Andy Pettitte Dazzles in Double-A Start

The high school I went to has had only a handful of guys go on to have any sort of athletic success at the collegiate level.

When I was a junior (or was it my senior year...who can keep track at this point?), I remember one of our school's best basketball players coming back, camping out in the gym and taking part in whatever P.E. class he could.

In all my tall and awkward splendor, I was always the guy who got to guard the Division I standout and, suffice it to say, it never ended well for me.

Somehow...I doubt I did anything to help out dude's game either.

That said, I know exactly how Shawn Bowman and Jonathan Diaz must've felt when they found out that taking the mound against them in their Game Two tilt against the Trenton Thunder Yankees was going to be none other thanAll-Star Andy Pettitte.

Somewhere there has to be a rule against that, right?

I understand that when big leaguers come back from injury, they often will do rehab in the minors. But is it fair that Pettitte and his 240 career victories (or any big league veteran for that matter) gets to trot out to the mound for a Double-A playoff game?

I mean, this is a cat who has 18 career MAJOR League playoff wins. How is possible that, during the first round, he can be added to the Trenton Thunder's playoff roster?

If I'm the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (the Double-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays)...I'm crying foul.

Not surprisingly, the 38 year-old lefty threw four scoreless innings and struck out four. He surrendered just two hits and didn't walk a soul. My guess is that Pettitte (coming back from an injury or not), probably has a little more control of his pitches than whoever should have taken the mound.

The Fisher Cats will try to stave off elimination Friday night, but thankfully for them...it appears that they won't have to take their cuts against a 16-year big league veteran.

That is, of course, assuming that the Yankees don't decide to send C.C. Sabathia to Capitol City to get in some extra tosses.

Vote for the Capital One Mascot of the Year

As the baseball season nears its conclusion and the pennant races are in full swing...college football season has already kicked off (see what I did there?) in grand fashion.

Of course, now would be the time in this post where I should reference some of the games from this past weekend, mention my current winning streak on my well-worn copy of College Football 2k6 or, since this is a baseball blog, bring up my affinity for San Diego's Swinging Friat mascot.

But instead...here comes the pitch on how you (yes, YOU!) can help Capital One determine its National Mascot of the Year.

Here’s how it works.

The Mascot of the Year is determined through fan voting each week at capitalonebowl.com. There are 12 weekly head-to-head match ups.

The mascots with the best win/loss records face off in online playoffs starting November 22, and the winner will be pronounced Capital One National Mascot of the Year on January 1 during the Capital One Bowl.

Each participating school’s mascot receives $5,000 for its university mascot program, and the Mascot of the Year receives an additional $15,000 scholarship to help fund its school’s mascot program.

This year the field includes:

Joe Bruin of UCLA
Bearcat of the University of Cincinnati
Joe Vandal of the University of Idaho
Mike the Tiger of LSU
Testudo of the University of Maryland
Sebastian the Ibis of the University of Miami
Goldy Gopher of the University of Minnesota
Monte of the University of Montana
Brutus Buckeye of The Ohio State University
Big Blue of Old Dominion University
Duck of the University of Oregon
Smokey of the University of Tennessee
Paydirt Pete of the University of Texas El Paso
The Bird of the U.S. Air Force Academy
Mr. C of Vanderbilt University
Big Red of Western Kentucky University

The United Coalition of College Mascots is praising the whole ordeal as well.

So there you go...watch this video and go vote!

Billy Williams Gets Bronzed in Chicago

With some of his former Chicago Cubs teammates at his side, Billy Williams was all smiles as a statue of his likeness was unveiled outside of Wrigley Field on Tuesday.

To say that the statue is overdue would be an understatement as the Hall of Famer has spent 52 years with the Cubs organization as a player, coach and executive.

For his career, "Sweet Swinging Billy" batted .290 with 2711 hits, 426 home runs and 1475 RBI. The six-time National League All-Star hit 20 or more home runs 14 times, had 90-plus RBI 10 times and batted at least .300 five times.

At one point in his career, Williams played in a then-National League record 1117 consecutive games from 1963-1970. His 392 home runs as a Cub are third-highest in franchise history behind Ernie Banks (512) and Sammy Sosa (545).

Across, town, the Chicago White Sox have announced plans to unveil a statue of Frank Thomas next season.

The former Sox slugger recently had his number retired and that led me to pose the question...who should be next for the southsiders?

Overwhelmingly, 39% you suggested that "Shoeless" Joe Jackson should get the same treatment as "The Big Hurt".

Who else?

27% of you said "no one". Jim Thome (12%), Paul Konerko (10%), Ozzie Guillen (8%) and Mark Buehrle (2%) also received votes.

Jim Thome Ties Frank Robinson

A day after his moonshot (didja see this one, yet?) seemingly changed my mind on his status as a first ballot Hall of Famer...Jim Thome went yard.

Again.

With this, his 586th career blast, the 40 year-old Thome tied Hall of Famer Frank Robinson for 8th place on the all-time list.

After Alex Rodriguez hit his 600th home run, I asked you all...who would be the next to the milestone. And what was your answer?

41% of you said Albert Pujols.

After watching what the Twins designated hitter has been up to lately...care to reconsider?

Trevor Hoffman (Finally) Gets Save Number 600

Thanks to Twitter...I didn't have to be watching the Cardinals-Brewers contest to know that Trevor Hoffman earned his 600th save tonight.

TheGarfoose (Dirk Hayhurst, Blue Jays pitcher): Trevor Hoffman just got his 600th save! I am so overwhelmingly proud. Believe me when I say it couldn't have happened to a finer player.

Maholm28 (Paul Maholm, Pirates pitcher): Congrats to Trevor Hoffman on save #600. What an amazing accomplishment.

Ken_Rosenthal (Ken Rosenthal, MLB on FOX reporter): Congratulations, Trevor Hoffman, on save No. 600. A class act every step of the way

That said, if you head on over to ESPN.com and look at the front page (click below to see for yourself)...you'd never know.

When sluggers approach home run milestones, the Worldwide Leader cuts into whatever they are broadcasting to show the would-be historic at bat.

Can someone please tell me if they did the same tonight for Hoffman? Please?!?

Sure he's having an off season. A 2-7 record, 6.23 ERA and only 9 saves is nothing to write home about.

But 600 saves is.

"Nobody's ever done it before," Hoffman's Brewers teammate Dave Bush said following the game. "He's the best of all time right now, and 600 is a really incredible number if you think about it."

There are going to be a lot of you out there that suggest that saves are overrated...and maybe they are. BUT, they are a big part of the game and let's be honest with ourselves, when someone accomplishes something that no one else has...it is pretty spectacular.

And for the four of you out there wondering who the next closer to reach 600 saves will be?

Mariano Rivera is sitting at 555.

After that, you're looking at Billy Wagner with 417, so suffice it to say...after Rivera accomplishes the feat, it isn't happening for a long, long time.

Jim Thome is in The News...Welcome to The Hall (Again)!

Every time Jim Thome is in the news...The Hall of Very Good sees some traffic. Apparently a guy hitting monster bombs (more on that later) makes people bang the Googles to the tune of "jim thome steroids".

I've detailed the rise in web traffic HERE and I ask you to skim it quickly before continuing.

In the meantime, the rest of you can watch (or listen) this video.



Alright...are you back?

Now that Thome is a home run shy of Frank Robinson on the all-time list and, at 40 years-old, seeing a resurgence in Minnesota, I'm ready to put him in the Hall of Fame on the first ballot.

I know, I know...I've said this in the past:

His home run total, while incredible, will not be as eye popping five years after Thome's retirement. Basically, we’ve got a guy who smacked the Hell out of the ball, but was never the most dominant, much less feared, player of his era.And because of that, he'll get lost in the mix.

And, while I still believe it (to an extent)...I'll gladly eat my words. I'm ready to take the heat.

So, to the chimps over at Baseball Think Factory...bring it on. I can take it.

Oh...did you see his home run Monday night? Christ.

Twitter Tuesday: Brent Mayne

When it comes to following former and/or current Major Leaguers on Twitter...it is hard to find anyone more knowledgeable than Brent Mayne.

Sure, a guy like Jose Canseco is mad crazy and fun to follow, but that's only entertaining for a few minutes at a time.

By tweeting links to his great website, The Art of Catching, Mayne has recently offered his insight and opinions on everything from the aftermath of the Stephen Strasburg injury to the immaturity of ballplayers.

Most notably, however, is Mayne's quest to start up a glove drive.

The former catcher knows the importance of a good glove and wants to help out those less fortunate by giving them the chance to own their own mitt.

You can contact Mayne (or donate a glove) by writing to: The Art of Catching, 2701 Harbor Blvd. E-2, #203, Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Omar Vizquel Sets Another Record

Omar Vizquel entered Monday's contest tied with Rafael Palmeiro (2831) and nestled between Harold Baines (2830) and Al Kaline (2834) on the all-time games played list.

He left with 2832 and now sits alone at 17th all-time for his career.

A quick scan of the 16 names ahead of him (Pete Rose, Carl Yastrzemski and Hank Aaron among others) shows that Vizquel has a long way to go until he sits atop the leaderboard.

But if you focus on that and the 5-4 extra innings victory by the "Pale Hose" you miss the true story. Forgotten by all (including Vizquel according to some reports) was the fact that the 43 year-old infielder has now played in the most games by any foreign born Major Leaguer.

More than Hall of Famers Tony Perez (2777) and Luis Aparicio (2601).

More than octogenarian Julio Franco (2527).

And now...more than the previous record holder Palmeiro.

"It's hard to believe through all these years and talking about playing so many games I look back on my career and it looks like I just started playing five years ago," Vizquel said to ESPNChicago.com following the game. "All of a sudden you find yourself with a lot of games on you, a lot of hits, a lot of records and I'm feeling very proud because I never thought I'd be in the big leagues for this long. And it's been a very great road for me."

The 11-time Gold Glove winning Vizquel has made his fair share of noise in the last couple of seasons.

With a career fielding percentage of .985, Vizquel is head and shoulders better than Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith (.978). He is also the all-time leader in double plays made while playing shortstop.

On May 25, 2008, Vizquel became the all-time leader in games played at shortstop, passing the afore mentioned Aparicio. Currently, the two sit at 2687 and 2581.

And not to keep piling on Aparicio, but on June 25, 2009, Vizquel became the all-time hit leader among Venezuelan born player. As of right now...he is at 2784. Aparicio sits at 2677.

Is pretty safe to call Omar Vizquel a Hall of Famer, right? Let me know what you think!