Ten National League Milestones to Watch For

With the start of the 2012 Major League Baseball season just around the corner, it’s time to check out some upcoming milestones. And unlike past years when The Hall has broken down the season division by division…we’re going league-by-league.

Up first…the National League!

2598
With 604 career home runs, Philadelphia Phillies slugger Jim Thome is going to continue to move up the all-time home run list with every mighty swing of the bat. Almost more impressive is what he’s on the cusp of doing with every swing…and miss. The veteran enters 2012 second all-time in strikeouts with 2487. With increased playing time, Thome has an outside chance to pass Reggie Jackson on the all-time list. He would need 111 Ks.

300
After just seven seasons in the Majors, Ryan Howard is quickly climbing the active home run list. The Philadelphia Phillies first baseman is looking to return from injury and reach the 300 career home runs. The perennial MVP candidate is 14 long flies away from the milestone.

200
And speaking of the Philadelphis Phillies…ace Roy Halladay is a dozen wins away from reaching the 200. This past season, the big righty got his 12th victory shortly after the All-Star break. Also chasing down 200 career victories is Atlanta Braves pitcher Tim Hudson. Dude enters the season at 181.

88
Quietly, Dusty Baker is second in wins among all active managers and, should the Cincinnati Reds reach 88 wins…dude will leap frog a couple of Hall of Famers on the all-time list. Baker currently sits at 1484 wins…right behind Clark Griffith (1491) and Dick Williams (1571).

50
The 2012 season will also mark the 50th anniversary for the New York Mets and the Houston Astros. To celebrate their golden anniversary, the Mets will don 50th anniversary patches in place of the Mets skyline logo on their left sleeves. The Astros’ anniversary, on the other hand, looks to be a bittersweet one. Season number 51 will open with them in the American League.

49 years, 4 months and 18 days
If Jamie Moyer makes the Opening Day roster for the Colorado Rockies, he’ll start the season just north of 49 years of age. If/when he wins a game…he will become the oldest player ever to win a Major League game. Jack Quinn was 49 years, two months and 12 days old when he won his last game in 1932. On another note…15 members of the Rockies 40-man roster were born after Moyer’s big league debut.

10
More Roy Halladay? Yup. With an Opening Day start, Halladay will have started ten straight season openers. How has he fared you ask? Dude is 4-3 with a 3.75 ERA and 46 strikeouts in his previous nine Opening Day appearances between the Toronto Blue Jays and his current team, the Philadelphia Phillies.

9
Being the setup man to Milwaukee Brewers closer John Axford will certainly hinder Francisco Rodriguez from getting any saves, but should “K-Rod” get a few opportunities here and there, he’ll become the 23rd reliever in baseball history with 300 saves.

6
Here’s a fun one. Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton has hit five career home runs on his birthday. Should he go deep on August 20 he’ll get his sixth and break a tie with Al Simmons and Derrek Lee in that category.

4
Miami Marlins pitcher Ricky Nolasco is just four wins away from becoming the team’s all-time franchise leader with 68. Coincidentally, he’s also four losses away from becoming the franchise leader in that category with 55.

Tomorrow...we'll take a look at the American League!

Justin Verlander Wants to Throw Seven No-hitters

Typically, after a pitcher throws a gem of a game he's pretty humble.

Consider these quotes from Roy Halladay who, last year, threw two of baseball's best games.

After the perfect game in May:

"I don't know what to say.  Early in my bullpen I was hitting spots more than I have been. I felt like I just carried that out there."

And after the no-hitter in the Playoffs:

"It's surreal, it really is.  I just wanted to pitch here, to pitch in the postseason. To go out and have a game like that, it's a dream come true."

You'd maybe expect the same from Justin Verlander after he tossed his second career no-hitter, right?

Wrong.

"I feel like I'm coming into myself," the Detroit Tigers ace said following Saturday's game. "There is no secret where I want to be when I finish...I want to separate myself."

And when asked how many no-hitters he'd like to throw in his career?

"Seven," he quickly answered.

One can only hope that Verlander was responding with a smile on his face because, if not, it is one of those things that blurs the line between confidence and cocky.

Roy Halladay...(Im)mortal?!?

Alright…so Roy Halladay is human I guess.

We assumed that to some extent though, right?

Yes, we all saw flashes of super human activity back in May when the Philadelphia Phillies ace threw that perfect game against the Marlins. And yes, earlier this month, the righty threw, arguably, a much better game when he became just the second pitcher ever to throw a no-no in the postseason.

But let’s be fair, the dude has just those two wickedly insane outings in 322 career starts…not 322 of them.

And when he gave up those two solo shots to San Francisco outfielder Cody Ross Saturday night, it wasn’t like it was the first time someone victimized the All-World pitcher twice in one game.

Matter of fact…it was the seventh time that it has happened.

Again, the guy is human.

The Season That Was...May

With an exciting start to the baseball season in the rearview mirror...May brought just as much electricity as April. And I'm not just saying that because some dude I know put out a book.

One of The Hall's favorite players, Jamie Moyer, became the oldest pitcher in Major League history to throw a complete game shutout on May 7. Baseball's elder statesman was 47 years, 170 days when he beat the Atlanta Braves at (Senior) Citizens Bank Park.

See what I did there?

With the win, he also became the first pitcher to pitch complete game shutouts in four different decades.

On Mothers Day, with his grandmother in the stands, Oakland's Dallas Braden threw the season's first perfect game. Earlier in the season, the Michael Rappaport lookalike became an ESPN staple when he shouted down Alex Rodriguez for crossing his mound.

The HOVG Mid-Season Report

So here we are, folks…the All-Star break. What have we learned?

The Yankees, with their league-best 56-32 record are dominating their opponents. Home runs are making headlines night after night and big league umpires need, according to many fans…better glasses.

Now while you’re bound to come across plenty of first half re-caps, here are ten milestones (or stories) that The Hall of Very Good has found of particular interest.


Jason Heyward Hits Home Run in Major League Debut
With one swing of the bat, Atlanta Braves super rookie did something only 104 players had done prior to Opening Day 2010…ht a home run in his first at bat. Within weeks, three more players joined him…most notably was what Boston rookie Daniel Nava pulled off.


Mike Leake Skips Minors…Debuts in Reds Rotation
While most of the baseball world was applauding the debut of Jason Heyward and counting down the moments until Stephen Strasburg took the hill for the first time…Cincinnati starter Mike Leake was busy not playing in the Minors and taking his act to the pros, winning his first five starts in the process.


No-Hitters, Perfect and Notso Perfect Games
If one more person calls 2010 the “Year of the Pitcher” I’m going to vomit. So here we are…living in the Year of the Pitcher! Never before have we seen two perfect games (Dallas Braden and Roy Halladay), two no-hitters (Ubaldo Jimenez and Edwin Jackson) and whatever you call what Armando Galarraga pulled off…all before the All-Star break! I’m almost afraid to see what the second half of the season has in store for us.


Matt Stairs…Professional Hitter
My fascination with Matt Stairs started in his first season in the Minors…1989. More than 20 years and a Major League best 20 pinch hit home runs later…Stairs is still swinging for the fences. Matter of fact, he’s done so for more teams (11) than anyone else out there today.


Junior Retires
Fifth on the all-time home run list with 630 career bombs, "The Kid" was regarded as one of the game's premier players throughout the 1990s, nabbing ten straight Gold Gloves while playing with Seattle and being elected to start eleven straight All-Star Games. Quietly, he called it quits June 2 and made the 2016 Hall of Fame induction an easy day to schedule.


Stephen Strasburg Makes His Historic Debut
What can be written about Stephen Strasburg that hasn’t been written before? How about the fact that dude sold more jerseys (78,000) in June than any Washington National has in their history? Oh…a big thanks to those who have found The Hall while Googling “Stephen Strasburg shoe size”.


Home Run Milestones Aplenty!
Derrek Lee, Alfonso Soriano and Scott Rolen all reached the 300 home run plateau for their careers. Not to be outdone, Andruw Jones hit his 400th. The next big home run milestone on the docket? Alex Rodriguez is a mere three longballs from 600.


Jamie Moyer Becomes Home Run King
And speaking of home runs…did you hear the one about Jamie Moyer becoming the all-time leader in home runs by a pitcher. Last month, Moyer served up home run number 506 and later this month…he’ll get his AARP card. You know…because he’s old. ZING!


Jon Adkins Sets Save Record
Sure, it’s not a Major League milestone…but it IS a milestone. Good friend of The Hall, closer Jon Adkins became the all-time saves leader for the Cincinnati Red Triple-A affiliate Louisville Bats back in June. Unfortunately, Adkins won’t be able to add to his career total…the Reds released the pitcher on the eve of the Major League All-Star break Sunday night.


Goodbye, Old Friends
In a season full of memorable debuts…we’ve also seen our fair share of departures. In May, the baseball world lost both Ernie Harwell and Jose Lima. And right before the All-Star break, longtime Yankees public address announcer Bob Sheppard passed. But in what will be regarded as one of the top sports/news stories of the year…Yankees owner George Steinbrenner succumbed to a heart attack early Tuesday morning.


To put a cap on the first half of the baseball season, Gar Ryness, better known as Batting Stance Guy was at the All-Star Game in Anaheim Tuesday night and ran into “reputable reporter” Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.

Here’s their round up of the 2010 season so far.

Roy Halladay is Perfect!

I was sitting at the ballpark tonight (Road Ranger Stadium in sleepy Rockford, IL...mere minutes from the The Hall's home office), when news of Roy Halladay's perfect game came over the PA.

"So what's your angle going to be?" I was immediately asked.

I knew I needed one, but initially, I wasn't sure as there are quite a few to choose from.

Do you choose the "this is the first time since 1880 that there have been two perfect games in a season" angle?

Nah...probably going to be covered to death.

Maybe it's the old "this is the third perfect game in ten months" whopper. I mean, that's never happened and when you add in no-hitters...five in a span of a year is pretty amazing.

Perhaps I could go all introspective and recall how I was at a ballgame in 1995 when I got the news Mickey Mantle died or how, 14 years later...I was at the ballpark when I heard Michael Jackson had passed.

That combined with tonight's news and you've got the makings of a pretty good "where were you when" piece don't you think?

Then it hit me...why have an angle at all? You know, the old "the angle is 'no angle'" angle...not too shabby when you consider that Halladay's gem is bound to be the most publicized perfect game in the history of baseball and any medium.

I mean, here you have a guy who, last year at this time, was the lead story every night on SportsCenter because the Toronto Blue Jays might, I repeat, MIGHT consider trading him. Now, with the Philadelphia Phillies, "Doc" is pitching in the fifth largest media market, with a team that has reached the World Series in consecutive seasons.

So, I ask, why write about Halladay's accomplishments at all...won't it be covered to death in a multitude of facets and from different angles?

Yes, it will.

So without further ado, here are some of my favorites from the blogs I frequent often and the bloggers I respect the most.

The Tao of Stieb: On Roy Halladay and Starting Pitching

Joe Posnanski: Halladay! Celebrate!

The 700 Level: Roy Halladay is Perfect

Fishstripes: Fish Wrap

Hum and Chuck: To Me, You've Always Been Perfect

The Fightins: PERFECTION!

Of course...here's what Sports Illustrated, MLB.com and ESPN had to say.

And in case you were wondering (you weren't), my favorite tweet of the night came from my frenemy DashTreyhorn:

Roy Halladay, you named my firstborn son tonight.

Given the interwebs are full of Halladay posts tonight, I could go on and on and on, but I won't. Frankly, who really wants to read another "this was baseball's 20th perfect game in its history" or "this was baseball's sixth 1-0 perfect game" or, my personal favorite, the "there have been only been two perfect games pitched on a Saturday...Halladay's and the first one ever thrown back in 1880".

I know I don't.

I only wish that Navin Vanwani (shown above deep within the belly of the beast) was at his desk in Toronto banging away his love/hate for Halladay the Phillie, but I understand...a brother has to travel the country, hitting all 30 Major League ballparks when he can.

And in case anyone was curious what I will remember most about my trip to the ballpark tonight...it WON'T be Halladay's no-no. No, it'll be the fact that minutes after I dropped six bucks on a souvenir ball for my son at the gift shop in the seventh...he got a foul ball.