Baseball

We all know the story of the 1951 New York Giants.

They mounted a historical comeback on the Brooklyn Dodgers and finally won the pennant on the final day of the season behind Bobby Thompson’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World.”

But, as it would be discovered later on, they did it with the help of a camera mounted in centerfield.

Now let’s flash forward to 2007.

The New York Yankees have been going with a three-man rotation for the entire postseason even with a fourth starter, Chad Gaudin, looming in the bullpen.

Gaudin was a midseason acquisition for the Yankees to fill a spot in the bullpen, to be a possible spot starter for the struggling Joba Chamberlain, and to fill the spot left by Phil Hughes, who has settled nicely into a setup role for Mariano Rivera.

Will the Phillies win Games Six and Seven this week at Yankee Stadium?

Probably not.

The 1985 Kansas City Royals were the last team to come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the World Series.

However, if the Phillies do pull off some kind of miracle in the Bronx, Joe Girardi’s decision to start A.J. Burnett in game five on three days rest will be second guessed all winter.

Year: 1920

Record: 61-93

Win Percentage: .396

Win Percentage Change: -.175 from season before

Run Differential: -181

Pythagorean Record: 60-94

AL Finish: Seventh of eight

Manager: Hughie Jennings

Best Transaction

One of the better Halloween costumes at my annual party this year was Matt Holliday. Pretty simple, actually. But clever.

A guy just wore a Holliday jersey tee with baseball pants that had a Wiffle ball sewn into the crotch. It was funny because it was reductively true. Matt Holliday had indeed defined his 2009 season with one ill-timed nut shot and turned a routine fly out into a holiday meme.  

Now he’s preparing to turn this moment of failure into a legacy. Move over Don Denkinger—here comes Matt Holliday.

I wrote an article last week arguing that J.A. Happ doesn't deserve the National League Rookie of the Year. Apparently, Phillies manager Charlie Manuel agrees with me.

It's already Game Six of the World Series, and J.A. Happ has yet to start a game in either the NLCS or World Series. He's been used sparingly as a mid-game reliever and in occasional situations involving left-handed batters.

John Maine has been injury riddled for most of the 2008 and 2009 seasons, but the Mets do need to make a decision on whether he fits into their plans for the starting rotation in 2010.

After Johan Santana, the Mets starting rotation in 2009 was shaky at best, and even Santana was not healthy enough to finish the season as he required elbow surgery in August.