History

As December dawns, Major League Baseball holds its collective breath. Next week at the Winter Meetings, rumors will fly, and both players and money will change hands. Trades will come to completion, and free-agent negotiations will advance rapidly.

Few teams have dominated a World Series the way the Los Angeles Dodgers dominated in 1963.

The Dodgers won 99 games during the season, and faced the defending World Champion Yankees in the Series for the first time since they abandoned Brooklyn.

Outstanding Los Angeles Pitching

Sandy Koufax had the first of his four outstanding years, going 25-5 with a minuscule 1.88 ERA, a 159 ERA+, and an 0.875 WHIP.

Welcome to another edition of Thaddeus' Tampa Bay Rays Offseason Report. Each and every Friday, we're going to recap the moves, trades, signings, and other nonsense of the previous week in the wonderful world of Tampa Bay baseball; keeping you, Dear Reader, up to date with the team until Opening Day in April 2010 against the Baltimore Orioles.

In 1996, Ken Caminiti had a career year, batting .326, hitting 40 home runs, and batting in 130 runs. Ken had a .408 on base average, slugged .621. and won his second consecutive gold glove.

As a result of his great season, Ken Caminiti was selected the National League's Most Valuable Player by a unanimous vote. It was only the fourth time a National Leaguer won the award unanimously (Orlando Cepeda, 1967, Mike Schmidt, 1980, Jeff Bagwell, 1994).

The Five Great Pitching Trios

It hasn’t occurred very often that three pitchers rise to the challenge and cause a team to ascend to great heights because of their efforts. The stars aligned for this to occur about once an era. 

The formula would be something like this—you take a staff ace, a great pitcher, bring up a good rookie, and trade for a promising pitcher someone else might not value so much. Every once in a while everything clicked.

There wasn't a murmur of protest.

In 1934, Lou Gehrig won the American League's Triple Crown, batting .363, hitting a career high 49 home runs, and driving in 165 runs.

Detroit Tigers' playing manager, Mickey Cochrane, was voted the American League's Most Valuable Player.

As you know, Albert Pujols won his second consecutive National League Most Valuable Player Award. He didn't just win it, he won it unanimously. Every single voter had him as their No. 1 pick.

Pujols' exploits have been well chronicled. I think he is the best baseball player who is currently playing baseball on Planet Earth. Some would disagree, but that is the prerogative of baseball fans everywhere.

While we shower Prince Albert with praise that he is absolutely deserving of, I would like to ask a question. Is he the best player to ever play for the St. Louis Cardinals?  

There was no World Champion of baseball in 1994 because the baseball owners wanted to eliminate both the free agent system and salary arbitration. The players' reaction was swift and forceful.

At the completion of games on August 12, baseball had another strike.

Replacement Player Threat

On March 30, 1995, 26 of the 28 baseball owners voted to use replacement players if their dispute with Don Fehr's union could not be resolved by the start of the season.

Three weeks ago, a great deal of the discussion surrounding the Yankees 27th World Championship was about "The Core Four."

Much was made about how Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, and Jorge Posada had remained together since the minor leagues and that they had been instrumental in five world championships in the Bronx.

Forget about Pettitte leaving for three years to go to Houston. Andy has to be considered a key to the Yankees winning these five titles. He was a big-game pitcher in 1996 and contributed to the titles won in 1998, 1999. and 2000. 

The 1952 World Series is usually remembered for Billy Martin's great catch of a Jackie Robinson pop fly with the bases loaded and two outs in the seventh inning of the seventh game.

The catch saved the Series for the Yankees, but the 1952 World Series was memorable in many other ways.

Joe Black Started and Finished Game 1

Rookie right hander Joe Black started Game1 at Ebbets Field against Yankees' ace Allie Reynolds.