with the way we do it now. Could we have an arbitrator, a panel of judges, review the ads, rejecting those that contain errors, half-truths, smears? (I know what you’re thinking — what would be left?)  Make both sides swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? Now that’s revolutionary.
 

            OK, read the rest of this issue, then go vote.
 

SWEET SIXTEEN PLAYOFFS: CARDINALS VS CUBS  
 

            This is the sixth in a series of reports on a simulated playoff of the sixteen “original franchise” teams. The results of the first-round American League “brackets” are in NOTES 459-461. The first results of the NL brackets are in #462 and 463. See NOTES #459 for the background and “ground rules.”  So far in the NL, the Phils, Dodgers and Pirates have advanced.
 

THE CARDINALS
 

            The Cardinals were the third seed in the NL brackets, mainly on the strength of their 87 wins (enough to win the pennant) in the first simulated season. Somehow, the additions they made to bolster their roster improved them less than most other teams, and they played progressively worse in later simulations. But in this tournament, any team can beat any other team.
 

            Who’s on first on the all-time Card roster?  Well, I like John Mize; but Bill White makes the team, and so does Mark McGwire, for that power off the bench. At second, Red Schoendienst does well, moving Rogers Hornsby to short; or, the Rajah can play 2B if Ozzie Smith’s glove and speed are needed. I’ve replaced Garry Templeton with a Negro League draftee, Artie Wilson, who’s just a shade behind Ozzie in each department except hitting, where he excels. At third, it’s Ken Boyer, but he has competition from Ken Caminiti. The Card catchers are Ted Simmons and Tim McCarver. The outfield features Stan Musial, Joe Medwick, and Jesse Burkett, a deadball era speedster. Thanks to the DH, Lou Brock can also see some playing time, and so can another NL draftee, James “Cool Papa” Bell, who plays similar to Brock.
 

            The A+ starters for the Cards are Bob Gibson, Dizzy Dean, and Spittin’ Bill Doak; they also snatched an A+ from the Negro Leagues, Joe “Cyclone” Williams. For long relief there is Howie Pollet, Harry Brecheen, and Mort Cooper; at the end, Al Hrabosky and Lindy McDaniel.
 

THE CUBS
 

            The all-time Cubs won 80 in the first simulation, then slumped off to 69 wins (in a 154 game season); with the infusion of talent from the Negro League and the expansion team draft, they were back over .500.
 

            At first for the Cubs, either Mark Grace or Frank Chance, the Peerless Leader of their first dynasty, will do nicely. At second, Ryne Sandberg has the glove, power and speed; if only he could hit and walk a little more! Billy Herman is his back-up. Ernie Banks played more games at 1B, but the Cubs need him to go back to SS. If defense is needed late, Shawon Dunston is handy. At third are two options, Smilin’ Stan Hack (more speed), or Ron Santo (more power). At catcher, the Cubs got the prize at the bottom of the Cracker Jack box in the NL draft — Josh Gibson. Like many of the NL player cards, Josh’s is based partly on legend, which means it is downright Ruthian. Behind Josh is Gabby Hartnett.
 

            There’s another Ruthian player on the Cubs, Hack Wilson in his 1930 heyday. He can DH or play OF with Billy Williams, Andre Dawson, or leadoff man Hazen “Kiki” Cuyler. Wilson “Frog” Redus, a speedy slugger from the Negro leagues, and Sammy Sosa (1998) are there, too.
 

            The Cubs’ A+ starters include Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown; Hippo Vaughn; Clark Griffith (the Old Fox was a regular 20-game winner in Chi before the turn of the century); and Fergie Jenkins. Lon Warneke and Dick Elsworth spell long relief, Phil Regan, Lee Smith and Bruce Sutter can finish up games.
 

            Part of the fun of these simulations is putting players from different eras on the same playing field. The Cardinals have Gas House Gangers with stars from the 60s, the Cubs have a galaxy from the deadball dynasty and from the 1930s, along with the greats who played with lesser teams later on. Playing out a season, it is also fun to make roster changes, “sending down” Hall of Famers and “bringing up” more Hall of Famers. These guys cannot all succeed, for some, the dice will roll cold.
 

 

GAME ONE, AT ST LOUIS
 

            I have written elsewhere that should a Time Machine ever get invented in my lifetime, permitting me to travel backwards for one ball game, I would give serious thought to taking in a duel between Christy Mathewson (of McGraw’s Giants) and Three Finger Brown, of the early Cub dynasty. Alas, the Cubs instead drew the Cards in this tournament as a first-round foe, but who would be less satisfied to see Brown face off with Bob Gibson?  I was looking for a tight 1-0 or 2-1 game, maybe decided in extra innings, but it didn’t quite turn out that way.
 

            Gibby started off fine, walking Kiki Cuyler then picking him off, and fanning Grace and Dawson. But in the 2nd, Josh Gibson walked and with two out, Ryne Sandberg tripled him in. Gibson fanned Sosa to end the inning. In the third, Cuyler walked again and with two out, Dawson tripled in the second run. Josh Gibson followed with an infield single, and then Hack Wilson — I’m sure he was knocked down a few times first — homered, for a 5-0 lead.
 

            Meanwhile, Three Finger was scattering singles, two by Rogers Hornsby. In the Cub fifth, with Brecheen pitching, two more scratch singles by Dawson and Gibson — Josh would collect four before the game was over — and another two out hit, a single by Ryno, made it 7-0. Santo’s double and Cuyler’s triple made it 8-0, before the Cards scored their first runs. In the sixth, Schoendienst beat out a hit and Bell sent him to third with a hit to right. Cool Papa then stole second. A run scored on Hornsby’s ground out and Musial singled home Bell, 8-2. But Brown didn’t give up much more — Ken Boyer’s solo HR in the 7th — and Smith and Sutter closed it out. The final was 10-3, the last Cub runs coming in on Stan Hack’s HR (he had run for Santo earlier), and an error by Hornsby, after Cuyler singled, then stole second and third . (As a Pirate fan, I was disappointed that Cuyler went to the Cubs, since he had his first great seasons with Pittsburgh, but apparently be played a bit more for the Cubs.)
 

GAME TWO, AT ST LOUIS
 

            Hippo Vaughn versus Dizzy Dean ain’t a bad matchup, either. The Cubs went right to work. Cuyler walked but was tossed out trying to steal. But Billy Williams and Andre Dawson both doubled, and Dawson scored when Medwick muffed Wilson’s fly.
 

            The Cards tied it, 2-2, in the second. Medwick doubled and Johnny Mize homered. Boyer followed with a double, but could not advance. The score remained 2-2 into the sixth. (In the Cub 5th, CF Jesse Burkett saved a couple runs: Hack Wilson double and Ernie Banks walked. Ryno fanned, but NL draftee Frog Redus drove a long ball to center that Burkett ran down, both runners advancing. Then Burkett robbed Santo of extra bases with another circus catch.
 

            It was clearly not Dean’s day. Cuyler started off the fifth with a double, and Williams doubled him home. An out later, Josh Gibson lined a ball off Dean’s toe — it went for a single and Dizzy had to leave the game. Enter Mort Cooper, only to be greeted by Hack Wilson’s HR, making it 6-2.
 

            Meanwhile, Hippo Vaughn settled in, giving up walks in the 3rd, 4th and 5th, and a single to Burkett in the 7th, but nothing else. The Cubs tacked on two runs in the 8th, on Santo’s triple, and back-to-back doubles again by Cuyler and Williams; Billy had three 2Bs in the game. Vaughn gave up a double to Musial in the home 8th, but nothing more. Mize led off the 9th with a double and after Ken Boyer singled him in, Sutter came in and got the last three outs. Cubs win, 8-3, to go up 2-0 in games.
 

GAME THREE, AT WRIGLEY FIELD
 

            Bill Doak and Clark Griffith got the assignments for Game Three, and it turned out to be the best-pitched game of the series. The Cubs jumped ahead in the first, with that familiar combo, a Cuyler walk and a Williams double. Hack Wilson’s 2B and Ryno’s single made it 2-0 after two, and Ernie Bank’s solo shot over the ivy in the 4th made it 3-0. The Cards cut the lead to one when Stan Musial homered after a Burkett hit in the 6th.
 

            But the Cubs retaliated, Josh Gibson’s double and another long bomb by Banks, and the 5-2 lead held up. Lon Warneke pitched two innings and Sutter closed it out. Both teams just eight hits.
 

GAME FOUR, WRIGLEY FIELD
 

            The odds seem to be against any of these Sweet Sixteen scoring machines getting swept — but then, it’s hard to see any of them lose a game. Anyway, now in a sudden death situation, I had to give Bob Gibson the ball. His opponent, Fergie Jenkins.
 

            Again the Cubs drew first blood, in the first inning, Cuyler and Williams singling on a hit-and-run. Then Gibson balked in a run, which would have scored anyway, on Josh Gibson’s double. 2-0. An error by Caminiti, another hit-and-run single, this time by Stan Hack, and Cuyler’s sac fly made it 3-0 after two. Once again, not Gibby’s day. He left in the third, after Dawson doubled, Gibson walked, and Ernie Banks reached the ivy with a two-run triple. Enter Cyclone Williams, who stopped the bleeding.
 

            The Cards scraped for a run in the fifth, but the Cubs got that run back in their fifth when Gibson tripled and Banks hit a long fly. Musial’s HR to right in the 6th made it 6-2, and the Cards’ best shot came in their 7th when they loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. But Jenkins bore down, giving up just a sac fly to Burkett, then getting Cool Papa Bell to pop out.
 

            The Cubs salted it away in their 8th. Frank Chance singled, then with Stan Hack at bat and showing bunt, Chance proceeded to steal second, third and home . Well, it doesn’t happen often, it was one of those “unusual plays” that comes up in my enhanced APBA simulation. Anyway, Hack followed with a single, and two more singles by Cuyler and Williams, hitting stars of the series, and a sac fly by Andre Dawson closed the scoring. Lee Smith shut the door in the 8th and 9th to preserve the 9-3 Cub win and complete the sweep.
 

            I try to be “objective” when I manage both teams, but I sometimes find myself rooting, too. In this series, I found myself rooting for the Cardinals, at least to win a couple and make it a series — they seemed ‘way too good to be swept. And of course, there’s the history factor — I managed the Cards for several seasons back in the 1960s, back when Bob Gibson was a Grade D with a W (wild) — as low as you can go in APBA. His only plus was that he could hit, with pretty decent power. I only had Musial in his fading last years. I’ve also managed the Gas House Gang. The Cards were always my second team, behind the Pirates. But the Cubs overpowered them in this tournament, so I tip my cap to them, and wish them well in the second round.