Category Archives: Baseball

BILL JAMES: “THE FRANK ROBINSON SOLUTION”.

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Philip

BILL JAMES: “THE FRANK ROBINSON SOLUTION”. In the 1985 Baseball Abstract Bill James proposed several solutions to the problem of batters being injured from being hit by pitches. The first was what James called “The Frank Robinson solution”, which he … Continue reading →

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REVISITING BILL JAMES’S HISTORY OF THE BEANBALL.

Posted on September 13, 2014 by Philip

REVISITING BILL JAMES’S HISTORY OF THE BEANBALL. Giancarlo Stanton, the great young star, was hit in the face by a pitch the other night. Stanton suffered facial lacerations requiring stitches, multiple facial fractures and dental damage. Stanton is only 24 … Continue reading →

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BEANBALLS AND REVENGE CODES (COMMENT).

Posted on August 23, 2014 by Philip

BEANBALLS AND REVENGE CODES (COMMENT). “Anonymous” commented on my recent post on retaliation for beanballs that: “Outside the baseball field and, now, states like Florida, the consequences for even negligent conduct are supposed to be provided through government procedures. The … Continue reading →

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BEANBALL WARS AND ACCIDENTS.

Posted on August 7, 2014 by Philip

BEANBALL WARS AND ACCIDENTS. There was another episode in baseball’s beanball wars. A pitch by a Pittsburgh pitcher hit and injured the Arizona Diamondbacks’ best player, who is now expected to be out for the year. The Diamondback pitcher then … Continue reading →

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WHATEVER HAPPENED TO PLAYING A BASEBALL GAME UNDER PROTEST?

Posted on July 20, 2014 by Philip

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO PLAYING A BASEBALL GAME UNDR PROTEST? From time to time, back in the day, a baseball game was played under protest because of a dispute about the rules. A team could inform the umpires before the next … Continue reading →

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TATTOO NIGHT—A “BRYCE HARPER BOBBLEHEADESQUE” SUCCESS.

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Philip

TATTOO NIGHT—A “BRYCE HARPER BOBBLEHEADESQUE” SUCCESS. I posted here earlier in the year on some of the promotions that the Syracuse Chiefs had scheduled for the year. July 1 was “Tattoo Night”, with an offer of general admission for life … Continue reading →

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FATHERS AND CHILDREN TALKING BASEBALL.

Posted on June 8, 2014 by Philip

FATHERS AND CHILDREN TALKING BASEBALL. For my recent birthday, Nick interviewed me about baseball and posted the discussion here on the Catbird Seat blog. It is sometimes said that baseball is fathers playing catch with their children. It is also … Continue reading →

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THE ORIGIN OF “THE CATBIRD SEAT” (COMMENT).

Posted on June 7, 2014 by Philip

THE ORIGIN OF “THE CATBIRD SEAT” (COMMENT). I posted here about how Nick is posting on a new blog affiliated with ESPN—The Catbird Seat. He and I associate the phrase with Hawk Harrelson, the White Sox announcer, with a usual … Continue reading →

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THE PLATE UMPIRE SHOULD NEVER MAKE A CALL ON CHECKED SWINGS.

Posted on June 4, 2014 by Philip

THE PLATE UMPIRE SHOULD NEVER MAKE A CALL ON CHECKED SWINGS. The checked swing is still one of the murky areas of baseball. It deals with the situation where a batter stops his swing. The rule is that if there … Continue reading →

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MIKE SCHMIDT—UMPIRES SHOULD NOT CALL BALLS AND STRIKES.

Posted on June 3, 2014 by Philip

UMPIRES SHOULD NOT CALL BALLS AND STRIKES. I have heard announcers discussing Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt’s comment that umpires should not call balls and strikes. Here is the report by Craig Calcaterra from the Hardball Talk website. Schmidt predicts … Continue reading →

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