Hangin’ Out with Joe Torre & Friends

Hey baseball fans! I’m back from camp and I have lots to tell.  So today’s post is going to be pretty long, but it’s worth your time. While I was at camp, I was invited to go to Joe Torre‘s Safe At Home Foundation Charity Golf and Tennis Classic. I was involved in the golf portion […]

Torre To Manage US In 2013 World Classic

Torre to manage US in 2013 World Classic (via AFP) Joe Torre, who guided the New York Yankees to four World Series titles as a Major League Baseball manager, will guide the US team in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, USA Baseball said Thursday. The 71-year-old American played for 18 seasons and served as a […]

The Loneliness of the Game:the Manager

In 1989, shortly before being suspended from duties as manager, Pete Rose stated: “managing is much harder than playing, sitting there, observing everything, responsible for everything and alone, helpless…” It is true, because in baseball, when a club wins it is the players, but when they lose, 98 % of the time it is the […]

His Game to Win

Tony LaRussa retires and Davey Johnson returns. It might seem that the trade off leaves the managerial ranks about the same, but there is a changing of the guard occurring in the leadership of Major League Baseball. LaRussa’s 33 years as manager is unequalled except by Connie Mack–whose 53 years in the dugout is one […]

Consummate Captain

If Sandy Koufax is in the Baseball Hall of Fame, why not Don Mattingly? OK, OK, maybe that’s like comparing apples to oranges. How about Kirby Puckett vs. Don Mattingly? Take a look at this and more in “Donnie Baseball” by longtime journalist Mike Shalin. Read this book because: 1. Nobody worked harder than Mattingly. […]

Clearing The Bases

Unless you have been living in a cave all week you have undoubtedly heard about the Yankees Jorge Posada’s decision to pull himself out of the lineup and refuse to play last Saturday versus Boston.  What you may not know are the details preceding this decision. When Posada first came up with the Yankees he […]

Terry Francona’s Do or Die Mission

“I think Francona should be gone by the end of the month and the pitching coach also. They both suck.” That’s not me saying it. I intercepted a message on an answering machine from one lifelong Red Sox fan (who lives in Rhode Island) to another lifelong fan. And, no I’m not talking the Twenty-oh-fours. […]

Fearless forecast for 2011 flag chases

The first rule in making baseball predictions is to expect the unexpected. Don’t go with last year’s winners, popular favorites, or big-money ballclubs. Unless they deserve it, of course. Now that we’ve gotten past the obvious rules, there are the string of unknowns that can pop up anywhere during the course of a 162-game schedule, […]

Inspiration in Baseball

Ben Ulene started the Double Play Foundation in December of 2009 when he was going through his closet and noticed how many old baseball jerseys he had accrued over his adolescence and that he no longer had use for. “I thought that there had to be some way that these uniforms could be used again, as each one had been used for only one 3-month season and then put away, ” Ben told me. It was at that moment that he decided to pass-on his once prized possessions to others who may not be as fortunate as himself. He named his cause, The Double Play Foundation (DPF) and told me it was because “just like in a double play where one batted ball is used to get two outs, one baseball uniform is being used twice, doing double duty.”

Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation: Pepsi Refresh Project

The month of October, Domestic Violence Awareness Month, brings with it an exciting opportunity for our Foundation and the children whose lives we affect. The Joe Torre Safe At Home Foundation has been selected by Pepsi to compete for a $250,000 grant and the only way to ensure our success is through the support of […]

Red Sox Should Grab Joe Torre

A series of events have happened in the last week, which should have Boston Red Sox General Manager Theo Epstein making a lot of behind the scenes phone calls. First, Joe Torre announced his retirement from the Los Angeles Dodgers as their manager. Then, Torre did not rule out managing another team and has since […]

Gibbons Homers Off Fellow Indy Leaguer in Major League Game

While concentrating on the finalizing of playoff pairings, one cannot help but wonder how many Atlantic League fans took notice of the special moment that took place Sunday when two of the league’s current major leaguers squared off against each other. On this occasion, two onetime Long Island Ducks were standing 60 feet, six inches […]

Gibbons Makes Another Statement for Indy Leagues

Jay Gibbons has struck another harmonious chord for Independent Baseball with his splashy re-entrance into the major leagues with the Los Angeles Dodgers.  A longtime Baltimore Orioles outfielder (2001-2007), the left-handed Gibbons erged from a brush with being named in the infamous Mitchell Report to start cleansing his reputation with the Long Island (NY) Ducks […]

Steinbrenner’s legacy: Winning and entertainment

George Steinbrenner passed away today at the age of 80. Although he hasn’t been running the Yankees for some time now, his legacy will always be remembered. From 1973-2010, Steinbrenner created and maintained the most successful franchise in sports, and it was never done without some entertainment. In the 37 years under Steinbrenner, the Yankees […]