Lazzari’s Baseball Roundup 4

TRIVIA QUESTION: The 1987 Cincinnati Reds–who finished 2nd in the NL West under Pete Rose–had four players who hit more than 20 home runs apiece. How many of these players can you name? Answer to follow……….I used to think that a Steve Carlton slider was a pure thing of beauty–that is, until I saw a recent picture of actress/supermodel Eva Mendes wearing a stunning green dress at the London premiere of “The Other Guys.”……….This week in sports history, September 28, 1941: In a final-day doubleheader played at Shibe Park in Philadelphia, Boston’s Ted Williams tallies six hits in eight at-bats–enabling him to finish the season with a phenomenal . 406 batting average. Before the twin bill started, Red Sox manager Joe Cronin had offered Williams the day off in order to maintain his .400 batting average (.39955)–but the 23-year-old refused. Williams went 4-for-5 in the opener and followed that up with a single and double in three-at-bats in the nightcap–helping the Red Sox to a sweep of Philadelphia. Williams became the first .400 hitter since the New York Giants’ Bill Terry (.401) in 1930 and the first in the AL since Detroit’s Harry Heilmann (.403) in 1923……….Congratulations go out to former Yale pitcher/current A’s reliever Craig Breslow–who has been nominated for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award for humanitarian and community service. Breslow is the founder of the Strike 3 Foundation–a charitable organization that heightens awareness and raises funds for childhood cancer research; he created the foundation in honor of his sister, Lesley–a survivor of pediatric thyroid cancer. Breslow, an ’02 Yale graduate, was honored by the A’s in a pregame ceremony before the Sept. 8th game against the Seattle Mariners at the Oakland Coliseum. On-line voting for the award is available on Major League Baseball’s website, mlb.com , through Oct. 8. Having had the opportunity to interview Breslow in the past, I can vouch for the man’s integrity and tremendous charitable nature; great job, Craig……….Answer to trivia question: ERIC DAVIS (37), DAVE PARKER (26), KAL DANIELS (26), and NICK ESASKY (22)……….Terrific quote from Tim McCarver last week on FOX–commenting about the way Braves manager Bobby Cox has conducted business/approached his work over a long career: “If Bobby Cox had been a college football coach, 98% of his players would graduate.”……….Happy birthday wishes go out to former major league pitcher Craig Lefferts–who blows out 53 candles on September 29th. Lefferts spent 12 seasons in the “bigs” between 1983 and 1994 pitching for six different teams–appearing in 696 games during his career. Used mostly in relief, Craig won 58 games and compiled 101 saves–while pitching to a career ERA of 3.43. Perhaps Lefferts’ best year came in 1990 while with the Padres–a season in which he went 7-5, saved 23 games, and pitched to an impressive ERA of 2.52. Back in 1986, Lefferts appeared in 83 games–leading both leagues. Best wishes, Craig.

Bob Lazzari is an award-winning sports columnist for both Connecticut’s Valley Times and NY Sports Day , where his “Sports Roundup” column is featured weekly. He is a member of the Connecticut Sports Writers’ Alliance and host of “ Monday Night Sports Talk ,” a cable television show on CTV/Channel 14 in Connecticut.