Category Archives: Baseball

OF COURSE, THERE’S A WHITE SOX—CUBS RIVALRY.

Posted on May 28, 2013 by Philip

OF COURSE, THERE’S A WHITE SOX—CUBS RIVALRY. Kevin Chroust, in this Yahoo Sports article, claims that there is no rivalry between the White Sox and the Cubs because the White Sox and the Cubs don’t play each other very much … Continue reading →

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WHAT HOCKEY GETS RIGHT ABOUT DANGEROUS PLAYS.

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Philip

WHAT HOCKEY GETS RIGHT ABOUT DANGEROUS PLAYS. This article by Nicholas Cotsonika about the thought process underlying a penalty imposed on a player for an illegal check which caused an injury illustrates several things that the National Hockey League does … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball, Basketball, Football, Sports | 1 Comment

GATSBY GOES TO A BASEBALL GAME.

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Philip

GATSBY GOES TO A BASEBALL GAME. Anne Margaret Daniel in this article on the Huffington Post blog (link via RealClearBooks) describes a scene which appeared in early drafts of THE GREAT GATSBY, but was replaced in the published version by … Continue reading →

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NONUNIFORM BASEBALLS (COMMENT).

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Philip

NONUNIFORM BASEBALLS (COMMENT). Carl Davidson commented on my post on how baseballs were made that the process could lead to imperfectly uniform baseballs. I think that’s right. It’s one explanation for why a pitcher would ask the umpire to take … Continue reading →

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BASEBALL’S SECRET RUBBING MUD.

Posted on April 21, 2013 by Philip

BASEBALL SECRET RUBBING MUD. The video about making baseballs points out the smoothness of baseballs when they emerge from the factory. This wikipedia article tells about how before each professional game, the umpires rub the several dozen baseballs that will … Continue reading →

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HOW BASEBALLS ARE MADE.

Posted on April 20, 2013 by Philip

HOW BASEBALLS ARE MADE. Lee Bryant sent me this video showing the process of making a baseball. They are made to standards established in 1872. Except for machinery, the process is a little like what we imagine was used to … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball, Sports | 2 Comments

HOW DID THE ORIOLES DO IT LAST YEAR?

Posted on March 7, 2013 by Philip

HOW DID THE ORIOLES DO IT LAST YEAR? Nick is a believer in the sabermetric argument that Earl Weaver was right and that, except in special circumstances, playing for one run is a mistake. I told Nick that I would … Continue reading →

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SHORTENING A BASEBALL GAME TO SIX INNINGS.

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Philip

SHORTENING A BASEBALL GAME TO SIX INNINGS. One current strategy in baseball follows Gene Mauch’s approach of trying for an early lead. If a team can succeed in building a deep bullpen, with three or four shutdown relievers, it can … Continue reading →

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EARL WEAVER AND GENE MAUCH AND SABERMETRICS.

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Philip

EARL WEAVER AND GENE MAUCH AND SABERMETRICS.. Earl Weaver and Gene Mauch were both successful managers during roughly the same period (Weaver, 1960 to 1987; Mauch, 1960 to 1986.) Weaver and Mauch had different views on a major issue in … Continue reading →

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NEW SUPPORT FOR REDUCING BASEBALL COLLISIONS

Posted on February 28, 2013 by Philip

NEW SUPPORT FOR REDUCING BASEBALL COLLISIONS. I have posted several times, including here, supporting changes in baseball rules to reduce injuries from collisions. A lot of collisions at home plate and second base occur because of customs that are defy … Continue reading →

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