Ichiro closes in in 3,000 hits... sorta

Not to take anything away from Ichiro, but MLB is trying to hype up a milestone of 3,000 hits split between Japan and the United States.

From MLB.com:

Heading into Friday night's series opener against the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre, where he is a .333 career hitter, Ichiro has 2,995 hits as a professional.

But his achievement has an unusual breakdown, with 1,278 during his career with the Orix Blue Wave of Japan's Pacific League, and another 1,717 with Seattle after coming across the Pacific in 2001.

So, five hits from now, we'll have an odd little statistical burp for SportsCenter to mention.

In honor of this, I was trying to find the account of Lou Piniella managing Ichiro in his first Spring Training - after he signed for the low, low price of $14 million in posting fees - when no one knew how good Ichiro really was.

Of course, I'll find this story tomorrow by accident, but the basics are that Ichiro kept slapping the ball to left field time after time during his first few weeks of training. It got to the point that Piniella sat Ichiro down and asked if he could pull the ball or if that was as much as the Mariners could expect from their new bonus baby.

Ichiro calmly explained that he was trying to be as boring as possible at the plate so that opposing pitchers wouldn't be able to get a book on him until the season began.

This is what I love about Ichiro - he's such a talented and mysterious character that stories like that are completely believeable and only add to his legend.

When Wayne Gretzky was still Canada's treasure and was driving to a game with his agent, they were talking about the last game, where Gretzky had scored from an impossible angle. His agent couldn't figure out how the puck got past the goalie and a sleepy superstar told him that it was simple - he just needed to put the puck up on its side to have enough room before drifting off to sleep.

Whether or not Gretzky could actually do that is beside the point, much like Ichiro's ability to seemingly place a ball with his bat more accurately than many players are able to do with their arms.

So, whether or not this milestone causes more than a small stir with fans is irrelevant. It's all about what he appears to be capable of. Personally, I'll just wait a bit for him to hit 3,000 all on one continent - I have a feeling it won't be very long.

(Image from: NYTimes.com)

ESPN debates who sucks worst/most

ESPN.com took time out Tuesday to open the debate on which MLB team has been the biggest disappointment this year with two months in the books.

While perennial basement dwellers like Florida and Tampa have surged out of the gate and proven their worth, some big name clubs - most notably the Mets, Tigers and Indians - have not lived up to their preseason hype.

In all honesty, I think the Tigers still have time to turn things around but they might be lacking the know-how to do so. I see it as the Yankee syndrome, where the team is built of All-Stars who don't know how to play together until mid-June and then finds a way to turn the season around.

The hitch with that is the Tigers don't have the star power New York traditionally has and the two big imports in Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera are injured and struggling.

The Mets are a bigger surprise after bringing back the core of a powerful 2007 team and adding one of the best pitchers in the game. With fans calling for the manager's firing and the usual menu of New York based craziness in the media, this can get out of contrl quickly if the team doesn't start performing soon.

Yet, despite these two front-runners for "Bust of the Year," ESPN came to the conclusion that Seattle is the biggest letdown so far.

Seattle?

Citing the worst record in baseball (OK, that's valid) and the signings of Erik Bedard and Carlos Silva, the Mariners were awarded the dishonor of being the biggest letdown to date.

That just makes no sense, especially compared with the other teams in the mix. While signing Bedard was a coup in the offseason, Silva is hardly a difference maker, despite what some of his career numbers might suggest.

No one expected the Mariners to win their division, much less the pennant, while the same can't be said for Detroit or New York.

Of course, the whole point will be moot in another month or so when another frontrunner falls by the wayside and the baseball world throws up its collective hands and asks, "How could that happen?"

The same way it always does - a lack of timely hitting, pitchers that can't locate their pitches and stupid fielding mistakes. There, I've successfully predicted the future - someone hook me up with my own 900 number so I can compete with Miss Cleo.

(Image from: ESPN.com)

What the hell is that on your hand, Ichiro?

I'm watching tonight's game between the White Sox and the Mariners and the Chicago announcers begin discussing the wonder that is Ichiro, as required by law as part of MLB's anti-trust agreement.

Ichiro is basically just standing around in the outfield waiting for the next pitch, when he starts fiddling with his glove. (Screen capture at right.)

Only, it looks weird - much like a combination bat wing and spider web. Apparently, it's a production item by Mizuno, but damn if it doesn't look strange out there on TV.

According to Mizuno's web site, Miguel Tejada, Scott Rolen and Chipper Jones also use Mizuno, though not the same model - the GCP51 - which has been around since 2006.

Still, I can't remember seeing this thing before tonight. I've got to start paying better attention during games, and by that, I mean I've got to stop taking hourlong naps at several intervals throughout the afternoon and evening when games are being played.

(Image from WGN TV)

The Piranas of September

It's raining in New York today with the Twins up on the Yankees in the eighth inning (note: this is how the game ended when it was called) and it seemed as good a time as any to get some thoughts in about the upcoming stadium here in the Twin Cities.

After a trip to the state fair this morning, I saw new shirts from the Twins marketing department for this year's gimmick (the pirana bit) and the signs for the upcoming seasons in the sun.

Event staff shirts had slogans like "Take home a souvenir sunburn" and I think that's the thing that I'd be most excited for if I was a fan who had been sentenced to indoor ball for 20-plus years.

Where's the fun in sneaking out of work early for a day game if you have to go sit in a ball mall? Some of my favorite memories of ballgames involve being out in the sun and fresh air with the wind blowing out to or in from the lake or just outright inclement weather.

Those of us who grew up outside of domed stadiums can't really process how much games blend into each other when the scenery never changes, except for the tint of the roof. Day game or night? Was it summer or early fall? Was it so cold you ducked out in the seventh or such a nice night that you stayed until the ushers shooed you from the upper deck seats?

These are the things you miss out on until you get a fresh air and green grass stadium. (Speaking of which, have you seen the Arizona Cardinals new digs? I love the rolling turf idea, it seems so cool.)

So while a home of their own is exciting in and of itself, I hope that all of the trappings that come with the new park will be the real draw once the idea catches on.

Imagine a whole generation of fans who have never known games that can be impacted by the elements or even the simple pleasure of being able to come into work the morning after a day game with a nasty sunburn and a self-satisfied grin.

* Yes, I know it's been quiet here at the dumping ground, but in addition to life getting busy, it's tough to find the motivation to spend some time thinking about baseball when your soul is being ripped into ticker tape confetti by your team and the forces of nature.

In the last two weeks there was a five-game tanking againast the Yankees as the Red Sox fell from playoff contention faster than it takes corn to pass through my digestive tract.

On top of that, the two star sluggers are out with a heart problem and a mystery ailment, Wily Mo hopped the flight with Manny for the hell of it, Papelbon got hurt last night and Jon Lester has cancer.

No really, he has cancer.

These things never happen to the Mariners or the Reds, do they?

At least I should be able to watch the playoffs with a more critical eye this year, right?

* And finally, Jesus, what happened to the Braves this year?

Could one borderline autistic old man and his handling of a pitching staff make such a difference?
Huh, who knew?

(Image from: edenprairieweblogs.org)