Speaking of young players, the Twins are special.

Good deal, Chuck !
Good arms, but still need bats.

Come on, they also have this kid that threw a no-hitter this year. . . although he did it for the Marlins. :(

I'm willing to bet a little bit of money that we're going to find out that Manny's injury is more serious than has been acknowledged so far. Sometime this winter, you're going to hear that the "pull" or "tweak" or whatever needs minor surgery. Just my hunch.

Cardinals sure are trying really hard to give away the Central.

Tigers
 

Playing in October.
Pretty cool !

Dang !
 

Gibbons calls foul after plunking wife with ball


Associated Press

<!-- dateline -->Baltimore<!-- /dateline --> — The odds of such an occurrence seem insurmountable, yet Jay Gibbons pulled off the unimaginable feat: He hit a foul ball that injured his wife.
The scene occurred in the ninth inning of the Baltimore Orioles' game against Minnesota on Saturday. Gibbons fouled a ball straight back over the screen and into the rib cage of his wife, Laura.
"She's just a little bruised up. She's going to be OK," Gibbons said Sunday.
Long before the matter became personal, Gibbons had asked team officials to do something about making it safer to sit in the seats behind the plate. He contended that the 20-foot screen just doesn't offer enough protection from hard-hit foul balls.

"It's something you think about every day here. Obviously, it's something I've talked about (to) deaf ears," said Gibbons, Baltimore's designated hitter and player representative. "I've got players coming to me every day saying that one of their family members got hit or almost got hit. I had an usher take one for my wife the other day."

Gibbons has suggested that the screen be raised or that the team insert an overhead screen that would extend to the back of the lower deck.
"If they're worried about the sight line, which I've heard, all they have to do is throw a net straight back. One of these days, somebody's going to get hurt really bad. That's all I've got to say," Gibbons said. "I'm confused on what's going on (and) why it's so hard just to make an adjustment. It's just a matter of time where a kid's going to get hit."
Gibbons has also inquired about the possibility of a day care center, so the players' wives don't have to put their kids at risk.
"It's either come to the game and play Russian Roulette with your 3-year-old or stay home," Gibbons said. "That's what we're dealing with. Or move the family section, but then you've got other fans that are endangered."

That's a little scary. My wife and I attended a game at Fenway several years ago. We were seated about 8 rows behind the Red Sox dugout, at the end nearer to home plate. A line drive foul ball struck a woman in the shoulder one row in front of us; it bounced off her, missed my wife's nose by 2 inches and struck the man seated next to her in the head, breaking his glasses. That was a shaky moment.

I think it's only going to take one lawsuit before all the MLB teams extend the netting all the way down the right and left field lines, as (I think) is done in Japan.

Sitting near the Yankees dugout in NY a number of years ago I saw a woman take a high throw from the shortstop off her forehead between innings. She was just to the left of us. They eventually wheeled her out.

The guy next to my wife was able to walk out eventually, but the ball broke his glasses and the frame cut him right on the temple, and he was bleeding from his head. It was ugly. He came back near the end of the game and said they hadn't even given him a ball or souvenir or anything for his trouble. I was kind of surprised about that.

Hey, he got free bandages, didn't he?

Some people are never satisfied.:rolleyes:

I dunno, Chuck.
Drawing the parameters of a "Thanks-for playing" free gift would probably be pretty tough.

Not only that...he got them all bloodied.

Some people... :rolleyes:

Yeah, and he's probably one of them "elitist pricks" that I've read so much about too.....

A pretty good baseball season is winding down.
1. It seems that no one will win 100 games.
2. The Atlanta Braves will not be in the postseason for the first time since 1991.
3. The NL wildcard is truly wild. A three team tie between SD, LA, and Phi is possible. Would they then have two single-elimination playoff games? Chuck, help!
4. Ryan Howard still might hit 61 HRs.
5. I hope that Clemens isn't finished. He sure is fun to watch. He pitched the first MLB game that I ever attended!
6. I hope that Liriano isn't finished. He has barely begun.
7. Mets, Tigers, and Twins ... oh, my! :) Pleasant suprises and overachievers.
8. Red Sox, Braves, and Cubs ... oh, my! :( Major disappointments.
9. My Cy Young picks: Santana and Zambrano
10. My MVP picks: Santana and Ryan Howard (That's right, I chose a pitcher! He was that good and if he wins tomorrow and pitches again on Saturday or Sunday, he could still win 20. They may hold him back to set the rotation for the postseason though.)