Home Run Derby

Did Queer Eye for the Straight Guy do a makeover for Roger Clemens lately?

Seven-time Cy Young winner and Mitchell Report namee Roger Clemens showed up at a Houston Rockets game last night.  Wearing a hat I wouldn’t put on a dog. 

Seriously – a pastel green and blue argyle baseball cap?  Who the heck makes that anyway? 
And what man would even consider wearing it? 

I mean, besides Roger Clemens, obviously.   I wonder if there’s an Erasure song (or five) on Clemens’ iPod.

Mind you, some Baseball teams think you’ll wear Argyle caps. 

This one from the New York Yankees is actually pretty sharp. 

Keeping the Bombers’ color scheme works really well on that cap. 
The same cannot be said for the following monstrosities …
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Another day, another Walk Off Home Run.  This time in extra innings, Hunter Pence delivers the fatal blow to the Milwaukee Brewers.  The second time in three days a Houston Astro has walked away with the coveted HRoD award.

The funny thing here is everything in the game was just a little weird, or more to the point, predicated on poor execution.  The Astros were lucky to even get to extra innings.  Eric Gagne had a horrible ninth to blow the save with a game tying walk Lance Berkman.  Gagne’s line 1 IP, 2HA, 3BB, 2ER, 0K. 

Hunter Pence wasn’t really any better before the 12th as he nearly had himself a Golden Sombrero as he was 0 for 5 with 3 strike outs to that point.  Even if you look at the video, the swing was everything you teach your kids not to do: His hips fly open, he has poor weight transition and appears to lose his balance.  It was the case of the ball hitting the bat, not the bat hitting the ball.  It seems the MLB has given up the embedding of video (no more menu to try), but I highly suggest taking a look at the video.  Crappy swing or not,  Hunter Pence you are the HRoD Honoree!

Yesterday was one of those days that was filled with meaningful Home Runs.  There were 27 Home Runs in total, two walk-offs (Burrell, Schumaker), three multi-Home Run games (Uggla, Pence, Bautista) and the first of the year from Khalil Greene (Hooray…finally, the last stone cutter on my entry this year). 

But sometimes meaning takes a whole different point of view, as it does with today’s honoree, Miguel Tejada.  Tejada was special in the sixth when he smacked a two run Home Run against the Brewers to tie the game at 4-4.  First, his Home Run was the first of three consecutive by the Astros (Berkman, Lee) last night. 

But more importantly, on a night when every Astros Home Run raised $10,000 (courtesy of Citgo) to fight Muscular Dystrophy, Tejada fulfilled a promise to a young MD patient he made earlier that day.  Miguel when meeting 8 year old Jacob Scott prior to Friday’s game told the young man that he would hit a Home Run for him. 

The Astros, in addition to the back to back to back jacks, had two Home Runs courtesy of Hunter Pence.  5 Home Runs.  $50,000 for MD research.   Good job, boys.

Every season since 1997, Major League Baseball has had Interleague Play. 

But since the AL and NL have a different number of teams, there’s always a bit of a necessary imbalance when it comes to scheduling.  Add to that the doubling up of games between the geographic rivalries … and you get a Grade A Mess.   There’s always  potential for some contending team to be at a competitive disadvantage to another team in its division … because of the resulting imbalance in strength of schedules. 

Players and managers and owners gripe about it …

What’s not fun is when they’re all contenders and your competition doesn’t have to play the same competition you do.  If you play the top teams in the AL and everybody else doesn’t, it’s pretty unfair.
Chipper Jones, Atlanta Braves OF (2007)

The unbalanced schedule is not good for baseball … Some teams are getting a so-called lesser opponent, and other teams are playing powerhouses. 
Art Howe, former Oakland A’s Manager (1999)

I believe in my heart that last year the reason why we didn’t win the division is we didn’t play very well in the Interleague games and the Diamondbacks did.
Dusty Baker, former SF Giants Manager (2003)

I used to be for it, but I’m not for it anymore. It’s too easy for discrepancies
George Steinbrenner, NY Yankees Owner (2003)

Let’s see who gets the shaft this season … based upon 2007 MLB Won-Loss records.  We’ll start in the National League Central …

I think we’re going to hear a lot of bitching this season about the Cubs’ feeble 2008 Interleague schedule. 

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SUPER TUESDAY UPDATE – CLICK HERE

The 2008 Presidential Primary elections are less than a month away. And everybody needs a guide to the candidates.

Before I get started, I want to say that Home Run Derby will not endorse a candidate for President of the United States. We are a shoddy little baseball website and will not pretend to be a political one.

With that in mind, we’re not above giving you the facts about some of the candidates … when it comes to their baseball allegiances.

We profiled the Democrats yesterday, so here come the Republicans.

Rudy Giuliani – New York Yankees

The former Mayor of New York City is a diehard Yankee fan through and through and was often labelled the Bronx Bombers’ “First Fan.”

Even his recent comments about cheering for the Red Sox in the 2007 World Series really don’t even scratch his pinstripes.

Giuliani owns a bunch of Yankees World Series Championship rings. There’s some debate as to whether he should have them at all.

He maintains he paid for them.

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So two weeks ago, we took a stroll into the jewelers and looked at some rings. World Series Championship rings, to be exact. The Ultimate in Baseball Bling.

But I’m kinda cheap. I don’t have the scratch for a World Series Ring. So I asked if there was anything … uh … a little less expensive. You know, maybe some Cubic Zirconia or some Diamonoids or something?

Turns out there is … League Championship Rings! Because for some reason, players get a ring if they lose the World Series.

In reverse order …

2006 – Detroit Tigers

Whoa. That’s pretty sharp.

White Gold with a huge “D” made of Blue Sapphire set on a field of plenty of Diamonds. This piece of bling could easily pass for a World Series Ring.

I think I like this ring more than the Cardinals 2006 World Series Ring.  Then again, the Cardinals’ ring says “World Series Champion” on it.  This one doesn’t.
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I don’t do enough linking to the other fine blogs that are out there.

Let’s change that.

Siberian Baseball noted that the Cubs think that they just can’t have too many outfielders.

USA Today said that the Red Sox have displaced the Yankees as America’s Team. But the Replacement Level Yankees Weblog exposes their logic as being flawed.

Alyssa Milano isn’t done outfitting women with too much money in her “Touch” clothing line. Here comes the MLB themed fashion headwear.

Fake Teams has a great breakdown of the Rookie Home Run Hitters this season. No one in Home Run Derby took any of them.

Epic Carnival wondered if the Orioles quit in that 30-3 ass-kicking Texas gave them the other night.

You think?

Rawlings named their all-time Gold Glove team. Six Hall-of-Famers, two future Hall-of Famers and one guy you might never have heard of before.

A Houston Astros fan proposed to his girlfriend via the Minute Maid Park scoreboard. She said “No” … and on top of that, the Astros lost.

Before I proposed to my wife, she told me she would say no if I proposed via scoreboard, blimp, or airplane banner. Believe it or not, I listened to her and we’ve been married ten years.

Seeing as the Swinging Friar is taking Captain Jolly Roger to the Rectory (Friar leads 84% to 16%), it’s time for another Mascot Matchup.

This time we’ll head to the Mammal Division for a sluggers’ matchup between the two most prolific Home Run hitting mascots in all of MLB.

#3 TC Bear (Twins) vs. #6 Junction Jack (Astros)

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