Baseball

Even though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will not falter, for You are with me.

Psalm 23

On September 11th, 2001, four airplanes were hijacked by terrorists from the group Al Qaeda. The planes were destined for the Pentagon, either the White House or the Capitol Building, and the other two were to strike the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

Three of the planes made it to their destinations. The one heading to the White House was brought down in Pennsylvania by brave passengers.

If you’ve followed the National League West this season, complete this sentence:

While the rest of the town is obsessed with Brad Lidge-gate, the Phillies have a job at hand and it's manager Charlie Manuel's job to keep the troops ready for action.

The New York Mets come to town for a four-game series. What is at stake for the Phillies is getting closer to clinching the National League East pennant and keeping the Florida Marlins and Atlanta Braves at arm's length.

For the Mets, it is a chance at redemption, if only for the weekend. The Mets, 62-78, lost three to the Marlins, who are five games behind the Phillies.

The Los Angeles Angels are currently in 1st place in the AL West and could represent the American League in the World Series.

The Angels are not out of the woods yet in the West as the Texas Rangers are playing well and still making a charge. The Angels are in good position to make the playoffs as a division winner or wild card with the regular season getting shorter everyday.

A good Hall of Fame doesn't just collect the best of the best. That's why we all think Ron Santo belongs in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame. Santo is not an elite player, not one of the true greats of the game's history, but he exemplifies, no embodies what baseball should be all about. He hustled; he had fun playing the game; he showed intensity, even fire. And he also did everything well on both sides of the ball.

I remember it vividly. I was in my sixth grade gym class when our gym teacher got a phone call. We were young, so hearing a phone ring in the middle of class was unusual and the class broke into laughter as we listened to the teachers ring tone go off.

He walked back into the gym after being on the phone for a little over a minute with a distraught look in his face. “A plane just crashed into one of the Twin Towers,” he said in his deep Yugoslavian accent.

It was Sept. 11th, 2001.

Never let it be said that my fear of the Baseball Gods' wrath is phobic. Exaggerated perhaps, but certainly not unfounded or illogical.

"As a die-hard San Francisco Giant fan with a long memory pockmarked by devastation, I'm trying not to get too excited. But it's getting harder and harder..."

I wrote those words to end an article about Brad Penny's resplendent debut against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Let the Matt Holliday free agent speculation begin. From Buster Olney:

"But I'll venture a guess (and it's nothing more at this point): Holliday winds up signing with the Angels, effectively replacing Vladimir Guerrero within their salary structure."

Now comes the obvious question: could it actually happen?

Sure, the Mets are out of it. Everyone has been injured. The manager is still a disaster, and there is still no obvious plan in place going forward. So what should we watch when we’re drawn in to watching baseball? What should we be rooting for?

Big news this week as Spot Starters favorite, Derek Jeter, tied Lou Gehrig for the most hits ever in a Yankees uniform with 2,721 hits. 

That’s an impressive total and Jeter and Gehrig each had phenomenal careers.  Gehrig is in the Hall of Fame and Jeter is as close to a Hall of Fame lock as you can find.  However, did you know that three Tigers had more hits wearing the Old English D as Jeter and Gehrig have had in Pinstripes.

Here’s the rundown on the Tigers all-time hits leaders.  Just for fun.