Week 3

Happy Easter Everybody!!!

It was a big week in the major leagues. The Orioles seem to have come back to earth after a hot start, the Cubs are falling apart and the Indians and Royals are still among the best in baseball so far. Let's take a look at the Longball League standings...

Wow, look at who is on top! It's the Invisible Hands! The Hands haven't been on top of the heap in awhile and they will fight hard to stay there. The SV Coachwhips are holding onto second, while the SP Sea Monkeys have slipped into third place. Quickly rising up the ranks are the Tax Dodgers. Could MLB's ousting of Frank McCourt of the LA Dodgers also be brining a lift to the Tax Dodgers? Hmmm. Meanwhile, the Demis and Mo's Mollusks are just a tad off the pace, but hanging in there. Finally, it looks like the 'Vettes and the AngelSox have taken up residence in the cellar.

Three things about week three in the majors:

1. If you need a no-hitter broken up call Dexter Fowler. The speedy center fielder for the Colorado Rockies broke up a pair on no-hitters this weekend against the Florida Marlins. The first was Friday night when he hit a broken bat single to end Anibal Sanchez's no-hit bid in the ninth inning. Then, he hit a ringing double to centerfield to break up Josh Johnson' no-no in the sixth inning on Easter Sunday.

2. There's no help for the Angels v. the Red Sox. The Halos were swept at home four straight by the Beantowners over the weekend. In fact, the Angels didn't score a run in the last 19 innings of the series. The LAA have lost 12 of their last 13 vs. Boston going back to the 2010 campaign.

3. Florida Marlins pitcher Josh Johnson is a flat out ace. He has taken no-bids into the fifth, sixth , seventh, and eighth innings this season. He's only given up 13 hits in 5 starts this season.

Trivia: After thinking about how many times Josh Johnson has flirted with pitching a no-hitter without getting one recently, I wondered what pitcher has won the most games in history without recording a no-hitter? The answer is Grover Cleveland Alexander. Alexander the Great won 373 games in his incredible career without ever pitching a no-hitter.

Baseball Card of the Week: In honor of Alexander's 373 wins without a no-no, he's pictured here on his 1915 Cracker Jack # 38 for us to enjoy.

Until next week, remember to use your glove to shade your eyes from the sun when trying catch a fly ball.

-The Commissioner

Week 2

Hey All,

Bad early season weather took its' toll on the majors this week with many games being postponed and others being played in miserable conditions. However the weather was good in the Longball League again this week. Let's look at the standings.

The SV Coachwhips are still on top, but the SP Sea Monkeys have risen to second place behind the great pitching of Jered Weaver. Meanwhile, the ever-steady Mighty Mollusks are just trucking along in third place. One point of the pace in fourth are the Invisible Hands who are led by Mark Teixeira's big bat. As for the bottom five spots of the league, injuries and poor starts have taken their toll.

Three things about week two in the majors:

1. I'm one those among us who likes to listen to the great voices of baseball's past, well I got a big treat on Saturday night. I tuned into the Arizona-San Francisco game where in the booth with the Diamondbacks announce team was Joe Garagiola. He's still sharp, told great stories and added some good commentary to the game at hand. I felt like I was watchng to the old NBC Game of the Week.

2. How have they won 7 games? the San Diego Padres are in the middle of the NL west race despite hitting just slightly over the Mendoza Line. I think Petco Park has a lot to do with it. It's the most pitcher friendly park since the Astrodome.

3. The Angels have gotten pretty young, pretty fast. With some youngsters called up to the club due to injuries, the Halos have a roster full of kids that are barely old enough to order a beer in a bar. In Saturday' game against the White Sox, the Angel battery of Tyler Chatwood and Hank Conger added up to 44 total years old. If this team gets any younger, they won't have a seventh inning stretch, they'll have seventh inning nap time.

Trivia: There were several games this week where one team hit into multiple double plays, heck the Yankees hit into six against the Rangers alone. So, I wondered, what is the record for double plays hit into by one team in a game? After a little reaserch, I found out the record is seven. On May 4, 1969, the San Francisco Giants hit into seven twin-killings in a 3-1 loss to the Houston Astros. The pitcher who got the win and induced four of those seven double plays was Dooley Womack. Way to go, Dooley!!! Oh, and Joe Morgan helped the Houston cause with a long HR off Juan Marichal in the bottom of the third.

Baseball Card of the Week: In honor of his being on the mound that day in 1969, Dooley Womack's 1969 Topps card #594 gets the honor.

Until next week folks, remember that as of now instant replay only exists in the majors for home run calls.

-The Commissioner

Week 1.5

Hey All,

It's been a fun start to the MLB season with all kinds of things happening at the ballpark. Heck, I've seen runner's interference called twice in two days. I hadn't seen that called twice in the last 20 years. It's been a big starting week in the Longball League too.

The Sierra Vista Coachwhips have vaulted into the early lead on the big bats of Miguel Cabrera and Mark Teixeira. Sitting in second are The Mighty Mollusks. They just seem to be there at the top of the standings every week. Sitting in third place are the San Pedro Sea Monkeys with the AngelSox and the Invisible Hands hot on their heels tied for fourth. The Thunder Mountain Lightning are sitting down in the lower division while the Tax Dodgers, 'Vettes, and Demis are all off to staggering starts. The Demis didn't get a full week into the 2011 campaign without having to drop a player when that total jerk Manny Ramirez tested dirty again for PEDs and promptly retired from baseball. What a loser.

Trivia: With all the talk this week about the awful starts to the season by the Red Sox and Rays, I thought I'd bring back up the worst start of all time by the 1988 Baltimore Orioles. The '88 O's didn't just stumble out of the gate. They stumbled, staggered, fell, got up and staggered some more while opening the season with 21 straight losses. Yeah folks, they started 0-21. The Orioles finally won their first game on April 29th. It was a 9-0 drubbing of the Chicago White Sox.

Baseball Card of the Week: In honor of those awful Orioles of 1988, I put a card here of catcher Mickey Tettleton who firmly believed that he hit more home runs when he ate Fruit Loops for breakfast. That earned him the nickname "The Looper" and a spot as our first Baseball Card of the Week for 2011.

Until next week folks, remember that the baserunner can't impede the fielders path to a batted ball or they will be called out for intereference.

-The Commissioner