R.I.P Fernando Valenzuela

 Six-time All-Star, two-time World Series Champion, Rookie of the Year and Cy Young winning pitcher Fernando Valenzuela passed away on October 22. His M LB record of 173-153 was good enough to have him inducted into the Mexican Professional Baseball Hall of Fame. Fernando was a broadcaster for the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2003 through this past season.

                                            Dodgers tribute prior to Game One of the World Series

Completing No-Hitter

He will be missed by baseball fans, former players, family and friends.

R.I.P Don Sutton

Baseball Hall of Fame member and four time All-Star pitcher Don Sutton died yesterday at the age of 75 due to cancer.  He pitched for 23 seasons in the major leagues mostly with the Los Angeles Dodgers where his number 20 jersey is retired. Sutton also pitched for the Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Oakland Athletics and California Angels.

He was a 300 game winner pitching 324 wins in his career. He only had one 20 win season. However he pitched five no hitters and 58 shutouts. He also threw 3574 strikeouts during his successful career. In his post playing career Sutton was elected to the Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame as a broadcaster.

                                                 His Hall of Fame induction speech...

A tribute from MLB Tonight...

Don Sutton will be missed by his family, friends, and fans. 

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers

 Covid 19 has been terrible for sports, especially Major League Baseball. Empty stadiums, a shorten season, no All Star game, and a World Series played at a neutral site are four glaring reasons it has been bad for baseball. However, 2020 is proving to be a great year for the city of Los Angeles as the Lakers won the NBA title and now the Dodgers have won the World Series.

The Dodgers won the series in six games a week ago today. They bested the Tampa Bay Rays  who had a great Cinderella season with a very low payroll. 

The Dodgers won game one 8 to 3, below are the highlights...

Tampa Bay won game two 6-4

Game three the Dodgers won 6-2

Game four Tampa Bay won 8-7

Game five Los Angeles won 4-2

Game six the Dodgers won 3-1

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Dodgers! Hopefully baseball and the world will have a better 2021!

The Trade Deadline: One of Baseball's Interesting Days

Today is Major League Baseball's trade deadline. Sure trades can happen after the deadline but players need to pass through waivers. This is the time of year for the blockbuster trades.

The Toronto Blue Jays traded for David Price an ace pitcher for the Detroit Tigers. Highlights from 2014..

The San Francisco Giants traded for a Mike Leake a starting pitcher with a 9-5 record with the Cincinnati Reds.

The Giants and Braves were involved in a huge trade. Cole Hamels from the Philadelphia Phillies was traded in an eight player deal with the Texas Rangers..

What do you think the biggest trade was? What trade do you wish happened? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. See you soon with a new post!

R.I.P Bob Welch

Bob Welch passed away yesterday from a heart attack. Welch is perhaps best known for ending game two of the 1978 World Series by striking out Mr. October himself Reggie Jackson.

Bob Welch pitching his famous strike out...

Bob Welch won 211 games pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Oakland A's. Welch was a two time All-Star and a Cy Young winner. He pitched for four World Series squads.

A news report of his death...

Bob Welch had his best season when he won an amazing 27 games in 1990. He finished the year 27-6 with a 2.95 ERA and the Cy Young Award.

Bob Welch passed away at the age of 57. At times he battled his demons, may he rest in peace.

The Trade Deadline

I love this day in baseball! Teams give up on the season while other teams try to scramble to find the missing piece or pieces to make a run.Big name players are sent away to shred payroll, for prospects, and new hope. As a fan it is kind of fun to see where your favorite players end up. It is also fun to see if your team ended up being buyers or sellers.

Biggest Fire Sale appears to be happening in Philadelphia. The Phillies have traded their center fielder Shane Victorino to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a relief pitcher and a prospect. Here are some highlights from Shane..

Shane's team mate Hunter Pence was traded to the San Francisco Giants for an outfielder and two prospects. Here is Hunter Pence in action..

With about an hour and fifteen minutes left the Phillies might not be done..

Last night the Chicago Cubs sent pitcher Paul Maholm (9-6) and outfielder Reed Johnson to the Atlanta Braves for a couple of players.

I love it and there are still deals being made! 

R.I.P. Duke Snider

Duke Snider played in a baseball era before I was born. However, there were baseball greats long before I was born. Part of being a sports fan is not only to appreciate the current game but to appreciate the legends who came before. Heck, with the recent tarnished image of some modern day players, the past might be a place to find true heroes of the game.

So, no I don't have any first person memories of Duke Snider. I know he is a hall of fame player who played for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers. I know Duke is considered one of the greatest center fielders. He batted .295 for his career which is worthy of the Hall of Fame. He belted 407 career home runs, which by today's standards might be border line. His best season might have been 1955 when he hit .309 with 42 homers and 136 runs batted in. That year he helped the Dodgers beat their cross town rivals the Yankees for the World Series. He hit 40 home runs in five straight years showing a time span of power dominance worthy of the Hall of Fame. His resume also included being an eight time all-star. He won two World Series and appeared in six world championships.

Fans of the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers are feeling a little sad today as they certainly have the Blues with the passing of Duke Snider. Duke lived a long live reaching the age of 84 and died of natural causes. Snider was able to live a long live.