History

There are times when an idea, a theory, or a point needs to be made with extensive evidence, logic, and explanation. The idea/theory/point can be so subtle, so complex, so involved, that the importance of it is not immediately clear. Some ideas take a lifetime to understand.

I am not here today with such an idea.

This week it was announced that a grand jury is indicting Roger Clemens for lying to congress. Really. In this economy. 

Glad to know we're keeping on top of the things that are important.

I've been very clear in several articles that I think we need to give up the war on PED's because it will never work. But even if you believe that drug testing in sports can work, you have to admit that prosecutions like this one are frivolous.

The 1919 Black Sox scandal is unarguably one of the worst moments in all of baseball history. It ended the careers of many all-time great players—players who would have been first ballot Hall of Famers who were forced to retire from the game.

The mastermind behind this was first baseman Chick Gandil, helped by professional gambler Joseph Sullivan.

Bobby Thomson didn’t hit his famous home run off a tee, in case you were wondering.

Nor did he flip the ball into the air, fungo-style, and swat it over the left field wall at the Polo Grounds on October 3, 1951.

Most of the great history makers had sidekicks.

Charles Lindbergh had the Atlantic—and his plane. Dr. Jonas Salk had mold. Elvis Presley had his hips.

And Bobby Thomson had Ralph Branca.

The Oakland A's took the first two games of the 1972 World Series from the favored Cincinnati Reds in Cincinnati. The A's were in an enviable position since no team had ever lost the first two games at home and won the Series.

The teams traveled to Oakland for the next three games, but rain caused the third game to be moved up a day.

Every year a new group of youngsters get their chance to showcase their talents in Williamsport at the Little League World Series—kids that we watch in awe as they amaze us with their bats and arms. 

Where do they go?

When all is said and done, these kids usually fade into the background. Doesn't anyone ever wonder what happened to these players who gave their all at a young age?

Here is a list of five players that played in the Little League World Series and where they are now.

On Wednesday, the Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs completed a deal to send first baseman Derrek Lee to Atlanta for three pitching prospects. 

The Braves needed a first baseman with some pop to complement Troy Glaus' decision to rehab in the minors and readjust himself to third base.  Lee and Glaus could also platoon, giving Glaus the time to rest his knees and give both guys solid playing time. 

In his rookie season of 1952, Joe Black won 15 games for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He lost only four times, pitched to an ERA of 2.15, an ERA+ of 171, and helped the Dodgers win the pennant.

Black was voted the National League's Rookie of the Year, and finished third in the MVP balloting.

Black was Brooklyn's top relief pitcher. He appeared in 54 games in relief, but manager Charlie Dressen realized that he was short of starters for the upcoming World Series against New York's other team, the New York Yankees.

The ultimate hero of the 1951 NL pennant race has passed away.  Bobby Thomson, the Flying Scotsman, died peacefully Monday night at his home in Savannah, Georgia.  Thomson played 15 seasons for 5 teams but is best remembered for his "Shot Heard Round the World" in the 3rd and deciding game of the 1951 NL playoffs. Thomson's three-run blast in the bottom of the ninth inning capped what is thought by many to be the greatest pennant race in the history of baseball.

The San Francisco Giants were in New York—not to face New York's most beloved team, as they usually did, but to face the New York Yankees on the weekend of June 7, 2002.

The visit marked the first time in 40 years that the Giants had returned to Yankee Stadium, but it seemed as if time stood still when the Yankees won the Friday night game, 2-1, in front of 55,053 fans.

Barry Bonds changed that the next day when he faced Yankees left-hander Ted Lilly in the first inning.