Home Run Derby

Baseball is filled with gross habits. 

Crotch grabbing (which we photo-profiled a couple years ago) is one of them.  It’s a necessity, considering the protective equipment down there.

Spitting is another one.  I won’t go into all the reasons players spit (tobacco, sunflower seeds, disgust, anger, boredom) – but it happens.  A lot. 

And in many different ways. 

Horizontal Spit

Araron Miles and Rickie Weeks demonstrate the lateral spit.  You need some power to get that to go straight.

I’m not sure why Aaron Miles has to close his eyes.  Or why Weeks is spitting at JJ Hardy.

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Last week, White Sox lefthander Mark Buehrle pitched only the eighteenth Perfect Game in the history of Major League Baseball.  As is the case in every perfect game – he had a little help from his defense.

Particularly outfielder Dewayne Wise, who took away a Home Run with a laping catch in the top of the ninth to preserve the Shutout, the No-Hitter, and the Perfect Game and vault Buehrle’s name into conversations about whether he’ll be a Hall of Famer.

No doubt – a catch like that is deserving of a gift from the pitcher to his Perfect-Game-Saving fielder. 

A big gift. 

Well, here it is.  Buehrle gave Wise (and his other teammates) a bottle of Crown Royal XR  … with a personalized bag no less.

I like the idea.  A perfect game is Extra Rare, so why not a bottle of Extra Rare booze?

But I would think that Dewayne Wise deserved bigger than a bottle of Canadian Whisky that you can get for $136 on the intarwebs – seems a little bit cheap as recognition for being the saver of an event that happens once every 17,000 games to me. 

A $200 gift (I’m including the embroidery on the bag) seems cheap for such a contribution – especially considering Buehrle is in the midst of a $56 Million contract.  I was thinking Buehrle would at least get him a cool ride – like Buehrle’s giant Ford F-650 Dominator truck.

You know, the booze could explain the White Sox’ 1-5 record and .214 batting average since the Perfect Game.

 H/T:  MPS

So with a couple days left in July, we should probably update the Home Run Derby contest standings, huh?

Here goes (albeit quickly)

There’s three days left to determine the July monthly cash prize … and something called ZARG 4 leads everybody with 69 Home Runs in July.  He’s trailed by Jedi Baseball (67) and Brett Favre Comeback Tour (66 HR).

I had a hard time figuring out what the heck a “ZARG” was to make the appropriate avatar (and the team owner hasn’t responded to emails) so I took a stab at it as a Calvin and Hobbes reference.  If it’s not a made-up word, the only other thing I think it could be is a predator that was once on the old Babylon 5 TV show.

Two weeks into the Second Half, and it’s a 42-Homer tie between It’s a New Century and Jules.

That’s right … the Second Half is being co-led by my six-year-old daughter (she made her own picks).  That’s her running the bases at Miller Park a couple years ago. 

ZARG 4 (41 HR), Wrigley Drunks (41 HR), and ChiTown Kaz (40 HR) round out the 2nd Half leaderboard.

In the full season standings, the top three are still the same – but their order has changed.

Both David Wright can Bite Me (297 HR) and Heavy Hitters (295 HR) leapt past Aural Sects (294 HR) on the leaderboard. 

There’s an 8-HR cushion between the bottom of the leaderboard and the top of the also-rans.  One of these days, Coop Cooper, ChiTownKaz, BackBackBackBack, or RDRR are going to make a run at the leaders.

One of the best things about baseball is that with so many at-bats in a season … whatever you can think of is probably going to happen (like when that bat stood up on its end after an at bat a couple years ago).  So it kinda surprises me that very few baseballs ever hit the TV cameras around MLB ballparks.

But that’s not the case in the other fields around America, where cameras are taking a beating from baseballs …  whether it be batted or thrown.

Here’s a clip from the Little League World Series a couple years ago.  Take it away, Brent Musburger.

That’s not the only time a pitch has hit a camera behind the plate.  Here’s another pitcher who’s throwing …. juuust a bit outside

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Uh Oh.

We could have some bad blood between the two biggest sluggers in the NL Central.  And it’s all about how you wear your uniform.

Here’s a quote from St. Louis Cardinals 1B Albert Pujols in an interview with USA Today …

“I see teams take their jerseys out when the game is over,” he says. “To me, that’s not professional. I don’t care what you do when you get off the field, but don’t do it on the field.”

“You don’t want kids to see negative things.”

Intriguingly, Pujols didn’t name any of those teams who “take their jerseys out” … or even one team … so we’ll do it for you. 

It’s the Milwaukee Brewers, a team once again vying with the Cardinals for the NL Central crown.  And there was bad blood from the Cardinals last year about the untucking practice, too.  Last fall, Cardinals TV Announcer Rick Horton said it was the most disrespectful thing he’s ever seen (that’s from memory – I don’t have a quote). 

Keeping that in mind, let’s go back to last Monday’s Home Run Derby.  In Busch Stadium, home of Albert Pujols and his St. Louis Cardinals.

Who won that contest?  Oh yeah … Prince Fielder of the aforementioned Brewers … and known shirt untucker after game-winning Home Runs.

OH-NO-HE-DIDN’T just untuck his jersey … (more…)

That might be the longest post title I’ve ever written at Home Run Derby.  But I’m not about to go back and check.

Anyway, the First Half of the season is complete.  Which means it’s time to dole out some cash.

Congratulations to DAVID WRIGHT CAN BITE ME!  DWCBM finished the season with 261 Home Runs.  He’ll be rewarded with $250 for his finish atop the standings.

Lesser props to Aural Sects (260 HR and $100) and The Heavy Hitters (259 HR and $50) who finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively.  In the end, a mere two Home Runs separated 1st place from Third Place.

Going into the last day before the All-Star Break, it was pretty tight atop the leaderboard.  David Wright can Bite Me and Aural Sects both had 259 HR with Heavy Hitters a mere three dingers back at 256.  Anything could happen. 

But through 15 games on Sunday, the leaderboard hadn’t seen much action.  Only two balls had left the building for the top three.  One by Jim Thome for Heavy Hitters and one by Nelson Cruz for Aural Sects and nada for DWCBM.  Which meant that heading into the Sunday Night showdown betweeb the Cubs and Cardinals … Aural Sects had the lead, 260-259 over DWCBM.  Heavy Hitters was at 257 with no chance of catching DWCBM.

Both teams had Albert Pujols.  Only Aramis Ramirez or Ryan Ludwick could save the day for David Wright can Bite Me.  And damned if he didn’t do it with two Home Runs against the Cubs.  One HR would have been sufficient, since DWCBM held the AB/HR tiebreaker … but Ludwick erased any doubt of who the 2009 1st Half Champion was …. David Wright Can Bite Me.

This first half will be pretty sweet for Nick the Greek, who’s watched the real David Wright become a non-force in the Derby (only 5 HR) – but even morseo when he finds out who the owner of Aural Sects is. 

It’s about time one of the original members of this fair Home Run Derby contest made it back on the wall of the HRD Hall of Fame.  Even better that it was two of them.

Mind you, it was the lowest total for a 1st Half Champion since 2004.

DWCBM will look to be complete the first HRD Sweep in four years.  But it won’t be easy … as the past three years, the First Half Champ has not won either the Second Half or Full Season Crown.

Everyone in the Derby has a shot at the Second Half Crown, as we start at zero.  Plus, there’s three monthly prizes to compete for as well.

Everyone has a chance to win something.  Keep paying attention … and thanks for playing!

So President Obama is a big fan of the Chicago White Sox.  

Or so he tells and shows us.  Over and Over.

Like last night during the All-Star game when he wore his White Sox jacket to throw out the first pitch (not so sure I liked that) and told Joe Buck and Tim “Corpse” McCarver he was a fan of the White Sox.

Not to mention a few times on the campaign trail last spring, summer, and fall.  And an interview on ESPN where he took a few digs at Cub fans.

But if he’s such a big White Sox fan, why doesn’t he know the name of their home stadium? 

Case in point:  President Obama referred the White Sox’ ballpark as ”Cominskey Field” during an interview on MLB TV with Bob Costas.  It used to be called Comiskey Park.

Roll Video …

http://www.dailymotion.com/videox9vh4r 

“I do think that there’s a different quality to what used to be Cominskey Field vs. Wrigley”

Oh boy.  That’s like calling the Cubs’ stadium “Wrigley Park” instead of “The World’s Largest Outdoor Bar.”   A White Sox fan would rip a new backside into any Cub fan who did that.

Even if he had said “Cominskey Park”, I could see it as a slip of the tongue.  But Cominskey FIELD?   Obama moved to Chicago in 1985.  Back when the old Comiskey Park was still around. 

Teleprompter comment in 3 … 2 … 1 …

Well yeah, Prince Fielder won the MLB Home Run Derby Contest … but who cares about him?

Congratulations to Wendy H, who won HomerDerby.com’s 2009 Home Run Derby Contest!! 

Her entry, Woo Woo Crew, had the most Home Runs (53) and won the contest on a tiebreaker.

Here’s her selections:

• First Round: Albert Pujols (7)*, Prince Fielder (11), Nelson Cruz (11), Carlos Pena (6)*
• Second Round: Albert Pujols (6), Prince Fielder (6)
• Champion: Prince Fielder (6)
• Tiebreaker – HR Derby Champ Total HR:  16

*Includes Bat-Off HRs.

It came down to the first tiebreaker.  Failcouer Forever also had 53 HR, but predicted a total of 37 Home Runs for the HR Derby Champion.  Prince Fielder hit 23 bombs.  Woo Woo Crew was off by 7.  Failcouer Forever was off by 14.  Woo Woo wins. 

Here’s the comparison of their teams  …

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Tonight, President Barack Obama will throw out the first pitch at the 2009 All-Star Game in St. Louis.  He’ll be the first sitting president to throw out a pitch at an ASG since Gerald Ford in the 1970’s.

There will be much pomp and circumstance and many Cardinals fans will cheer very loudly for our Commander-in-Chief as he throws out the first pitch … even though it will kill any chance the Cardinals have for winning the World Series in 2009. 

Why?  

Well, no MLB team that’s had a sitting President throw out the first pitch at a game in their Home Stadium has won that year’s World Series in over 77 years.

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