English is Back: Catching the Baseball Fever - Again [J. Mark English]

I'm back from vacation, I'm rested, and ready to start watching baseball again on a nightly basis. I've taken a break from the monotonous bseason, to focus on other things such as going to the beach, boating, drinking with friends and just freeing my mind.

Now its time for me to start scheduling in time to watch every Mets game, set the TIVO to record Baseball Tonight, and gear up for the pennant races, all of which seem to be going down to the wire.

What a time to pick up things up again. Last night the Mets played a seesaw game against the San Diego Padres. The Mets lit up pitcher Chris Young, who has sparkled this season. They got to him early behind the resurgent hitting of Carlos Beltran who has finally regained his 2006 form. After being up 4-1, they gave up the lead, and were forced to battle back. Newcomer, Luis Castillo drove in the winning run against the imposing closer, Trevor Hoffman. Castillo is a testament to the type of the moves the Mets have made over the past couple of weeks.

Instead of trying to give up a lot to get a bonafide starter, they instead gave up very little to get a solid second baseman with speed, great defense, and a guy who will put the ball in play with Jose Reyes on the bases. He makes the Mets pitchers better because he solidifies a strong defense. Maine, Perez, Glavine, and Hernandez can relax more with a defense like the Mets have between the bases, because they know that any ground ball will more then likely produce an out.

Pedro Martinez meanwhile looms off in the distance and provides hope that if he is able to return the Mets will feature a lofty pitching staff heading into the playoffs.

Meanwhile the Yankees suffered last night from a guy who put in a monstourous game, provided by Garret Anderson, of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California. Anderson drove in a whopping ten runs, leading the Angels past the Yankees 18-9.

Many will point out that the Yanks are being inconsistent against the good teams. No big deal. As long as the Yankees can continue to rake up victories against teams that are sub par, and just play around .500 against the good teams, the Yankees will make the playoffs.

I wrote them off earlier this season, but that was a mistake on my part.

Tom Glavine, Baseball's Last 300 Game Winner? [David Stefanini]

On Sunday, Tom Glavine became the 23rd player in Major League Baseball history to win 300 career games; and only the 5th lefty to do so. He pitched 6.1 innings, allowing just 2 runs, 6 hits, and a walk. Glavine not only pitched a magnificent game, but he also had a single which got the Mets started, scoring the first run of the ballgame.

Everything about Tom Glavine we know: he is a first ballot Hall of Famer, 300 game winner, Cy Young Award winner, 20-game winner, and has a World Series Ring. What we do not know is when or if we will ever see this magnificent milestone reached ever again.

Lets start out by looking down the list of who is close to this milestone. The closest man is Randy Johnson who has 284 career wins. He is out for the year with back surgery, and may never pitch again. He has to be considered unlikely to get to 300 wins. Next on the list is Mike Mussina, who is at win total 246. For the Moose to win 54 more games he has to start taking some serious steroids. Mussina has trouble winning games for the Yankees. He can not get to 300 wins. After him its David Wells and Jamie Moyer, who are at wins 235 and 225 respectively. Wells and Moyer are 44 years of age and do not have enough time to get to 300.

I can go on and on, but the most likely person, who has at least 200 career wins, to get to this milestone is Pedro Martinez. He is 38 years old and has 206 career wins. If he comes back healthy and the Pedro of old, he may be able to get around 20 wins for the next few seasons, putting him in contention for 300. Now I said Pedro is most likely to get to 300; but it is very unlikely that he will do so. So out of all the pitchers, 11, who have 200 career wins or higher right now non of them will likely get to this milestone.

Now we get into pitchers who have less than 200 wins. Andy Pettitte has 193, but he won't win another 107 games. The person, or people, who have the best chance of getting to 300 are C.C Sabathia and Johan Santana. Sabathia has 96 wins and Santana has 89 wins. Those two aren't even 30 years old yet and are already closing in on 100 wins. Sabathia is 26 years old while Santana is 28. If Santana gets traded, or signs, with a team that can score some runs, he will have the best chance to get to 300 wins.

So there it is folks. We are going to have to wait at least 10-15 years to see another 300 game winner. Lets enjoy this moment while it lasts.

Barry Bonds is 1 Away From Sole Place of #1 [David Stefanini]

Well ladies and gentlemen, Barry Bonds has tied Hank Aaron for first place on the all-time home run list. With the next homer Bonds hits, he will be alone atop the baseball world as the greatest home run hitter.

I suppose the world is having a hard time dealing with this. Some people out there probably wish he would have come down with a severe illness that would of forced him to retire; but he didn't. We have to just deal with and move on with the fact that Bonds has the record.

Most people around the baseball world are saying A-Rod will eventually get to whatever home run total Barry stops at, but no one can say that for sure A-Rod will ever get there. For the time being the MLB and the rest of the world is going to have to deal with the fact that Bonds is atop the baseball world. There is nothing anyone can do about it, and nothing will be done.

In the upcoming years, if it is proven he has cheated, maybe the record books will be altered. Until then we have to live with the realization. Bonds is the home run champ.

Photos: Barry Bonds Ties Hammerin' Hank [David Stefanini]

A-Rod is Youngest Ever to 500 [David Stefanini]

Alex Rodriguez has officially become the youngest player to ever hit 500 career home runs. We all knew he would eventually have this record, the question was just when. Well that question was answered in the first inning, on the very first pitch that A-Rod saw.

It is beautiful to watch a player with such a perfect swing achieve milestones like this. When A-Rod swings the bat it looks perfect. He does it with such ease he makes the players around him look bad.

However, I think there is cause for concern on behalf of Yankee nation. When the pressure was on for him to get this home run it took him forever. It put him into a career-tying long 0-21 slump. The past few games he started swinging the bat well though. I think a lot of Yankee fans have to take a step back and say is this going to happen in October? We all know how good A-Rod is in the regular season, we now know he can be great in the 9th inning of baseball games, the question still remains can he do it in the postseason?

With all that said, we should be grateful to have the opportunity to watch A-Rod play. Now the countdown is going to be to #600. Then after that #700, and who knows from there. I look forward to seeing A-Rod play a long and healthy career. If he does that, Barry Bonds will easily be forgotten.

Photos: A-Rod Hits Number 500 [David Stefanini]

**LIVE MILESTONE ALERTS** [David Stefanini]

9:47 - A-ROD WATCH: As the Yanks are killing the White Soxs 16-3, A-Rod can not even get a hit, nevermind a HR. He is 0-5 and is likely done for tonight.

9:41 - GLAVINE WATCH: The Mets grab a 2-1 lead, so Glavine is in line for his 300th career win.

9:24 - GLAVINE WATCH: No damage done in this inning for either team. The score remains in favor of the Brewers 1-0.

9:23 - A-ROD WATCH: A-Rod hit a lazy pop-up just out of the infield. He is 0-4 in the game and stuck on 499 career home runs.

9:22 - GLAVINE WATCH: The Mets can not get Glavine any help. They are losing 1-0.

9:14 - GLAVINE WATCH: Glavine got through the inning by giving up only 1 run. However, the whole story is more telling, it looks like he lost the strike zone. On a 3-0 pitch, a Brewer swung and popped the ball straight up on a pitch that was clearly ball 4. Glavine needs to find the strike zone soon. Brewers lead 1-0.

9:06 - GLAVINE WATCH: After a lead-off walk, then a base hit that was turned into a double by Moises Alou slipping in the outfield, the Brewers get the first run of the game on the board. The Brewers take the lead 1-0.

9:03 - GLAVINE WATCH: Nothing happening in the top of the 4th, score remains tied at 0.

8:49 - GLAVINE WATCH: The Brewers finally got a runner on base. However he stayed at first, and no damage was done. Glavine hasn't allowed a hit through 3 innings. The score remains 0-0.

8:43 - GLAVINE WATCH: The Mets went down in order again, leaving the score tied at 0 going into the bottom of the 3rd inning.

8:40 - A-ROD WATCH: He came so close to hitting it again. Instead Dye makes an amazing catch running into the wall and A-Rod is 0-3 in the game.

8:37 - GLAVINE WATCH: Glavine sits the Brewers down in order again. He is perfect through 2 innings. The score is 0-0.

8:29 - GLAVINE WATCH: The Mets go down 1-2-3 in their half of the 2nd inning. The score remains 0-0.

8:21 - GLAVINE WATCH: Tom Glavine pitched a 1-2-3 first inning. The score is tied 0-0.

8:14 - A-ROD WATCH: A-Rod just hit a ball about 400 ft, but unfortunately to the wrong part of the ballpark. It was a fly out leaving him 0-2 for the game.

Around the Baseball World 7.27.2007 [David Stefanini]

Barry Bonds hit career home run #754 tonight, leaving him 1 homer shy of tying the record. This topic has been beaten to death by the media. The game is still in progress and if Bonds is to tie the record I will immediately let everyone know.

As far as big named pitchers go, Randy Johnson is going to have season ending back surgery. The surgery is going to be a major operation that is going to take a lot of time to heal. Johnson said, "I have no intention at this time of retiring" Why not? What let does he have to prove in his career? He is going to go down as one of the best pitchers in the history of the game. He has won the major titles in his professional career. Go home Randy and enjoy the day you get accepted into the Hall of Fame.

Video: Metropolitan Origins [J. Mark English]

As the Philadelphia Phillies fast approach their 10,000th loss, and I'll leave that subject to Chrissy, I wanted to explore more about the history of my favorite team, the New York Mets. Ineptitude is no stranger to the New York Mets franchise. The only luck they had between 1962-1968 was bad luck. This is a clip from the Ken Burns documentary, Baseball, which covers the beginning years of a struggling franchise. Some of the quotes that Casey Stengal uses are priceless. Anyone who is used to rooting for a losing team can appreciate the humor. Enjoy:

Through Baseball, Virgina Tech Feels Normalcy [J. Mark English]

Years ago, I lost someone very close to me through suicide. The biggest challenge of recovering from a loss like that is getting back into normal routines. That spring I tried out for my school's baseball team. The process of playing baseball and attending practice every day had a cathartic feel. It helped bring a sense of normalcy that I desperately needed.

Last night Virginia Tech took its first step towards that path. Its baseball team played its first game since the terrible tragedy on Monday. Here with the recap is Hokie Sports:

An English Field record 3,132 fans turned out on Friday night to witness the first Virginia Tech athletic event in Blacksburg since Monday's tragic events, and they nearly saw the Hokies pull off the improbable before falling 11-9 to the Miami Hurricanes in Atlantic Coast Conference baseball action.

Down 10-5 in the eighth inning, Tech mounted a furious comeback that was cut just short by an incredible catch at the wall that robbed Tech shortstop Warren Schaeffer of a game-tying home run.

The Hokies (17-21, 4-15 ACC) came to the plate in the bottom of the ninth down 11-8, and came within inches of tying it up. Centerfielder Nate Parks (Roanoke, Va.) hit a one-out single before stealing second, and moved to third on first baseman Sean O'Brien's ground out. Third baseman Bryan Thomas (Wilmington, N.C.) stroked a single to left to plate Parks, bringing shortstop Warren Schaeffer (Vandergrift, Pa.) to the plate. The senior launched what looked to be a sure home run to deep left field, but Miami left fielder Nick Freitas leapt at the wall to pull the ball back into the park and end the game.